I’ve been reading quite a few articles lately talking about how all kinds of businesses are making their products into retail “experiences”. Tradeshows have always tried to make their events “experiences” but most do it by having the event in a resort or interesting location so that the hours outside of the show become the “experience” part. It may sound silly, but I think the more a tradeshow is like an amusement park or fascinating museum where you can learn and be “wowed”, the better your attendance and feedback. I don’t mean an amusement park in the sense that it is all play and no business - but that the show itself is the attraction and not the location.

I have been thinking a great deal about how I can make our exhibit hall, conference sessions and networking receptions more of an experience than a business meeting. “Hands on” activity is one way to make this happen.

A few weeks ago I heard an ad on the radio about Auto Show InMotion - an auto show where you get to actually drive all the cars. Today I received a direct mail piece for the event (how did they know I heard their ad? ) It included two tickets to the event. What a fantastic twist on one of the oldest types of tradeshows. It grabbed my attention not only because it turns an auto show into much more of an experience, but because I’ll bet 99% of the tradeshow organizers who do auto shows have considered doing it but decided there was no way it could work. In fact, if you asked me if I thought something like this would work I’d have said “no way” - handing the keys to the general public to drive cars around all day? You gotta be joking - they’ll be crashes, liability, insurance nightmares….

But someone at General Motors is going for it in order to be different - and I need to remember that in order to make my shows “experiences” I’m going to have to think differently and take risks all the time.