At the recent NACStech show, my first task was laying cables for the in-booth network. While at first, this seems like an easy task, it can be complicated.

Trust me.

While I could just as easily had the cables lay down next to electrical cables, the CAT 5’s were needed in specific places. Several rules are to be applied in this process:

• Have a clear map of where cables are to go.
• Label each cable on each end (1A, 2B, et al).
• Run redundant cables in case of failure.
• Tape the cable flat to the floor so that are flat under the pad.
• Lay the pad directly over the cables. Notch if they are too bulky.
• Be sure and pull all cables through the pad and carpet as it is cut.
• Be sure and pass all cable ends through cabinet access holes.

If you do all of this beforehand, you are less likely to have to “fish” a cable after the carpet is laid or have a cable fail during the show. Read More...

You go into the hall, head down, heading for the space, ready for set up.

Hmmm….can’t find the booth number. Why is this booth a 20×20 and not the 20×30 I paid for? Let me find that floor manager and see why they eliminated my space! Read More...

The word from NACS (the National Association of Convenience Stores) is that their event in Texas will proceed.

After contacting show management on behalf of our client, Retalix, I learned that NACStech, set for May 18 to 21 at the Gaylord Texan Resort in Grapevine, Texas, will happen. Read More...

I admit it, I’m a convert. I always thought you had to own a custom booth to be a big player. But with the pressures of financial performance a daily reality, having a quality image on the show floor has to be rethought. Enter the rental custom booth.

There are three reasons I like this concept:
1. I can just pack my stuff and walk away at the end of the show.
2. The pricing is predictable in that I&D, drayage, and rentals (structure, carpet, pad, funishings, cleaning) are combined in a single contract (that is, if you use the general contractor as I did at this most recent show).
3. It can be repeated and works well for programs of four shows or fewer.

While it ain’t the latest in design, for a tech company or a company with a conflict or reduced budget, this can work very well. While it is a compromise in some areas, it is workable and delivers the messages that are critical for the client: those related to product and about how serious they are about cost containment. Read More...

The show is about to start, so it’s time to gather the staff for a briefing before the attendees flood onto the show floor. At NACStech, we had a staff of about 12 for the 7 workstations. The meeting was led by the two main sales people for the business unit. We took 15 minutes to brief them on three key topics and take a quick tour of the booth:

1. How to take and record leads.
2. Booth etiquette, rules and expectations.
3. Customers and others to expect in the booth. Read More...

I’m at the National Association of Convenience Stores Technical Show (otherwise known as NACStech) this week. The show runs Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning at the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center in Grapevine, Texas.

The show participation is down this year (about 100 exhibitors as compared to 125 last year in Nashville) according to the organizer. The show floor is about the same size, but the bigger players (Gilbarco, Pinnacle) have downsized to 20×20s. Read More...

It is always a good thing to show up early to the show floor. You can see if your frieght has arrived, among other things, but basically get the “lay of the land.”

Once you get past the usually who-ha of wrist bands and where things are, you get to the booth space to see what awaits you. For example, when I arrived at the space at NACStech at the Gaylord in Grapevine, Texas, I was greeted with a few surprises. Not what I wanted, but not insurmountable. Read More...