On Tuesday, The Center hosted a webinar on CEIR’s new Spend Decision report. The dialogue that came forth from the webinar caused a stir here at CEIR and we want to share the conversation with you. Listen in…
Randy Bauler, CEM, who is the Corporate Relations and Exhibits Director for the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses posed this question to webinar participants:
“Is there sufficient evidence to support the proposition that the ‘Golden Age of face-to-face Exhibitions and Events’ is near?
My question is based on the following: there seems to be more and more data substantiating that exhibitions and events are recognized as significant (perhaps the best) options to increase sales and marketing results. It appears the value of print as a marketing medium is rapidly declining, and we’re still learning how best to measure and validate the marketing value of social media. In fact, there may be too many social media options and not enough time to effectively use all of them. As in all industries, a few will survive and emerge as the most acceptable and effective. They will enhance but not replace face-to-face.
Many experts recommend companies should work toward an “optimal media mix” — and I support the belief that social media, virtual events and print can and do supplement face-to-face exhibitions and events. However, assuming print will not fully recover and social media and virtual events will have limited impact (both bold assumptions), then will face-to-face exhibitions and events (b2b, public, corporate and community and experiential) emerge as the most reliable and productive marketing option? As has been noted in presentations to the industry:
Some said teleconferencing would surpass or replace exhibitions and events.
Some said virtual events would surpass or replace exhibitions and events.
Some warn that social media will surpass or replace exhibitions and events…..especially with the younger generations.
I’m starting to think all these predictions and warnings are false — and that a strong, fact-based, research-supported case can be made that face-to-face exhibitions and events have stood the test of time and remain the best option for those who want to reach customers, increase sales and strengthen their brand and market share. Supplemented, of course, with a prudent mix of other media options.
So my questions remains: Are we approaching the “Golden Age of face-to-face Exhibitions and Events”? Or am I being irrationally exuberant?”
And here is CEIR President Doug Ducate’s reply:
Randy:
You may be “irrationally exuberant” but I like the way you think!
What we have been discussing for some time is that there are those that think we are a sunset industry whose best days are behind us. On the other hand, there are those that think at age 40 we are still a sunrise industry whose best days lie ahead. Clearly there is prejudice and emotion on both sides and it is difficult to find rational people that don’t have an opinion…at least within the various industries your memo clearly identifies.
My first recollection of hearing of a possible negative long-term future came with the introduction of the Internet in 1994. One of the seers we all listened to suggested the two biggest victims of virtual would be shopping centers and trade shows. He saw the Internet as a perfect application to supplant both. Many of us worried about that for a few years until it didn’t happen. Personally I have never stopped worrying about it and encourage others to worry also. We need to treat the Internet like a pet snake…never trust it. At the same time we need to be better users of that fabulous tool.
We will be doing a number of things in the next several months to advance this discussion quietly among the best and brightest in our industry. You will be hearing more about this soon. There is a lot of anxiety out there for where we will be during the next three years…forget 10 to 20…just tell me about 2013 and 2014!
The Generational Study you helped kick-off is within a week or two of release. It is a terrific piece of work that provides a road map for exhibition organizers. One of the most gratifying bits of information is the positive attitude those under age 40 have toward face-to-face and exhibitions in particular. Oh they have lots of idea for improvement as you saw in the report for your event and face-to-face is uncomfortable for some but nonetheless they see the need to know the people with whom they are doing business. Frankly, I was afraid the project might reveal the opposite.
The best defense is a good offense and in our case that means not letting the negative view get any traction while the positive message of the future bulldozes right through the naysayers and yes even the press.
We probably are going to have to deal with some negative realities. Not all destinations are going to do well and some may fall from the national market. Their inability to keep investing in facilities coupled with the shrinking airlift will do them in. Some of them probably never were legitimate national destinations but that won’t slow the headlines when they throw in the towel. The cornerstone cities that built this industry probably are safe if they keep investing. The latecomers that benefitted from airline deregulation and the hub airline concept took a risk when they decided to try to be a national destination. They may need to be grateful for the benefit it provided and not mourn that day passing. It is kind of like Atlanta hosting the Olympics. That accelerated local development by 10 years and added features but everyone knew it would not last forever.
