Trade Shows

I recently attended two events here in Columbia. One, the Home Show, was a disappointment. The other, the Columbia Chamber of Commerce Business Expo, met my expectations.

So, what were my expectations and why did one disappoint where the other did not? When I go to these types of trade shows, I have one goal in mind. I want to network. I want to get face to face with as many professionals that I would like to work with or who might want to work with me as possible.

This leads me to why the Home Show disappointed and the Business Expo did not. I have worked as a vendor at the Home Show in the past and I remember vividly how packed the Hearnes Center would be both in vendors and the general public. This year there had to be less than 90 booths and very little of the general public walking around.

I will be generous and grant that I purposely went during a low volume time as far as the public attendance goes as I was there primarily to talk to the professionals showing there. But the lack of vendors was astonishing! This used to be Mid-Missouri's premier event for those involved in the home building and real estate industries.

Having been disappointed overall, I would like to say that I did have a few good conversations with several people. But, I will have to do some serious evaluation on whether it will be worth my time to attend next year.

The Business Expo was a great event this year, as we said yesterday on this blog. The turnout was good, and the opportunities for networking with professionals were many. I will be definitely be going back next year.

What do you think? Am I thinking the right things about these two events or am I wrong? Please let me know!