Skills For Success
November/December 2002
Successful Exhibit Management:
The Devil Is in the Details
Kristofer Steven Herlitz
Vice President, The Herlitz Company, Inc.
People are often surprised when I tell them, calmly, that our company handles Exhibit Management for meetings of more than 25,000 attendees. In fact, The Herlitz Company, Inc. (formerly Steven K. Herlitz, Inc., with offices in Larchmont, NY, and New York City, NY) has been succeeding in the Exhibit Management business for more than 65 years and what was true when my grandfather and father ran the business is true today – a large meeting is no more difficult to run than a small meeting if you are well organized and able to think on your feet. With Exhibit Management, the devil is in the details.
Annual Meetings: Where the Market Meets Medicine
Most readers of this article have attended numerous medical/scientific society annual meetings where the latest data are exchanged as peers assemble to share research findings via symposia and poster presentations. What makes these annual meetings unique is not just their size and scope, but the addition of industry to the professional mix. In the nearby exhibit halls, industry representatives ("exhibitors") converge so that clinicians and researchers can meet the faces behind the products they use every day. This is where the market meets medicine and it is up to Exhibit Management to orchestrate and execute every aspect of this convergence, while maintaining the integrity and scientific rigor of the society they represent. In this article, I'll share the basic principles of successful, honorable exhibit management as I've learned and practiced them over the years.
5 - 10 Years Out: Secure Space
For large, established meetings, space is secured five to ten years before the actual event. It is important to note that, as far as this decision is concerned, the Exhibit Management company serves in an advisory capacity only. A good Exhibit Management company will know which cities will generate the best attendance, what the labor laws are in each city and what venues may offer the best opportunities for a given meeting; however, the final decision for location rests with the society itself.
9-12 Months Out: The Site Visit and Floor plan
It is incumbent upon the Exhibit Manager to help organize and participate in a site visit. This one-to-three day walk-through of all the space to be utilized for the upcoming meeting is attended by a representative from the society, the event coordinator from the convention center, the chief building engineer, and the show decorator (the company that helps with important behind-the-scenes logistics including managing labor, coordinating shipping and delivery, supplying pipe and drapes for booth spaces, etc.). By the end of the site visit, any potential problems must be noted and a plan to resolve them devised.
Shortly after the site visit, the show decorator provides a blueprint of the exhibit hall space – its raw square footage. It is the responsibility of Exhibit Management to create a floor plan within that space. Put another way, Exhibit Management must turn a "virtual" room into the most efficient, cost-effective, people-traffic, exhibitor-friendly space possible.
8-11 Months Out: Sell the Space!
The next and perhaps most important job of Exhibit Management is to sell the booth space to industry. At this point, I must emphasize that when you sell, do it with the integrity and honor that matches the society you represent. The fact is that a society's annual meeting reflects who and what they are. Are they to be taken seriously? Do they maintain scientific integrity? Are they sound and well-run? Thus, the impression made by Exhibit Management, as the society's representative, is significant.
To maintain a professional approach from start to finish, it's best to leave yourself enough time to sell the meeting properly and professionally. The best tool for this is an exhibitor prospectus. This simple mailer usually contains a letter of invitation to exhibit, a copy of the floor plan, a rundown of show specifics (such as exhibit rates, dates and hours, rules for exhibiting, etc.), and an application for space. I find it is also useful to request a brief (50-word) description of what the company does. These descriptions ensure that every company is appropriate to exhibit to this audience in this particular forum. (For example, physicians may travel a lot, but it is inappropriate for a luggage company to exhibit at a medical meeting – believe me, they've tried!) These descriptions may also be used in the meeting program or exhibit guide as a courtesy to attendees and exhibitors.
