For years I’ve been hearing all the buzz about IMEX, but never had the opportunity to experience it first-hand until this year.
IMEX is often referred to as the mega-conference & trade show for the events & incentives industries. And it definitely can be overwhelming for a newcomer. I spent the first couple of days feeling breathless … trying not to miss any must-see sessions I had bookmarked or in-booth activities that sounded creative and fun.
I was there primarily to capture and record ideas for YOU – to be the eyes and ears for all my podcast listeners, followers and clients. Perhaps that added to my feeling of overwhelm … I didn’t want YOU to miss out on anything.
Honestly, I felt I was failing in my mission until that last day on the show floor. Like so many shows, that day was much slower (although traffic was still steady in many booths). But that gave me the opportunity to spot things I’d missed the first two days, plus have more extended conversations with exhibitors.
So now that I’ve had a window of time to process and reflect on all my photos and notes, I’ve put together a list of ideas gathered and lessons learned during those four days in Vegas (both good and bad). Oh, and by the way, if you want to see my photo gallery posts of creative exhibits on the show floor, be sure to follow me on LinkedIn and inside the Exhibit Marketers Café Community, where I’m giving more in-depth breakdowns on what worked well and why.
Now onto my ah-ha moments from sessions I attended:
- Attendee registration is more challenging than ever. According to stats that Marsha Flanagan shared during her presentation on Exhibition Industry Trends, 64% of event organizers start marketing their events 8 months beforehand, but 90% of registrations are coming in during the last month! This makes for a tough situation for everyone. The organizers don’t have any idea how many attendees to plan for, and exhibitors may get anxious if they hear low attendance numbers leading up to the event. Plus the costs of everything soars as the event draws near. While this may be our new normal, there’s definitely room for adapting how we prepare for an unknown audience.
- It’s no longer enough to simply design memorable experiences – we must design experiences that prompt attendees to change. Or as speaker Mat Duerden put it: you need to shift those experiences from ordinary to memorable to meaningful to transformational.
- In order to stand out, you’ve got to personalize your communications and follow-ups in more creative ways than ever before. Mandi Graziano gave examples ranging from a fun wall calendar sent to clients from a hotel sales team to her own quirky out-of-office messages and custom GIFs that inspire conversations.
- Did you realize you’ve likely been overlooking key audience segments? Nick Borelli & Lisa Schulteis shared ways to consider your audience’s unmet needs and provide solutions. For example, one event provides STEM workshops for children of attendees. That allows single parents to bring their kids along, eliminating the complication of finding child care. They also talked about promoting your event as a great place for remote teams to come together for collaboration and networking.
- As you can imagine, there was no shortage of sessions about AI – the tools, the cautions, and ways to use them. One of the most intriguing examples was from Nick Fagan, who shared the idea of creating a “digital twin,” which uses a short video of you to replicate your voice and mannerisms. Then that “twin” can become a customer support agent or even an AI concierge, welcoming people into your booth. It was super-cool … but also a tad creepy too. I’m still not sure what I think of that use for AI.
You may notice that I didn’t go into much depth on most of these … that’s because I plan to bring a few of these speakers on as guests for future Trade Show Insights episodes. (So be sure to subscribe to the podcast if you haven’t already!)
Now here are a few “fails” I spotted:
- Don’t host sessions in the hallway – especially if you expect it to be popular! First of all, a standing crowd blocks the path of attendees passing by. (Safety issue!) But besides that, it’s nearly impossible to get anything out of the presentation, except for those in the very front. The first session was one I had looked forward to, but it was practically pointless for me. I could see slides on the monitor (kind of), but couldn’t hear a thing. The next session, we ended up moving to a ballroom with chairs, a full-size screen, and appropriate sound system, which made for a far better experience. I felt sorry for the speakers who were assigned to speak in that area – everyone deserves an actual meeting room and the tools they need to have a successful session.
- If you’re going to host a quiz using a touch-screen in your booth, make it worth the attendee’s time … and yours! I walked up to a monitor that caught my eye and began working through the questions. At the end, I expected to enter my contact details, but no! It flashed the result briefly on the screen, then went right back to the start page. So not only did I not get to read what my answers meant, but the exhibitor wasn’t ever going to know who was taking their quiz!
- And here’s one that I’m including in the “fails,” but was somewhat of a toss-up. At the end of certain sessions, there was a team of rap artists who created a recap of the content on the fly. Some were hilarious and even included references to technical difficulties or other impromptu moments during the class. Others failed to capture any significant points and didn’t really add anything to the experience.
And finally, a few features around the show that created meaningful moments:
- The Inspiration Hub featured a variety of stages on the show floor with themes including Insights, Curious Minds, Perspectives, and People & Planet, among others. Plus there were labeled trails on the floor, like a yellow brick road leading to each theater.
- Several of my favorite areas were connected to the Experience Profiles, designed by Storycraft Lab. Before IMEX, attendees could take a quiz online to discover their Experience Profile (I’m a Creator & Explorer). Then there were a number of special features and networking events around the show related to the various types. The Wheel of Belonging allowed attendees to create a visual path of how you define feeling like you belong at an event. The Neu Project Resilience Space was a welcome oasis off the show floor where attendees could rest and recharge, featuring comfy seating, plants, and soothing music. I really appreciated having that space on Day 2, and I wasn’t alone – I even saw a few people catching a short nap!
While not all of these ideas are appropriate for every audience, they certainly provide a wealth of discussion topics for you and your team – no matter whether you’re an event organizer or exhibitor!
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© 2024 Marlys K. Arnold
