I am about to make my way out to the Las Vegas Convention Center again for an annual blogging conference I am a sponsor of and will be speaking at in September. I was interested to read over at Tradeshow Week that the Las Vegas Convention Center is not getting the changes that were slated in its growth. They state:

Citing current economic conditions, a Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority spokesman said some renovations of the Las Vegas Convention Center have been put on hold. The previously planned renovations that involved the North and Central halls and meeting rooms will continue with a projected 2011 completion date and a cost of $395 million, according to LVCVA spokesman Jeremy Handel. The second and third phases of the renovations have been postponed.

I have reported here many times about the Las Vegas Convention Center and the Las Vegas Convention Center Authority and how they have captured some of the largest conventions i the world. They have a huge impact on the economy of Las Vegas and it is difficult to image that they would be having difficulty with expansion. This is another indicator that perhaps we are in a slow down in our economy of the trade show and convention business. When powerhouse locations such as this are taking stock and cutting back and tightening their belt, it must be true.

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I had the opportunity to sit down and speak to Renee Jain (pictured left) of ICC Rents to discuss a little about what their company does and what they offer to convention, trade show and event planners.  ICC Rents began as a family owned business as the vision of Ganpat “Jim” Jain, Renee’s father, in Chicago in 1979. The company began as a computer rental company and has exploded into one of the top rental companies in the trade show world.  What was once only servicing the Chicago area and McCormick Place, now is nationwide and services all the major conventions centers from Orlando to Las Vegas to New York and L.A.  Renee can recall the business in her father’s den when they first started and talks about the long hours it took her father, and later her brother  Raj Jain, to build this business to its current state of a 24/7 full on customer service shop servicing the nation with over 100 employees.

ICC Rents is a company that can provide all of your technology needs from a laptop for your tradeshow booth to that 103″ Plasma TV or seamless Video Wall.  They provide all the back end support as well.  Once you rent a component, you can rest assured that it will be at your show, on time, working, and will be backed by support should anything go wrong.  They have touch screen monitors, interactive kiosks and just about anything that will set your tradeshow booth apart from the competition.  They can help get you noticed on the show floor.

I asked the simple question of “why can’t I just buy a television from the local store and use it?”  She was well prepared with a response and raised many questions I had not thought of, like extension chords, cables, set up and delivery, and many other reasons why renting is a smart investment for using a company like ICC Rents to handle your needs.  Technology becomes obsolete, many pieces of equipment break down and many other reason why having a support team is important in renting the proper equipment.  There are many hidden costs that she discussed as well.  They are truly knowledgeable in the industry and have become quite trusted in more areas than just for a tradeshow.  They have corporate clients that use their services as well for onsite training and setting up meeting and events.  I could not begin to cover all the areas where they can help you with your technology needs.

In addition, and because I am serial procrastinator, this statement she said stuck in my mind:

“We are the last minute provider” ~ Renee Jain

What she meant is that many people forget about something like a required hard case for that 50″ plasma TV for their wall, or they forget that they needed a wall mount for that television or of a cable needed to make it work. When this happens they can be there immediately to cure any forgotten item or to make sure your trade show booth comes off without a hitch.  I think am going to put that number in my pocket for my future trip to Vegas in September as chances are I’ll need it.  With 24/7 service such as theirs, I can rest easy because we all know I’ll forget something.  They can help.

ICC Rents handles any type of tradeshow and not just the technical market.  Everyone is needing technology to catch attention of convention attendees and tradeshow attendees.  She mentioned the bridal industry and agricultural industries and many other areas where technology can enhance your tradeshow experience and produce more leads.

Back in March of 2008, ICC Rents was merged with Smart Source Rentals, a powerful partner that has taken their service and their ability to service trade shows and conventions to the next level.  Give ICC Rents a call for your needs, be it a computer laptop to a wall mounted television to an interactive kiosk.  Tell them Convention Insider sent you!

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I was just reading through Trade Show Week about the difficulty had by a trade show in Alberta, Canada called Rig Expo 2008. Apparently this show did not adhere to the build it and they will come idea. Approximately 60 exhibitors signed up to be a part of the expo that concentrates on the oil field industry. There were plenty of exhibitors but someone forgot to tell the attendees to show up. There were a number of reasons given for the lack of attendance at the show, but that does not take the sting out of the lost investment. The head of the show had anticipated 3,000 to 4,000 attendees and apparently that number shrunk to about 22 attendees in a four hour period. Ouch.

Unfortunately not a lot can be done for the people that paid that $2,500 price tag for a 10′ x 10′ booth. There really are no guarantees. Show organizer Paul Pearson said just this as his answer to the issue of paying back exhibitors:

“We rented the building, we advertised the show, we did everything we could,” he added. “You pay your money and take your chances.”