The prospectus is mailed to a targeted list of companies who have previously exhibited and to potential new exhibitors who have expressed interest or who have been targeted via market research throughout the year. (Every Exhibit Management company handles this mail list differently. At The Herlitz Company, Inc., we find it works well to maintain the exhibitor database inhouse so that it is regularly updated with the most current information.) About two weeks after the prospectus is mailed, expect your first applications to come in. Of course, follow-up phone calls, faxes and letters are a must during this "crunch time" when every day counts and every empty booth means lost revenue.
Four Months Out: Mail Confirmation Letters and Service Kits; Develop Exhibit Guide
By four months out, you should have most of your space sold (unless the meeting is new or less well established). Now is the time to supply your exhibitors with the rest of the information they need as you continue to sell any remaining space. Every confirmed exhibitor should be mailed a letter that includes their booth assignment, balance due, housing information, travel information, and an exhibitor registration form to list their booth personnel.
For shows with 100 booths or more, an Exhibit Guide becomes essential so that attendees can navigate the exhibit hall. At The Herlitz Company, Inc., we prepare these guides for some of our clients, while others prepare their own with some support from our staff. If you are going to publish an exhibit guide, now is the time to begin production.
Finally, the four-month mark is when the Exhibitor Service Kits should be mailed. These binders contain all of the instructions and order forms necessary to secure "… la carte" booth items which include everything from Internet access to waste baskets! The binders are detailed and take a while to review and complete. For this reason, it is important that you give your exhibitors plenty of time to do so. In addition, be prepared to field phone calls from those exhibitors who have trouble understanding some of the more complex order forms. (It is worth noting that Exhibit Management companies do not profit from any of these additional utilities/equipment sales, nor do they set the fees or handle billings; however, as it is their goal to ensure that exhibiting companies are well cared for, they do field many complaints, questions and concerns regarding these … la carte items. A good Exhibit Management company can answer all questions related to the Service Kit or direct exhibitors to the person who can.)
One Week Out: Get Established
Exhibit Management should arrive on-site about one week before the first day of the annual meeting. Use this time to meet with support staff, train temporary staff, set-up the Exhibit Management Office, work with building engineers to triple-check the space, and establish an effective radio communications system so that you can contact anyone you need from anywhere in the convention center. In addition, this relatively "quiet" period is important for you to interface with the Society's Executive Director and staff members, addressing any needs or concerns they might have.
One to Three Days Out: Set-Up
One to three days before the official show opening, exhibitors arrive with their booths, boxes, questions, problems, and praise. They are stressed out, maxed out, traveled out. It is the responsibility of Exhibit Management to be on the exhibit hall floor during this set-up time to ensure that all goes smoothly. By the end of this installation period, an empty concrete space_sometimes as large as several football fields_will be transformed into a multi-colored city of bright carpet, drapes, small booths, large booths, signs, banners, and exhibits.
Show Time!
No matter how prepared you are, a curve ball or ten will come your way_especially on the first day of exhibits. This is when patience, experience, a cool head and the ability to think on your feet can mean the difference between a lackluster show opening and a great first day. Invariably, some exhibitors will have problems. Their booths never arrived, they are missing badges, they didn't realize they were located so far from the entrance. . . . Take a deep breath and handle these concerns in a way that provides exhibitors with the highest degree of satisfaction. If it is not possible to meet their needs, explain why.
Then, there are the truly unexpected scenarios. For example, three years ago a large portion of the roof blew off of a major convention center during a storm. Needless to say, we did not have a specific plan for that occurrence. However, we quickly responded (by coordinating with local authorities, building maintenance and professional attendees) to ensure that no one was injured, the damage was contained, and the hall was reconfigured. The meeting went on!
In essence, Exhibit Management is the hub of a very large, complex wheel. A good Exhibit Management company keeps that wheel turning smoothly, has fun doing it, and makes it seem easy to anyone looking in from the outside!
Kristofer S. Herlitz is Vice President of The Herlitz Company, Inc., sister company to this Editor's division. For additional information, contact The Herlitz Company, Inc., at 914-833-1979 or visit www.herlitz.com.