Builders of products have a different star power than actors hired as expo booth staffers.
The sensory experience of even a
day in New York City can spark ideas in any marketer’s mind, and what better
source of inspiration than a live performance. However, it’s hard to sit and
watch a Broadway show with the incessant chatter of questions in one’s mind,
especially when one can’t have them answered instantly. While the many unanswered
questions occasionally got in the way of complete immersion in the experience
of a brilliant show, it was what occurred after the play that got me thinking about
trade shows as performative art.
As everyone spilled out of the theater
late in the night, I saw another line forming on a side street, of audience
members, playbills in hand. For the theater-novice like me, playbills are like
a show guide. You can learn about the actors who are characters in the play. The
protocol is to review their pictures on the playbill to know what the actors
look like in real life, so when they walk out that stage door in everyday attire,
they are still recognizable for that must-have selfie.
Since lines are meant to be
joined without question to make the most of life, I got to watch up-close the
hero-worship that the actors enjoyed. I observed how delighted the members of
the audience waiting in the line were to chat with the artistes. There was the
banter, the autographing of the playbill, followed by a selfie. Apparently, there’s
a word for it: stagedooring.
That brings me to the topic at
hand. Trade show exhibitors can learn from Broadway.
At a trade show in Washington DC,
I passed by a booth that featured models in factory overalls. At a trade show
in another industry in Austin, TX, there were no actors or models, just industry
professionals who had compounded decades of work and acquired deep domain expertise.
In both instances, there was a certain star power. However, in the case of
actors and models, the products or brand weren’t the main attraction. Therein lies
a lost opportunity on many fronts.
Steve Jobs and his team had their
signatures etched into the Macintosh mold because they were considered artists.
How about arranging stagedooring to meet these artists? A company could showcase
its craftspeople or designers at its trade show exhibit alongside products or
product imagery. Besides a product brochure, pass around a playbill. Allow your
customers the chance to learn about your products from those who manifested them.
Encourage your designers and makers to obtain firsthand feedback and seek
suggestions. Offer autographs, banter and selfies at your booth.
The exposure is definitely not
for the faint of heart, nor for the slim of budget, and certainly not for an
industry with a culture of talent-poaching by competitors. Still, it’s tempting
because showcasing that kind of inhouse star-power and the consequent visible
hero-worship can do wonders, both, for a brand, and its creators.