I’m trying to wrap my mind around the idea that the show organizers did not have a better idea of attendance. They apparently had no pre-sold tickets and had no idea if anyone would show up for the event. Something tells me that many exhibitors won’t be taking chances on this show in the future. I’m sure many of the exhibitors are now calling this the Rigged Expo.

How do you protect your investment? Go with an established show and if the show is not an established trade show, make sure that the people behind it have some good credentials. In this instance it looks as though many of the exhibitors believed the show to be a good one for them invest in and attend.

Michael Hart, Editor-in-Chief at Trade Show Week also touched upon this same problem in his blog post titled “Living With Green Fatigue” as he describes:

The show manager of this launch, designed to market – and stop me if you’ve heard this one before – eco-friendly products and services, had optimistically projected 250 exhibitors and 2,000 attendees.

Our contributing editor Lisa Plummer counted 40 booths and, while the show’s manager claimed he had 350 pre-registered attendees, Lisa said there may have been 15 at the most on the showfloor during the time she was there.

Another example of a show that had some lofty numbers projected and came nowhere near those projections. Those exhibitors also must have felt the sting of not having attendees to show their wares. Hart seems to imply that the reason for the poor attendance is the fact that there are far too many “green” type trade shows on the market. If that is the case, then I suppose it is the fault of the exhibitor for making a bad choice of shows. That can be a hard pill to swallow, and makes it tough for new trade shows to get the establishment they need to get sponsors and exhibitors.

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A friend of mine in the trade show industry helps manage the AWFS or better known as the Association of Woodworking & Furnishings Suppliers and their trade show that is scheduled to take place July 15-18, 2009 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.  I went over to see their web site, and noticed something I had never seen before, Belt Sander Racing.

Yes BSRA, the NASCAR of woodworking apparently and according to the information given on the site:

AWFS^®Fair, Accuride and the Belt Sander Racing Association present “BSRA’s Big Event.” Racing enthusiasts compete on a 75-foot long wooden track with their “customized belt sander racing machines.” All AWFS^® Vegas participants will receive complimentary tickets, but SEATING IS LIMITED, and this exciting event promises to draw a crowd, so you’ll want to get to the track early!

Now that is a trade show I could get into attending.  Nothing like a room full of power tools and some sawdust to get your machismo rate up.  They even had Richard Karns who played Al Borland the sidekick to Tim “The Toolman” Taylor as a host last year. The show took place last year for the first time in Las Vegas, which is another feather in the cap of the LVCVA.  The show only takes place every other year but I wonder if they will have the Belt Sander races again? 

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I was thinking of the amount of cleaning a stay at home dad like myself does in a week and it made me begin to think of hiring some help to get the work done.  I think I would probably have to have the big boss at Conventions.net to give me a little raise for that to be a reality.  It was time to search out a maid convention or trade show. 

The Association of Residential Cleaning Services International held its most recent annual trade show October 22-26, 2007 in Orlando, Florida at the Orange County Convention Center.  The convention was held in conjunction with the ISSA or also known as The Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association. 

This year the event is to be held September 8-11, 2008.  The event will be held at the ever popular Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.  As with most things in Las Vegas, you can’t hold an event without having an exciting show and this event is no different.   The most interesting feature of the show that makes me actually want to go and see the convention this year is one of its keynote speakers.  None other than a childhood favorite of mine, Bill Cosby.  Or I guess I should refer to him as Dr. Bill Cosby as they do in the program details.   Dr. Cosby is scheduled to appear on September 10, 2008, at the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel (adjacent to the Las Vegas Convention Center) in the Barron Room.  This is something I have not yet seen other trade associations do much of and that is to get some decent talent to address the attendees.  The good doctor will be addressing convention attendees according to the program:

Listen as Dr. Cosby humorously explains that “You better love what you do, otherwise it sure won’t love you!” He’ll help you ponder what the world would be like without your job and why more people should focus on the personal side of business, especially in the cleaning industry.

I would pay the price of attendance just to get a chance to see this legend in person.  I commend the event planners and would love to see more of this type of thing done at other events!

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On this day in the United States, we all rush out to get that tax return in the mail, or I guess in this day and age we rush to the computer to file it electronically over the Internet.  Like every other holiday, I try to mix in a little celebration of the day.  Today, all I could think of was death and taxes.  You know the old saw about some things being certain and of those, most prevalent are death and taxes.  This lead me to think about what convention or trade show might be out there that deals with issues of death and taxes. 

You might think a death convention might be a little morbid, and I must say the name does not stick too well with me, but how about a mortuary or other type convention or trade show?  My company has even help establish a funeral blog, so I know they must have a convention.  As you know, all industries have their own trade show and the people at the National Funeral Directors Association are no different.  The NFDA had its national convention in 2007 in Las Vegas, Nevada at the and in 2008, the convention is scheduled in October in Orlando, Florida.

