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Monday, February 23, 2009
Frivolous ...?
The last couple of posts have been quite frivolous, however both have a serious side to them.
Starting with Confex, once upon a time a wrong date on a poster or ticket would have been a terrible mistake for any organiser to make. Legions of visitors might well turn up on the wrong day, missing the show and causing problems in all sorts of ways.
However when I saw the 2-dates Confex advert, my first reaction was that I could just go to the show website and find out which one was right.
Visiting a show website before attending has now undeniably become as much a part of going to a show as paying too much for a sandwich (and counting the void areas to see if anyone has dropped out at the last last minute). What's on the ticket or poster is not what's going to make my mind up - but as long as it makes me visit the website, it's done its job.
And the proof of the pudding? Well, for Confex, it's years since I've been. But this time the "confusion" over dates made me MORE likely to visit the Confex website, just to check for myself which was correct. And so making a mistake on their poster may well have increased their attendance this year.
And on the right days as well...
Starting with Confex, once upon a time a wrong date on a poster or ticket would have been a terrible mistake for any organiser to make. Legions of visitors might well turn up on the wrong day, missing the show and causing problems in all sorts of ways.
However when I saw the 2-dates Confex advert, my first reaction was that I could just go to the show website and find out which one was right.
Visiting a show website before attending has now undeniably become as much a part of going to a show as paying too much for a sandwich (and counting the void areas to see if anyone has dropped out at the last last minute). What's on the ticket or poster is not what's going to make my mind up - but as long as it makes me visit the website, it's done its job.
And the proof of the pudding? Well, for Confex, it's years since I've been. But this time the "confusion" over dates made me MORE likely to visit the Confex website, just to check for myself which was correct. And so making a mistake on their poster may well have increased their attendance this year.
And on the right days as well...
Labels: Confex, web registration
Saturday, February 21, 2009
When exactly is Confex....?
It's Confex next week at Earl's Court.
Or is it?
This advert appears on District Line underground trains (so, going past the offices of Reed, Earls Court & Olympia and CMP amongst others).
Or is it?
This advert appears on District Line underground trains (so, going past the offices of Reed, Earls Court & Olympia and CMP amongst others).
All well and good, targeted advertising etc etc...
But looking more closely....
That's last years Confex date (12th-14th).
To be fair, the advert also has this years date as well...
But it makes you wonder.
Maybe they are being "Green", and recycling last years advert..?
Or maybe it's a clever trick to make you go to the website to check what the actual dates are?
Labels: Confex, confex 2009, confex dates, green exhibitions, international confex
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Going Up....
Here's the new quiz question for the UK exhibition industry.
"What was 5% in October, 10% in November, 15% in January and 20% in February?"
The answer...?
"the amount which it's considered acceptable in polite company (and among other organisers) to admit that your sales are down year on year".
Interesting times....
"What was 5% in October, 10% in November, 15% in January and 20% in February?"
The answer...?
"the amount which it's considered acceptable in polite company (and among other organisers) to admit that your sales are down year on year".
Interesting times....
Labels: forecast 2009, recession, UK exhibition industry
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Bad Weather....
Much of the UK ground to a halt this week due to a foot (30cm .... well, its a global business!) of snow, cueing much gnashing of teeth and wringing of hands all round as the everyone complained about how "other countries" could cope a lot better.
What's this to do with events? Of course, several big shows - most notably EMAP's Spring Fair - were taking place this week. Something that depresses attendance in the midst of a recession clearly isn't going to help anyone, but personally I suspect that exhibitors are smart enough to take into account the effects of a once-in-20-years event when they evaluate the show, and decide how (and if) they are coming back next year. Doing less business due to snow will hurt, but it's not going to break the basic model.
But the real problem with all this snow is wider.
Something like this that artificially depresses attendance in a dramatic fashion at a flagship event is bad news because it delays yet further the date at which the UK industry can really finally get a true like-for-like comparison on a major show, and from that decide just how badly it will be affected by the recession.
So, we are all literally, and metaphorically, still stuck in the snow...
What's this to do with events? Of course, several big shows - most notably EMAP's Spring Fair - were taking place this week. Something that depresses attendance in the midst of a recession clearly isn't going to help anyone, but personally I suspect that exhibitors are smart enough to take into account the effects of a once-in-20-years event when they evaluate the show, and decide how (and if) they are coming back next year. Doing less business due to snow will hurt, but it's not going to break the basic model.
But the real problem with all this snow is wider.
Something like this that artificially depresses attendance in a dramatic fashion at a flagship event is bad news because it delays yet further the date at which the UK industry can really finally get a true like-for-like comparison on a major show, and from that decide just how badly it will be affected by the recession.
So, we are all literally, and metaphorically, still stuck in the snow...
Labels: exhibition, snow. spring fair
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