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Exhibits Northwest’s NEW Website

April 22nd, 2015 Mel White COMMENTS

ENW_1

Christmas Morning

Launching a new or updated website always feels like Christmas morning. It doesn’t matter if you have been immersed in the details for months. It’s still surprising and uplifting. Last night, we launched the new Exhibits Northwest website (www.exhibitsnw.com). Exhibits Northwest is a sister company of Classic Exhibits that operates exclusively in the Pacific Northwest.

So why does this launch matter to you, a Classic Exhibits distributor? Three reasons ….

Website Design

The new Exhibits Northwest website was designed to be optimized for full screen, tablet, and mobile devices. This was the goal from the beginning and drove every-single design decision. The announcement from Google last week to prioritize mobile-friendly websites was a coincidence but a happy one for Exhibits Northwest (and the Classic Exhibits website, which is also mobile-friendly). If you haven’t altered your website for mobile devices, it needs to be added to your “To Do” list for this year.

Mission

We’re not new to website development, but this time we took a different approach. Instead of listing all the features we wanted the site to include, we defined what we wanted the site to convey. The Exhibits Northwest website had to focus on three goals that spoke to the ENW mission:  Creativity, Capability, and Culture. So, whenever we talked about a feature, it had to be “stress-tested” against those three objectives. In the end, it meant jettisoning quite a few pages from the old site, which had meaningful content but didn’t add to the story. It’s an approach we would recommend to others.

Exhibit Design Search

Anyone who has attended Shared Knowledge University or spoken to Kevin, Jen, Reid, or me knows that Exhibits Northwest serves as a testbed of ideas for Classic Exhibits. We ask them to review new products or new online features before funneling them to the Classic Distributor Network. Some make it to the Network, others don’t based on their feedback. Exhibit Design Search is a perfect example. The new Exhibits Northwest version shows a new approach. The images are larger, less blocky, the menu minimized, and there are clever animations. This approach can’t be achieved on all distributor-branded EDS websites since it’s format specific, but there are elements we will look to add to the next Exhibit Design Search software update.

EDS_ENW_2_2

Last but not least, a special thanks to everyone who made this happen. You’re the BEST!

Should you have any questions, give us a call. We welcome your comments and feedback.

–Mel White
http://www.linkedin.com/in/melmwhite
mel@classicexhibits.com

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Based in Portland, Oregon, Classic Exhibits Inc. designs and manufacturers portable, modular, and custom-hybrid exhibit solutions. Classic Exhibits products are represented by an extensive distributor network in North America and in select International markets. For more information, contact us at 866-652-2100 or www.classicexhibits.com.

 

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You Like Me, You Really Like Me!

December 13th, 2014 Mel White COMMENTS
Lessons Learned

Lessons Learned by Jen LaBruzza

EDPA ACCESS 2014 Notes – Palm Harbor, FL

Flying High! As I fly home from the EDPA ACCESS 2014 Annual Conference,  I’m writing this from 30,000 ft. But that’s not the only reason I’m “high.” As you learned in Kevin’s blog last week, Classic Exhibits won a major award this year.

We were recognized with an EDDIE Marketing Excellence Award for our online Exhibit Design Search tool. I have to admit as Reid Sherwood and I made our way up to the stage to accept the honor, I was thinking of several people. Mel White, Tony Bennett, Glenna Martin, and Sally Fields. Why Sally Fields? Well the moment was definitely one of those, “You Like Me, You Really Like Me!” moments. Not me specifically, but Exhibit Design Search. The sales tool of all sales tools received the recognition it deserves. It was certainly a proud and emotional moment as Reid and I accepted the award on behalf of Classic Exhibits, our strategic partners, and every Classic Exhibits Distributor who has a branded EDS on their website.

ACCESS was great in so many other ways too. The theme was “Band Together.” Shared ideas about our beloved industry was practiced throughout the seminar and speaker sessions. In addition, Jim Shelman, Reid Sherwood, and I participated in the Supplier Showcase where we connected with current and potential customers, vendors, and even other suppliers in a way that was low-key and comfortable.

Lessons Learned3.jpg“Bridging the Generation Gap” was a particularly interesting session. Amy Yag from Access TCA, Amanda Helgemoe from NuVista, and Pat Friedlander from Word Up! led a lively and engaging session about motivating millennials in the workplace.

