July 2011

ammunition

To draw attendees to its booth at the 2010 International Vision Expo in Las Vegas, Revolution Eyewear Inc. of Simi Valley, CA, decided to put on a fashion show each day in its exhibit. Modeling shorts, T-shirts, and swimwear, male and female models strutted down a 40-foot in-booth catwalk twice a day, showing off the company's sunglasses and frames. Thumping music and the models' sex appeal drew attendees in droves to watch each day's show. But the fashion show was only part of the eye-catching fun. As the models stomped up and down the runway, photographers and videographers hired by Revolution recorded all the action, making the company's fashion show seem like a paparazzi-worthy event. With cameras snapping and video running, attendees joined in the photographic frenzy, pulling out cell phones and cameras to record the event for themselves. What's more, Revolution walked away with oodles of photos and videos to extend its presence outside the exhibit and after the show. International electronics giant Panasonic Corp. takes its corporate social responsibility very seriously - and the company's efforts aren't limited to the United States of America. Panasonic wanted to highlight that aspect of the company at the International Consumer Electronics Show without appearing too self-congratulatory. So to make the point with subtlety, Panasonic hung a 10-foot map in its exhibit featuring 20 callouts spanning the globe, each touting a different philanthropic deed for which the company was responsible. While the map wasn't a main focal point in the 24,000-square-foot exhibit, it demonstrated Panasonic's generosity in a silent, but easily understood way. Hoping to make a statement about its creative skills and artistic prowess, Access TCA Inc. incorporated an artist into its exhibit at the 2010 Healthcare Convention & Exhibitors Association's Annual Meeting in New Orleans. Positioned in the corner of the company's exhibit, painter and NOLA resident Jim Tweedy worked on an artistic representation of Access' event- and exhibit-related offerings. Paintbrush in hand, Tweedy pointed out to passing attendees that the painting's cartoon-like characters represented Access' services. The artist's pokey pace kept him active throughout HCEA, enticing attendees to return and check his progress. After the show, Access sent booth visitors a lithograph copy of the painting, which also served as a reminder of its services. Building traffic and communicating the company's offerings, the in-booth artwork was a marketing masterpiece. For many, the chance to take on a world-famous sumo wrestler is nothing more than a pipe dream. Not so for attendees at the 2011 RSA Conference in San Francisco, thanks to Application Security Inc. The company has an unusual representative - legendary professional sumo wrestler Byambajav Ulambayar (aka Byamba). Not only is the athlete's likeness used in Application Security's marketing materials, on its website, and on exhibit graphics (accompanied by the question, "Do you know what you're up against?"), but he also made an appearance at the show to pose for photos with curious attendees and fans. In addition to the photo opportunity, attendees could "wrestle" Byamba during an in-booth presentation that touched on the company's key messages of information security and protection. A booth staffer selected a volunteer from the audience and invited him or her to try and move the imposing Byamba by pushing him. Of course, he never budged. Those that attended the presentation (and/or wrestled Byamba) walked away with a branded T-shirt - and one heck of a story.		There are only so many ways tech companies can extol the virtues of their products - schematics, stats, demos, detailed literature - and almost every one of them is boring and dry. Proving humor has a place in IT, and that it can poke a little fun at itself, ScienceLogic LLC, based in Reston, VA, created a branded deck of playing cards to give to attendees at the Interop show in Las Vegas. This was no ordinary deck, though. While one side of each card held the ScienceLogic logo, the phrase "Don't gamble with IT," and its product logo, "EM7," the other side contained one of several key messages delivered with tongue firmly planted in cheek. For example, the "9" card in each suit had two Viagra-shaped blue pills with the EM7 logo on them and the words, "Networktile Dysfuntion - it's no laughing matter." And since the punchy deck of cards also featured numbers and all four suits, it could be used for traditional card games, making it something attendees would likely keep - and use - long after their booth visit. The world is a dirty, dirty place - at least without a room-purification system from Pure Solutions NA. To illustrate just how "impure" the world's air really is, Pure Solutions set up a monitor in its 10-by-30-foot exhibit at the 2010 International Hotel, Motel + Restaurant Show in New York. Positioned over a sofa at the back of the booth, the roughly 39-inch monitor featured the "Pure Allergy Friendly Rooms" logo at the top center of the screen, along with three light-blue boxes, each one featuring a different data point. One box provided the particle count where attendees were standing (1,468,186), and another provided the particle count inside a Pure Room (86,398). The third box informed booth visitors that "A Pure Room is 94.124% cleaner than where you are standing." Using little more than a monitor and a few startling statistics, Pure Solutions drove home its key message - and sent attendees scurrying for more information on how Pure Solutions' products could help clear the air around them. At EXHIBITOR2010, AFR Furniture Rental made the most of every messaging opportunity available. Rather than only accenting its furniture with traditional throw pillows, AFR branded two white-satin pillows with its blue company logo. Positioned atop aisle-side chairs, the branded pillows not only accented the stylish furnishings; they reminded people where they could rent them as well.
		What's The Big Idea? Do you have a clever exhibit-related tip? Did your last exhibit have an über-cool traffic builder? Contact Travis Stanton at tstanton@exhibitormagazine.com.