As a supplier, we want to go to as many shows as possible, and that includes both national and regional shows. We don’t make it to all of them, but you’ll likely run into some of our Multi-Line Reps at those shows. What can we say, we want our name out there!
But as a distributor, provider, or supplier, is it necessary to do both? And if you have to choose between one or the other, how do you choose?
We asked President and Co-Owner Alex Paschal and National Sales Manager Phil Martin their thoughts on attending regional and national shows. Read on, and let us know your thoughts.
First up: Alex’s thoughts on the pros & cons of regional & national shows
Alex has a different perspective on the Regional versus National Shows than Phil does. This perspective is heavily influenced by working the booth at the shows, but also influenced from an owner’s perspective.
First and foremost – YES you should go to both National and Regional shows! Whatever your role is, attending is how you set yourself up for success in the promo industry. These shows usually take a significant amount of effort (and/or money) to attend, so you can go with confidence knowing that everyone is there for the right reasons.
National Show #1 Pro: The Sheer Volume of Ideas
Because of the size and amount of people that national shows draw in, you’re going to see more ideas and concepts than you can possibly count. As an owner on the supplier side, this helps me keep a pulse on the direction that everyone else is heading and keeps me apprised to new possibilities that I could bring back and implement. I try and walk the entire hall at shows to see if something sparks an idea for a new or improved product we could offer.
But this sheer size does have a downside…
National Show #1 Con: The Vast Amount of Distractions
High volume comes with a lot of noise. It’s up to you as an attendee to sift through the booths and products that are unrelated to your show goals. Stay focused to find the gems you’re looking for. Even with this in mind, the most disciplined attendees will probably find themselves wandering through extraneous booths. The larger the show, the more distractions you’ll encounter, and it does take practice to get everything done that you need to without running out of time.
Regional Show #1 Pro: The Time to Build Quality Relationships with Distributors
By far, the number one benefit of regional shows is the amount of time you’re able to spend working with distributors face-to-face on specifics. At a national show, you might have to cut conversations short because of the number of people in your booth; this is rarely the case at a regional show.
Because regional shows tend to have less people due to a smaller draw pool, most (if not all) conversations with distributors can usually run their full course. This leads to A.) Distributors getting all of their questions answered, and B.) Stronger relationships between the distributor and supplier being formed.
Regional Show #1 Con: The Boom-or-Bust Nature of Smaller Shows
Because of the drastic size difference, there’s no guarantee that a regional show will have the right spread of distributors and suppliers to match the goals that you have for the show. With a national show, you’re almost guaranteed that something will crop up to justify the effort of attending.
Depending on the show, location, your product line, and the distributors in attendance, regional shows may not always live up to the hopes and goals you have for them. Some shows might be worth their weight in gold, and others might be quiet enough to hear a pin drop. This is why there are so many of them, though; one “Booming” show often yields enough to justify numerous quiet shows.
Next Up: Phil’s thoughts on the various shows available in the promotional products industry
First, let’s talk about what are considered the LARGE shows
When we talk about large shows, everyone knows we’re talking about the PPAI Expo and ASI Shows. In my opinion, Expo is the only true “National” show. The ASI shows are well attended, but are a bit more localized or regional. Although, ASI does occasionally draw some large distributors in for their national meetings—which is a positive. ASI also draws a newer crowd.
Here Is my analogy of the two: ASI is like the first day of school—lots of new faces! PPAI Expo is more like the class reunion—lots of old friends and familiar faces. Both have a fair amount of networking opportunities as well as educational opportunities. A downside is they are two to three days long, which increase costs and out-of-office time. Also, you have a larger amount of booths and suppliers than regional shows. You get lost in the crowd a little easier.
Next, let’s talk about regional shows
I am going to refer back to the “OLD DAYS” when it comes to regional shows. In the 80s and 90s, regional shows were very strong. You basically had EXPO (Dallas) and the regionals. Regional shows lost a little bit with ASI moving in to the show business, with multiple shows in different parts of the country. You also had the traveling show coming in to the mix.
That being said, I do believe that regional shows are making a big comeback as of late. They are inexpensive, have fewer suppliers, and you get to spend more quality time with the distributor. They also are only single day shows, so you have less hotel costs. Follow up from all of the above shows are relatively equal. We will get some quotes and distributors contacting us from both equally as well.
Bonus! Suite “Meeting” Style of Shows
EME (Exclusive Meeting Events) came in to the fold, I believe back in 2009, and have since become a very popular show format. You meet with small groups of 1–4 people of top distributors for 20 minutes. You will have anywhere from 25 to 35 of these meetings over the course of a couple of days.
Because of its popularity, many others have joined in the fun: ASI Facilitate and Promo Marketing Power Meetings. Regionals are offering this style of meeting as well; OPPA Sales Safari coming up in May is one of them. These style of shows are rather expensive and do require far more pre-show, during show, and post show work.
The follow up from these shows are far more intense. Only because you have their undivided attention for 20 minutes as opposed to just a few minutes while they are in the booth. They do offer better networking opportunities due do having group meals (and a possible cocktail) together over the course of a few days. We actually do one of these style of shows thru our multi-line rep Billy McDonald. He calls his “Connections” meetings.
So what’s your take?
Do you agree with Phil and Alex? Or maybe you have something else to add? Comment below or send us a message on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.