The 5 Key Millennial Motivators:

  1. Culture – Being part of something bigger and building a community.
  2. Incentives — Beyond monetary values.
  3. Set Communication Standards – Clear expectations for internal and external communication.
  4. Clear Expectations and Consistent Feedback – A generation of structured learners thrive on this.
  5. Focus on Personal Growth – Opportunities for continuing education/training.

Other sessions and keynotes provided insight into customer service and industry trends. One particular trend that was discussed in many sessions was Cost Reduction as the “new normal,” creating more pressure for exhibit companies to provide value. In all, our industry definitely seems to be on the upswing from the recession based on discussions with distributors, suppliers, and other manufacturers.

Jim and Reid also participated in the golf tournament at the signature Copperhead Golf Course. Jim said, “The golf and the weather couldn’t have been better! Other than a couple of long putts, I wasn’t able to contribute much to our team, but it was fun to be out on a beautiful course on a warm, sunny day in December.” (Who’s been to Oregon in December? Enough said!)

RR_Hotel_Exterior_06Next year the conference will be held in Las Vegas at the beautiful Red Rock Resort, Spa, and Casino, a mere 5 minutes from my house in Summerlin. You know I’m excited about that!

Looking forward to seeing everyone at EXHIBITORLIVE March 1 – 5 at Mandalay Bay.

Still need to register? No worries, we’ve got you covered.Get your VIP Guest Pass ACCESS CODE (#4044) and register:

http://www.classicexhibits.com/tradeshow-blog/2014/11/17/attend-exhibitorlive-2015-free/.

Jen LaBruzza, Western Regional Manager
jen@classicexhibits.com

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Eddie Haskell, Eddie Murphy, or Eddie Award?: Word on the Street — December 1st thru December 5th

December 6th, 2014 Mel White 9 COMMENTS
Kevin Carty, VP Classic Exhibits

Kevin Carty, VP Classic Exhibits

Classic Exhibits Honored with the 2014 EDPA EDDIE Award

The 2014 EDPA ACCESS Event wrapped up in Florida on Friday December 5. But it was, as always, Thursday night that served as the BIG Night for the Exhibit Industry. Thursday night was the Gala Event, The EDPA Foundation Silent Auction, and the Annual Award Presentations.

The Awards, such as The Ambassador Award, The Hazel Hayes Award, and Designer of the Year Award are given to individuals in the exhibit industry. But there is another category of awards called the EDDIE Awards. The EDDIE is given to companies for their Marketing Excellence over the past year.

We Won

eddie_1This year, Classic Exhibits Inc. won an EDDIE. And to say we are proud and unbelievably honored is an understatement. We won specifically for Exhibit Design Search or EDS as so many of you have come to call it.

The award is presented as a “company” award, but let me tell you who this is really for… Mel White! Mel is the VP of Marketing and Business Development at Classic Exhibits. And while many of you know this already, he is the visionary behind EDS.

Now, as Mel would say, Exhibit Design Search is a collective effort. Tony Bennett, the Classic Exhibits Web Developer, is critical to the success of EDS. He is the genius that makes it all work seamlessly on the web and your “Go To” guy for every distributor-branded website. And then there is Glenna Martin, our Graphic Designer. Glenna plays a key role in the overall branding. There are the Classic Exhibit Designers who create all the beautiful designs that populate EDS with fresh new ideas, and the Customer Service Team who sweat over the Setup Instructions and Graphic Dim Sheets. And of course, every distributor who has offered suggestions, and our wonderful strategic partners in EDS — Optima, DS&L, Brumark, and Eco-Systems Sustainable.

Mel will be humble and say that everyone at the company has a part in the acceptance of this award, and while we appreciate that, as his partner at work and as a representative of the company as whole, I know better. EDS is Mel’s baby, his Brain Child, His Vision. And that Vision has helped transform Classic in so many ways over the past nine years.

This past Thursday night, my cell phone blew up when we won the award — from Reid, Jen, and Jim who were on site at ACCESS, and from so many partners and customers who were in attendance at ACCESS. There was one common thread in all the texts, emails, and phone calls. That common thread was “I/We are so happy for Mel.” That says it all to be frank.

So, as your friend and as your partner day in and day out Mel — CONGRATS! I, too, was beaming with pride and joy when I heard the news, proud of you and joyful that you were recognized for all your dedication and hard work.

