What’s Next For the Trade Show Industry?

“There’s this arrogance that events are back,” Stevens said. “They are being quite flippant about it. It’s like trade show organizers have not learned a damned thing.”

Optimism should not replace precaution, said Stevens. Things can, and often do, go askew when planning trade shows and conferences. COVID isn’t the first, nor is it the last, disruptor. But the pandemic-induced blackout on events offered a chance to reset and evaluate new efficiencies and experiences, speeding up the process of potentially adapting to the future complete with technological advancements.

As shows like World of Concrete return, we are witnessing the first piece of a long endgame. Are attendees going to return to a brave new world? Have organizers discovered new avenues of engagement? Has the industry as a whole, as Stevens asked, learned anything?

We polled about a dozen event professionals who can’t see the future, but can make educated guesses about where trade shows are headed. One thing is certain: “The next three months to 18 months are going to be a very fascinating time,” said Sam Lippman, president and founder of Lippman Connects, who hosted an education session on this very topic during the Event Learning Institute’s inaugural Business, Design & Strategy Summit in June.

Here’s some of what we found.

Read the full story here.