How we as an industry deal with the casualty can help contain the damage.
In the meantime, CEIR needs to lead the way in making the case for face-to-face and provide everyone in the industry the tools they need to deal with their local and internal challenges. We have an aggressive program to do that.
In case there is any doubt, I for one believe we are a sunrise industry whose best days are yet to come.
Now we would like to gather your opinions – what do you think?
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I’m very eager to see your new research that reveals the younger generation’s attitudes towards the value they get from attending trade shows. I think that bodes well that they feel the face-to-face interation of trade shows is still essential. During this downturn we’ve seen forward-looking data that both supports and detracts from the future viability of trade shows. I would love to see all the postive data aggregated into one huge, incontestible pile.
Following Doug’s comments, I remember back in the dot-com era my uncertainty of the internet revolution affecting trade shows disappated when we at Skyline Exhibits kept building exhibit after exhibit for internet start-ups — who were going to trade shows to promote their launch! So far trade shows have maintained themselves much better against the growth of the internet, as marketing budgets have instead shifted away from print advertising. But will that continue? I am more than curious to see if the great value of face-to-face trade show marketing can continue to outdo rapidly growing Social Media. If exhibitors and trade shows learn to embrace Social Media tools to better promote their face-to-face marketing, perhaps the Golden Age of exhibitions and events is yet to come.
Thanks for sharing this information and Doug, thanks for balancing the discussion with some of the negative realities.
Doug, your point about treating the internet like a pet snake is an interesting one. Would you treat the radio, TV, the telephone or fax machines like a pet snake? I doubt it, yet they are tools that we’ve become dependent upon in the events and exhibitions world.
I think the recession and recovery will continue to affect both the event and exhibition industry in the coming months. I personally believe we may see the rise of the hybrid event, where the web 2.o tools help create an infrastructure for the face-to-face event, extend the event experience before, during and after the event and create a touchpoint among many virtual and face-to-face touchpoints of the community/attendee experience.
I’m an advocate of viewing the face-to-face event/exhibition experience within a larger eco-system of customer/attendee/community member experience. When one does that, one will plan the exhibition experience from a more strategic holistically view instead of a one-time shot in the dark. Integrating the face-to-face experience with an entire range of other virtual and face-to-face experiences can prove successful.
Recently economist Don Reynolds spoke at our annual conference and said the following about the recession and recovery, “To expect a normal recovery cycle, whether it is corporate profits or lending or consumer spending or capital investment, or (pick the category—increased meeting attendance, or association growth) is just not reasonable.” I think his words can be viewed as an opportunity for the event and exhibition industry to continue to rethink, re-create, and re-vitalize the attendee face-to-face experience.
These are unique times indeed and opportunity awaits us.
Indeed we are in unique times, with companies striving to endure through this historic downturn as well as trying to figure out whether competition from alternative channels is a friend or foe. I love the snake pet analogy….
Having just completed the analysis for CEIR on the ‘The Spend Decision: Analyzing How Exhibits Fit into the Overall Marketing Budget,” I would submit that results to that study suggest that events that truly drive the sales process in a given industry are poised to survive and and as the economy or a given industry niche rebounds, these events will thrive. Also, those exhibitions with the reputation of being “a must attend” or are considered a flagship industry event also are positioned well for growth.
I’m not sure if this bodes a golden age for exhibitions. Perhaps it suggests a gold standard, an enduring principle of what exhibitions need to strive to be in order to be financially successful and apt to endure into the future.
That the Harvard study confirms the perceived value of ‘face-to-face’ interactions is no surprise to me. I look forward to seeing the results of the generational study as well and expect it too will confirm the importance of in-person contact. It behooves exhibition organizers to think hard about the face-to-face interactions exhibitors and attendees are striving to have at their events and whether their exhibitions deliver. Succeeding or failing to meet this expectations can be a ‘make or break’ for an event.
I believe digital media is a friend to exhibitions that drive the sales process. It helps these events achieve tactics, where this medium is truly an effective communications vehicle for the target audience.
I do feel that digital media, and other competing marketing channels (including other face-to-face marketing alternatives, such as corporate sponsored events) are a potential enemy to events that do not deliver value to their customers.