Trade Show TalesBlog

Posts Tagged ‘Trade Shows’

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »

Sour Apple(s): Word on the Street — March 24th thru March 28th

March 30th, 2014 Mel White 1 COMMENT
Sour Apples

Kevin Carty, VP Classic Exhibits

Fuji Me Once. Shame on You.

I have long admired the folks in Cupertino for their innovative thoughts, ideas, product aesthetics, design intuitiveness, etc. Apple is a model in many ways of how marketing and product development should be.

When Apple is attacked by other brands and other brand lovers, I, like others, defend it. Sometimes it’s as simple as using the old phrase, “Look at the scoreboard baby!” meaning the facts don’t lie. Just look at the number of iPhones and iPads sold compared to other brands. The numbers don’t lie. It’s much more than the delectable taste of their Kool-Aid that draws its legion of followers and converts to evangelize their love for Apple. It’s their technology-driven solutions, designed purely for consumers, which match their every need as if the developers were thinking the same thoughts.

I am proud of my Kool-Aid stained upper lip and the following gripe will not change that.

In business, I agree that Apple may not be the best solution for all. Yes, I said it my fellow fruit basket dwellers. But, it’s true. I can defend the business applicability of Apple when needed, but that is not my point in writing this blog post. I only bring it up because the iPad (all generations) have become integral to trade shows and events — driving presentations, lead retrieval, on counters, stands, and handheld sleeves. iPads are EVERYWHERE.

We Love iPads

About three years ago, Classic Exhibits targeted this segment aggressively. We are proud of our success as THE iPad Solutions Provider in the Exhibit and Event Industry. No other company has more solutions and no one else engineers iPad Solutions specifically for trade shows and events. We specifically created  plug and play solutions,which meant included cabling in all our kiosks. Cool idea and the kudos we received for that simple add-on have been huge to be frank.

Well rewind to a few months ago. The long awaited and much anticipated iOS7 was released by the Cupertino-clan. As a user, I loved it! There were some little bugs, but they fixed those almost immediately. But overall a huge win from a user interface, aesthetic, and product development standpoint.

All good, right? Well . . . even the shiniest Apples sometimes have a worm in them, or best said, sometimes they are picked a little too early. This apple is a little sour once you take that second or third bite.

This is the sad case with a little known (at the time) hidden firmware change that Apple put into the latest iOS7 updates. Those with Apple devices running the new iOS7 know what I am talking about. Apple programmers updated the code to detect “non-Apple” branded charging cables. So the buzz and frustration all over the web has been, “My phone won’t charge now that I have updated to iOS7” and “Is my iPad broken? It will no longer charge since the update.”

I am a capitalist, but the answer from Apple was sad to be blunt. Apple’s response was that they were protecting their market share. REALLY? Do you expect the average consumer and business purchaser to really think an 1M or 2M cable is a critical part of your market share? I guess at $19-$29 each (plug not included), which is the price Apple wants for a $.12 cable, maybe it really is a crucial part of your ability to pay your bills.

Anyway, I digress. My business frustration is this — iPad’s RULE the trade show floor market. RULE IT! But when you get out of the United States that is not the case. At EuroShop this past February, we learned that other tablets have an equal if not greater presence on the trade show floor. From a business perspective, as a company that has embraced iPads and their value in our space, this short-sided, money grab by Apple is a stinger to us all.

I admit, the cables we provide are not bought from Apple. They are purchased from a manufacture that certifies them and sells them to many big box stores in the US. They are a safe product that we have chosen to buy in bulk as a benefit to our clients, clients who are buying iPads from Apple to use in our solutions.

Hard Apple Cider

But now, we find ourselves as a business and as consumers stuck with only ONE option for our Apple Juice. That does not sit well with me.  Maybe I am being hypersensitive. But it seems a little stupid and arrogant on the Apple folks part to tell me, “Yes Mr. Loyal Consumer, you do need to explain to your daughter that her Hello Kitty Charger is not authorized.”

Now that I have ranted, what does this mean for Classic Exhibits, the iPad Solutions Leader in the Exhibit Industry? Well, we’re going to be making a separate announcement that the cords may or may not work. So end-users will need to bring their Apple authorized charging cord with them to their show, (which by the way is TOO short), but that we will be including with each unit a USB extension cord that will allow them to extend the length of their Apple authorized cord.

Until, of course, Apple decides that extension cords are critical to paying for Sally and Billie’s dental coverage. Stay tuned.

Hope you have a great weekend with your families.

Be well.

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

[subscribe2]

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Kevin Carty, Word on the Street | 1 Comment »

Why EXHIBITOR Matters (But Should It?)

