Redefining regional trade shows

con·gre·gate

verb (used without object).   to come together; assemble, especially in large numbers

Welcome to Texas and two regional association trade shows.  MAPPS was yesterday in Dallas, HPPA is tomorrow in Houston.  Suppliers and reps set up their wares and hope that the distributor audence congregates. 

We just had one of these two weeks ago in Long Beach.  There, it was SAAC and there was less congregation than we would have prefrred.  And it got me to thinking about the changing nature of trade shows and our ongoing attempts to improve them.

If you look at the trade show calendar that PPAI posts, you could pretty much be at SOMEBODY'S trade show just about every week.  Sometimes it's an end-user show, sometimes it's a regional association's event, sometime something more national in aspiration (yet regional in execution).

It seems a bit strange in this environment of 24/7 access to data, where everyone is connected all the time, that there remains such an emphasis on physical access.  Didn't they tell us 15 years ago that trade shows were dinosaurs and would be gone soon?  Why the seeming disconnect?

One thing's for certain--the model hasn't really changed all that much.  For all the talk of "engagement" the permeates our business, "engaging" the trade show attendee (at least in our business) is a tough nut to crack.  Jump into the Wayback Machine to the mid-80s and the environment would look pretty much like it did yesterday--10-foot booths, bright colors, and staff standing around asking "can I help you?". 

So little is done the same way we did it 30 years ago, and while there may be new methods and protocols I'm unaware of, it appears to me as both an exhibitor and an attendee that very little about the trade show experience has chnaged since I started going to them. 

The regional associations are highly dependent on the revenue generated by their events.  SAAC, MAPPS, the regionals that join together to run Promotions East are all in the same boat--without their flagship event their finances would be materially different.  Yet the walls are closing in, there are fewer attendees, and exhibitors are wondering when all of this will return to some more sane schedule.

I think some fresh thinking is in order.   I certainly don't have the answers (I barely know half of the questions) but the world moves too fast these days to take days out of your life to stand in a booth hoping someone comes by. 

The Bright Lights need to start shining on this subject--my feet are sending me clear messages that standing around is not the best thing...

Pete

Our loss...

The email was relatively concise:


I am closing Greunke Gifts, effective August 31st, so that I can pursue new opportunities in loyalty and motivation.

Greg Greunke has decided to close his rep firm in Northern California. This comes on the heels of Barb Hendrickson selling her rep firm in Michigan. Two professionals, different situations, but with a commonality of result. The Brain Inventory has been reduced by two "A" students.

I don't consider myself a "bestie" with Greg--I knew and worked with his father in a previous life--but I did work with him on boards and sat in on some of his education sessions. He's a bright, enthusiastic guy who knows more about the social media side than most of us combined. And he's decided that being a rep is no longer in his interests.

He said it this way:

The most effective means to integrate these strategies with tangible rewards are not accessible in our role as a manufacturer's representative

And so it went. He’s off to do gamification, or whatever else tickles his fancy. The market loses a Bright Light who determined that being a rep wasn’t the best use of his talents. This is a sad commentary.

And it was that way with Barb also. The Immediate Past President of IMA woke up one morning and said “Stick a fork in me—I’m done.” She’s now deciding if her new gig at Visible Communications will be a hobby or a third act. And we’ll miss her too.

What on Earth is happening to us? Respected members of the rep community just up and leave? The Minor Chords are resonating all over the place. Maybe it’s just that 5% is no longer enough to run a business given the Unfunded Mandates the suppliers keep foisting on the reps.

Maybe it’s that the mercurial nature of the reseller base is enough to drive one to drink. It might even be that suppliers are too challenging to work with and it’s better to try something else than beat your head against the wall. Regardless of “why”, the “what” is that we’re losing talent we can ill afford to in these dynamic times.

I sure hope I don’t start writing this sort of thing more often…





Pete