Here’s why trade shows are really important: they are newsworthy and a showcase for an industry, a market or a business segment.

Our case in point today is CES, the Consumer Electronics Show. Read More...

January has always been a big month for trade shows. Going back in my career, we had a number of shows that kicked off the year in a variety of industries. Now that I think about it, several industries anchor their years with January shows.

The National Retail Federation (NRF) is always at Jacob Javits convention center in New York City the first few weeks of January. This show started small (before moving to the big hall, it was held in hotel ballrooms and consisted of tabletops and portables) but has grown as retail has grown and changed. A large number of the anchor exhibitors are technology companies (Fujitsu, IBM, NCR, Motorola-Symbol, Oracle) as retail has become dependent on technology to target and find and define an ever-dwindling customer base. Read More...

This seminar is one of the key reasons I came to this show: to learn how to apply my company’s services to the world of exhibitry. Ian Sequeira of Exhibit Surveys was the presenter. Again, a full house and a good discussion. Less audience participation and dry slides, but a good, informative discussion.

Ian spoke of process mostly. He gave formulas and statistics and few real-world examples. However, the equations seem to work. His point was “why do you do survey work?” and “you should be doing survey work” even at a simple level. The more you know about your audience, the more you can target and get your messages to the right people. The results of even a simple post-show survey (the easiest to do) will help you shape your exhibit, demos and staff training. Read More...

The morning’s first class was growing your brand and incorporating it into your exhibit program. Scott Leech of Brandspeak of Minneapolis (www.brandspeak.com) was the presenter.

This popular (193 of 200 seats in the meeting room) seminar was clear and to the point, however, Scott did have to spend more time setting up brand to the room before sending the discussion off into how it relates to exhibitry. Rally everything around the brand and using exhibit marketing as a brand-building experience were the key messages. His examples (Pella, Qwest, Ultradent) showed this clearly. It also, by extension, showed that his exhibit-building partners understood how the integration of brand into exhibitry and how exhibits fit into the who of the brand program works. Read More...

I’m in Fabulous Las Vegas this week for the annual Exhibitor’s Show, presented by Exhibitor Magazine. This 20-year-old event is aimed at industry professionals who either produce shows for companies for supply goods and services to exhibitors. There are over 300 exhibits in 2 halls along with over 200 conference sessions spanning 5 days.

I’m here on for Zachry Associates to learn, network and support one of our clients. This is a great way to get reconnected and learn about new trends and happenings in the industry. This has become the premiere “trade show for trade shows” (to borrow the line from TSEA’s TS2 event, my apologies) and gets bigger each year. So far, I’ve reconnected with my trade show supplier roots, met with some new suppliers and potential clients and continued working on a project for a client. Read More...

This report comes to you from the show floor of th AWMA show in the Vegas Hilton. I’m writing this from the “internet cafe” provided by US Smokeless Tobacco, a major exhibitor at the show. A common practice, it is a nice perk for show attendees.

Today will be consumed with finishing the show, collecting and shipping out leads, managing shipments and closing out bills. More details to come. Read More...

“The Real Deal Expo” is a buying show aimed at putting distributors, retailers, brokers and suppliers together. AWMA (American Wholesale Manufacturer’s Association) hosted this expo and conference annually in rotating cities.

With a show floor comprised of over 180 exhibitors selling candy, tobacco, health and beauty aids, general merchandise, technology and equipment, the main target appears to be convenience operators. Booth sizes range from 10×10 (the largest proportion) to 20×40 with a few 30×30s and 20×20s scattered in the mix. The largest exhibitors include Hershey, Cadbury Adams, Santa Fe Natural Tobacco, Altadis and Commonwealth Brands. Several technology companies are also included in the mix, including our client, Retalix, a provider of point-of-sale products and back office systems. Retalix has a 10×20 exhibit at this show. Read More...

The more you visit Vegas, the more you don’t recognize it. The Hilton has been remodeled and new towers added. The car rental process at the airport has been streamlined so you only catch one bus. Off to the hall soon to see how the AWMA show is shaping up.