March 15th, 2014 Mel White 4 COMMENTS

Each year, I have to remind myself why participating in EXHIBITOR matters. That may seem odd. After all, EXHIBITOR spends a mountain of cash listing all the reasons to attend. Who am I to argue with them. They know their audience. But, I still have to ask myself why should I attend? I’ve already gone at least fifteen times.

I’ve worked for three display manufacturers, and there have been years when I’ve questioned whether we should attend, let alone exhibit. I’ve seen competitors skip a year or two with “seemingly” few repercussions. Why should we build an exhibit just for EXHIBITOR and spend considerable cash at a show where we know all the players.

Then I remind myself (or Kevin reminds me), why EXHIBITOR matters to Classic Exhibits:

1. Our Distributors. We are a distributor-driven company. That’s how we sell our products. Yes, Reid and Jen visit our distributors throughout the year, and we hold Shared Knowledge University twice a year. That said . . . There’s no other event that brings more Classic Distributors to one place than EXHIBITOR. It’s our chance to see, learn, and share stories with them. My only regret, and I know many of you will groan when I say this, but I wish the hall hours were longer and at least one day longer. There’s just not enough time during those three days to spend quality time with each distributor. Inevitably, I leave the show knowing that I short-changed myself by not spending enough time with Distributor A, B, C, or D.

2. Our Employees. We’re in the trade show business, but that doesn’t mean we attend trade shows regularly. We don’t. We’re designing, project managing, and building exhibits. Then it ships to a show, and we never see it again. More often than not, we never see it in its final state with the graphics, products, flooring, A/V, etc. We miss that feedback and that experience. Attending EXHIBITOR allows many of our employees to immerse themselves in a trade show about trade shows. They see how our solutions differ from other builders or service providers. They get the opportunity to meet distributors face-to-face, often for the first time after working with them for years.

3. Products/Trends. Classic Exhibits is in a constant state of R&D. It’s rare that a week goes by that we don’t create an innovative solution either by necessity or by design. If it’s really important, we devote a Design Monday to it or we send a dedicated email broadcast. But, we’re smart enough to realize that your days are information intense and expecting you to internalize each and every new innovation is impractical. EXHIBITOR allows us to focus on those new ideas or products that we want to share with our distributors. Year after year, distributors tell me that they attend EXHIBITOR for one main reason — to see what’s new. And each year, I make a point to ask them what they saw “new” in the exhibit hall. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard, “Except for what Classic is showing, I’ve only seen one or two interesting ideas.” Honestly, I’m always shocked by this. Why would any manufacturer, builder, or service provider come to EXHIBITOR without NEW?

The Before Photo . . . In Progress

4. The Industry. This will sound sanctimonious. I’ve had conversations with suppliers, partners, or competitors who have told me they are not participating in the show. I could understand that if our industry had multiple shows each year . . . but we don’t. We have one. Then they’ll tell me that EXHIBITOR never really paid off for them. It didn’t create any new sales or find new distributors or identify any new suppliers. Folks, that’s clearly BULLSHIT or better yet, it tells me they don’t understand trade show marketing. You can’t be in the business of trade shows and not participate in trade shows. You can’t! Whenever a supplier, certainly one of considerable size and focus in our industry, tells me that they not only don’t exhibit at EXHIBITOR but they also rarely attend, then they are unlikely to win my business.

5. Social. Despite the long hours and the pressure, it’s fun. I always meet new people and see old friends. I get to hear all the gossip and speculate on this year or next year. The food is good. The parties are always memorable in so many ways. It’s always a roller coast ride of emotions, sights and sounds, and at least one experience that makes me happy I don’t live in Las Vegas year round. Our personal and business lives are pressure-packed and EXHIBITOR is (for me) an annual perk. It is work, but it never seems like work.

If you are attending EXHIBITOR, I’ll see you there. Get my attention if it’s during show hours. If not, let’s make arrangements to have a drink or a meal before or after show hours. For anyone not attending, we’ll do our best to share photos from EXHIBITOR in the blog.

Happy travels.

–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.

[subscribe2]

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Mel White | 4 Comments »

EXHIBITOR Show Design & New Website: Word on the Street — January 27th thru January 31st

February 3rd, 2014 Mel White COMMENTS

Kevin Carty, VP Classic Exhibits

EXHIBITOR2014

In just six short weeks, we will meet in Las Vegas for EXHIBITOR 2014. It’s our opportunity to show all that is new in our great industry from design and construction to AV, flooring, and services.

Each year at Classic, we collaborate to create the layout and foundation for our booth at the show. This year was no different. We started with representatives from Design, Production, Project Management, Rentals, and Management to discuss what all we wanted to show and do at this year’s upcoming EXHIBITOR show.