Tax professionals around the US are operating on no sleep and are drinking coffee and energy drinks to get through to midnight when the deadline arrives.  They will be happy to know that they can relax at their national convention this summer in Atlanta, Georgia.  The conference is set to take place at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, July 7-10, 2008.

To all of the tax professionals out there, good luck today with your deadlines.  To the rest of you out there doing your own taxes, you have a little time left if you want to procrastinate a little bit longer, say about 12 hours.

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Today has been a whirlwind of April Fool’s Day jokes and I have been privy to a few on my end.  I did get some other news today I wished was a joke but alas business associates don’t always play those kind of jokes on the first of the month. Don’t worry it wasn’t real bad news, just everyday stuff.  Nonetheless I hope you all received great news be it funny or good.

I had a whole idea in mind for talking about crazy headlines I found in the trade show and convention news industry.  I wanted to talk about how I was asked to a judge at a bikini convention, or how I found a way to win money at a lottery convention, but you won’t get any of that from me here today.  No, you won’t find me talking about how you can win a large screed HD TV from the CES convention in Las Vegas, or how you can drive home a new car from the largest automotive convention in the world.  I cannot explain to you that the largest watch convention in the world is allowing me to give a reader here a brand new Rolex watch just for leaving a comment.  No, I won’t go that far.  Leave a comment though you could always take the chance.

What I will tell you all is Happy April Fool’s Day from your favorite Convention Insider and everyone at Conventions.net!

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A couple of weeks ago I was talking about the size of conventions and whether attendance was important or square footage.  Regardless of the correct answer, I was correct when I said:

This week is CONEXPO-CON/AGG in Las Vegas, Nevada.  This is one of the largest, if not the largest shows in the trade show or convention industry.  Is it judged by the amount of attendees or the amount of exhibitor space that is used?  The show that runs this week from March 11 - 15, 2008, is huge by square footage standards and by attendees.

It was almost prophetic as I read the numbers by show officials as reported by Trade Show Week:

CONEXPO-CON/AGG, the massive triennial construction-industry tradeshow that typically tops the TSW 200 each year it is held, broke all records during its March 11-15 run at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Show officials said the 2008 show covered 2.28 million square feet with 2,182 exhibitors and 144,600 attendees. The 2005 CONEXPO-CON/AGG had 1.84 million sq. ft., 1,965 exhibiting companies and 97,900 attendees.

Those are very impressive numbers and has certainly set a new benchmark as it relates to trade show size.  One thing is true in this industry, sometimes size does matter.  Congratulations to the event planners at CONEXPO-CON/AGG as they wrap up on what was certainly a mountain of work to put together the show.  Our congratulations also go out to the folks at the Las Vegas Convention Center for hosting the biggest trade show ever!

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On this day of celebrating all things Irish and the partying and all else, I myself think of “green” as a different idea than drinking beer that bears the color.  I think about the new green movement. Everyone is talking about it these days.  It’s all about the carbon footprint or what we can do to make the world a better place.  Conventions and Trade Shows are doing the same things these days.

I tend to look at many convention and trade show locations and not just the big ones like Las Vegas, or New York, and many of the other huge and more popular locations.  There are sections of websites devoted to the fact that convention or trade show centers are taking their buildings “green”.    Many of them are claiming to be the first or the best, or the leader in the green movement.  I like the fact that they are doing this and I hope that more and more convention centers take on the charge to become green.

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Last year my wife worked in the mortgage market and we saw the beginning of the end of the booming housing sales because of the problems we saw with the lenders.  She ended up being laid off from her job due to the woes of banks.  Lenders being in trouble also means that the home buyers and sellers are in for a dip in the housing market.  This also translated to a dip in attendance at this year’s National Association of Home Builders and their  International Builder’s Trade Show.

According to Trade Show Week Magazine’s Rachel Wimberly, from a quote from Wayne Stetson, Vice President of the National Association of Home Builders, the pre-registration of attendees was down 15%, while the true number came in at a dip of 11%.  The trade show took place at Orlando’s Orange County Convention Center on February 13-16, 2008. 

Next year the trade show is set to take place in Las Vegas at the Las Vegas Convention Center on January 20-23, 2009.  This is great news for the City of Las Vegas at the IBS has taken place for the last four years in Orlando.  Wimberly goes on to add that Stetson indicated that since this was the fourth year in a row that the event took place in Orlando, it may have grown stale in the eyes of attendees and that next year being in Vegas could spice up attendance.  It seems that many of the exhibitors were also excited for Vegas since they saw a rise in deposits for the trade show in January 2009.  A change in scenery may change the trend. We can only wait and see what happens in January.  Good luck to the folks at NAHB and IBS.

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