BTW — Mel serves as my editor for this blog each week, not changing anything per say, rather editing my runoff sentences, adding commas, etc. And he is gonna REALLY REALLY hate that I did this.  🙂

Congrats my friend!

–Kevin
http://twitter.com/kevin_carty
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/kevin-carty/3/800/32a

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“Buy” Button on Exhibit Design Search

September 17th, 2014 Mel White COMMENTS

EDS_logo

Nearly nine years ago, we launched Exhibit Design Search (EDS), using OSCommerce. It required each distributor to maintain their EDS site and have an online ecommerce account. For all but a few distributors, it was a disaster. They didn’t have time to maintain their site, and the ecommerce function was superfluous. Rarely, rarely, rarely did anyone buy an exhibit online. So, we changed. We created a Classic-maintained EDS and removed the shopping cart.

Since then, there have been countless version changes, but the basic approach has been consistent and successful. One of the features we’ve experiment with the most has been “Calls to Action.” Web consulting gurus insist that a Call to Action is one of the most important features of websites to capture goals. We’ve experimented with various ones, such as Contact Us and My Gallery. Both work fine, but success will always be measured in how often customers contact you.

Recently, we asked ourselves if it’s time to reconsider an ecommerce site. It would be a major software upgrade and would work with about 40% of the kits, like banner stands, table tops, pop-ups, etc. It would be costly, but we’re not opposed to the cost if it spurs more sales. But before we jump headfirst into the pool, we’d like to judge the “true” temperature by wading up to our waist.

The “Buy” Buttonedsbuy

Effective on Friday, we’re adding a “Buy” button on all branded Exhibit Design Search sites, except the Classic website and on the two unbranded EDS sites (remember, we don’t sell direct).  The “Buy” button will go to a contact form with the following language:

Over the years, we’ve learned that purchasing the ideal display takes more than “one-click.” You have questions, we have questions. Together, we’ll ensure that the display you choose reflects your marketing goals and budget.

Give us a call or complete the form. We will respond ASAP. Let’s make your NEXT SHOW your BEST SHOW.

BuyOur distributors tell us that customers call or email if they are interested in a display on their website, even if they have ecommerce available. Sometimes they’ll purchase a basic item online, but even then they will call to confirm. The EDS “Buy” button serves two purposes:  1) It’s a definitive “Call to Action” and 2) It reinforces the idea that purchasing an exhibit should be a consultative process. And, as with ALL contact forms on distributor-branded EDS sites, the information is sent to you (and never to Classic Exhibits). This will be true with the Buy button as well.

Is this THE ANSWER or the PERFECT SOLUTION? No. But it’s a good first step. Over the next few months, we’ll contact you about your experience with the “Buy” button on your website. This will tell us which direction to go.

Should you have any questions, please give me a call or send me an email. Your voice matters, whether about EDS, our products, or our service.


–Mel White
http://www.linkedin.com/in/melmwhite
mel@classicexhibits.com

**********************************************

Based in Portland, Oregon, Classic Exhibits Inc. designs and manufacturers portable, modular, and custom-hybrid exhibit solutions. Classic Exhibits products are represented by an extensive distributor network in North America and in select International markets. For more information, contact us at 866-652-2100 or www.classicexhibits.com.

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How Your Eyes Move on a Website [Cool Inforgraphic]

August 13th, 2014 Mel White COMMENTS

Single Grain designed this excellent infographic that explains:

  1. How our eyes move on a website or blog,
  2. How web design influences eye movement and interaction, and
  3. Proposes tips for creating an effective website design.

I thought this might be helpful to Classic Distributors redesigning their website. It’s a topic I hear almost every day since so many distributors have branded versions of Exhibit Design Search.

Enjoy!

how-your-eyes-move-on-a-website-infographic-internet-marketing-with-blog-optimization

–Mel White
http://www.linkedin.com/in/melmwhite
mel@classicexhibits.com

**********************************************

Based in Portland, Oregon, Classic Exhibits Inc. designs and manufacturers portable, modular, and custom-hybrid exhibit solutions. Classic Exhibits products are represented by an extensive distributor network in North America and in select International markets. For more information, contact us at 866-652-2100 or www.classicexhibits.com.

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