This year a unique focus was given to “Design” as a whole. Not that we don’t always have a well-design booth. We do. But this year EXHIBITOR is holding the Inaugural Design Awards of Excellence at EXHIBITOR2014, an event celebrating the very best in designs from the past year and from the show floor at EXHIBITOR 2014.

Classic is heavily involved in this inaugural event and very appreciative. We are participating with several entries in the award categories.

So this year, we knew this going into our own booth design meetings. Our clear focus is to create the most design-driven exhibit  that we have ever shown at EXHIBITOR.

Having said that, the process is always a challenge. The more people you bring into the process, the more ideas you get and the longer and more difficult the process can be. No different really that what we all experience when designing for our clients. And like our clients, we are indecisive yet full of home run ideas. Many sound great on paper, but are not practical. Sound familiar? Many of the same struggles we think are only “client driven” are actually challenges we face as well.

I can report that the booth we designed is truly the most elegant and beautiful exhibit we have ever produced for EXHIBITOR. We will highlight not only our systems, but also the custom wood work we have been building for you over the past two years.

Katina Rigall has taken on the tough task of absorbing all our crazy ideas and putting them to paper — and she has done a stellar job. Now Production and Project Management are doing their magic to make it all come to life

Back to the awards night. It will be held on Tuesday at 6:30pm in one of the event halls at Mandalay Bay. Final details will be announced next week. But suffice it to say, it is going to be a truly grand event, produced by the great folks at Exhibitor Media Group and Delphi Productions. Please make sure, when you see the details, to get a ticket for you and your staff members to attend, and enjoy a night designed to celebrate the beauty that we all create every week.

Register for EXHIBITOR — For FREE

Special Promotion Code: 4044

The Special Promotion Code gives you free access to both the Exhibit Hall and the Monday evening Welcome Reception. It’s a $100 value! Enter this code on the registration page at www.exhibitor2014.com/vip.

New Classic Exhibits Website

On a different topic . . . The New Classic Exhibits website is Live BABY. And its truly beautiful! Mel White, Tony Bennett, and Glenna Martin deserve a tremendous amount of credit for all their long hours and dedication to creating what I think is hands down the best website in our industry. Yes I said the best! Check it out and I think you will say the same thing. It combines beauty, class, and an intuitive nature all in one great website.

Some Highlights:

  • All the same tools:  EDS, P5D, Peek-a-Booth, Trade Show Tales
  • Organized, easily-accessible drop-down menus
  • Larger and brighter graphics
  • Consistent page designs
  • Information Bubbles for most product lines
  • Revised, cleaner layout for EDS
  • Advanced Search option in EDS

The next phase is the Adaptive Design layout for tablets and smartphones. Should be ready in the next 60-90 days.

Take a look and please let us know what you think. I truly believe you will appreciate all the hours and hard work that went into the process.

I look forward to this week as we kick off another great sales month together.

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

[subscribe2]

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Kevin Carty, Word on the Street | No Comments »

The 10 Do’s and Don’ts of Trade Show Graphics

November 6th, 2013 Mel White 5 COMMENTS

VisionaryBlogBanner

You decided on your new trade show display . . . but you’re not done yet. Now, it’s time to design the graphics. Every day we see completed graphics, many of which we feature in Past 5 Days. Some amaze us. Others not so much. You want AMAZING!. Below are 10 tips to consider when designing your next trade show graphics.

1. Look Up. Think about what elements you want seen either 6 ft. away or across the show floor. Avoid putting important elements at floor level. Higher elements will draw your customer’s attention. Those should be the ones you emphasize.

2. Hire a Graphic Designer Who Understands Trade Show Graphic Design. Most don’t. Don’t spend thousands of dollars on a new display only to use lackluster, unprofessional graphics. It’s the equivalent of working out to build a 6 pack and then wearing a muumuu. A professional graphic designer will know how to source quality files, format them, design your graphics, and hit your deadline.

If you don’t know what resolution, PMS color, vector art and bleed are, trust me, you don’t want to be responsible for file preparation. Hire someone who knows what they’re doing. The graphics are as important as your physical display, if not more important, and they can make or break your display presentation.

3. Your Display isn’t a Paper Brochure. This is the single biggest mistake most exhibitors make. You want your messaging to be clear, concise, and to the point. Leave the details for the printed or electronic collateral. No one is going to read text heavy graphics so keep it simple and impactful. Get the help of a copywriter if you can. Avoid clichés and tired expressions like “innovative” and “unique.” Get to the root of the problem and state your solution. Strong messaging that can be digested in 15 seconds or less will make your display MUCH MORE effective.

