Events such as trade shows have a life cycle. Sometimes regional events merge and become a world-class annual national or international powerhouse. More often, an exhibition starts small, grows gradually for years, peaks, plateaus, falters and eventually disappears. Key contributors – in no particular order — to the end-of-life decline for expos:
- Aggressive, more nimble competitors
- Failure to change and to add fresh features
- Joint owners who disagree on key show issues
- Poor customer service for attendees and exhibitors
- Limits on marketing efforts while trying to maximize short-term net revenue
- Not seeking exhibitor and attendee input for tactical and strategic planning
- Inadequate market research and/or not acting on research results
- Inability to keep on schedule with key elements such as attendance marketing, exhibit sales materials, program development, keynote speaker announcements
- Imbalance of emphasis on exhibits vs. educational programming appropriate for the desired mix of attendees
- Self-centered/self-serving contractors
- Unwise scheduling of exhibition and other major elements such as conferences
- Overlooking the globalization of your marketplace and potential new audiences
Lessons learned:
- Do be aggressive, vigilant, customer friendly, fresh with ideas, generous with investment, welcoming to changes.
- Don’t be too short-term profit oriented, too self-confident, insulated from marketplace and technology developments.