4. Image Quality Counts. Photos should be high resolution or vector, especially for your logo. Always have native, clean artwork for projects. This is critical! Spend the extra money to get good quality stock photography. It’s not that expensive and can make a HUGE difference in your booth. This isn’t a billboard — people will be walking up and even touching your graphics. Nothing makes a graphic designer cringe more than being handed a business card and asked to pull a logo from it. If you worked with a designer to create an identity for your company, ask them for the native files. You may not be able to open them, but that doesn’t mean your designer won’t be able to. This is why you hired a professional in the first place, remember?

5. The Devil is in the Details. View your graphics rendered on the display. Sometimes elements of the physical booth really have an affect on the flow of your graphics. You won’t know until you see them so make sure that you view them before you print them. Be sure that you know where accessories like shelves and monitors are placed. Exact measurements are critical. Too many times the graphics arrive and they look amazing, vibrant, and perfect . . .  until you realize that the monitor cuts off half of your logo. Seeing the graphics rendered will help prevent mistakes and be worth the added time.

6. Create a Flow. Sometimes clients have a million ideas in all different directions. Just because your display has four different graphic surfaces that doesn’t mean that you should treat them as such. Make sure your graphics tell a coherent story. If your client wants each of their four products featured, one on each panel, that’s fine. Find a way to tie them together. Make sure that the color scheme and design as well as your copy works together. Don’t re-invent the wheel with each panel. You want the overall design to work together — not confuse.

7. Color is Your Friend . . . or Your Enemy. Reference specific Pantone swatches when color matching is critical. This goes back to working with a professional when possible. Trade shows are notorious for being tight turn projects. No one wants to have graphics shipped directly to the show only to find out that the nice mustard yellow they were expecting printed peach or pea green.

8. Don’t Font It Up. One or two fonts is enough. I promise. Three fonts is pushing it. Any more than that and you’ve got an identity crisis on your hands. Legibility is key with any graphic design but especially graphics that are being viewed from a distance. Look for clean, easy-to-read type and then if you want a little flare, add an accent font that is more unique, but don’t over use it. And please, I beg of you, don’t use a cursive or handwriting font in all caps. Just don’t. As a side note, avoid any fonts with names like Giddy-up.

9. Scale is Everything. You have the opportunity to create graphics of a larger than life magnitude. Seize the day! Go big or go home. Don’t waste your time designing 20 foot graphics that are only meant to be viewed from two feet away. Again, let them use your collateral for details and smaller views of things. Think about what you want people to see from three aisles over. Show them something that makes them want to visit you.

10. Cut Your Losses. If your client wants to do something really dumb and you’ve tactfully advised them why they shouldn’t, then let them do it. They’ll learn. They can only smack their thumb so many times with a hammer before they eventually discover how to hit the nail. 😉

Need assistance with your trade show graphics? Let us know. Share your tips for AMAZING trade show graphics in the Comments section.

Glenna Martin
Graphic Design Manager

http://www.linkedin.com/in/glennamartin
glenna@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.

[subscribe2]

Tags: , , , , , , ,
Posted in Glenna Martin, Trade Show Exhibit Tips | 5 Comments »

Four Part Interview with Mel White, Classic Exhibits Inc.

October 8th, 2013 Mel White 2 COMMENTS

I’m on a trade show modeling website?!

Here’s a shocker friends. I’m on a modeling website . . .  and no money was exchanged. Margaret Colebeck from Vantage Advertising conducted an interview with me about displays, design trends, and the exhibit industry which they posted on their blog. I’m usually not “chatty” (quit laughing Kevin), but this time I made an exception. They had to post it in four installments.

This is the introduction at Vantage Advertising:

“Are you interested in learning more about the world of trade show exhibits and what types of designs can fit your needs? Then, you’re in luck! The following blog post is the 1st of 4 installments of our interview with trade show booth display expert, Mel White, VP of Marketing/Business Development at Classic Exhibits. The goal of this interview is to educate, inspire, and enlighten experienced trade show exhibitors, like yourself, about the world of trade show displays.”

The links below will take you to the interview. No skimming.

  • Part 1 — Selecting a Design
  • Part 2 — How Much Does It Cost
  • Part 3 — Current Trends
  • Part 4 — Renting vs. Purchasing

Vantage Advertising, also known as Models4tradeshows.com, is a nationwide event staffing company that hires trade show models, spokes models, and promotional models for events throughout the United States and parts of Canada. The company’s business model centers around that idea that by matching business marketing goals with the specific skills of spoke models, businesses will see a significant increase in the return on their trade show investments.

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

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Mel White, Trade Show Exhibit Tips | 2 Comments »

« Older Entries
Newer Entries »