What a fag ash is for event organisers

There are hundreds of individuals who have suffered great hardship as a result of the Icelandic volcano and the chaos this has caused. From a more selfish perspective it is interesting to see how the events industry copes with this disruption. Major incidents that can effect events come round more regularly than you think and can vary from national issues like a terror attack or foot and mouth to more local issues like industrial action or a major accident on an approach road.

A photobook from @robertsharp59 http://bit.ly/blCeHE shows some of the problems the London Book Fair experienced. And our heart goes out to them.

LIW, like most exhibitions, only runs once a year and has a dedicated team that work on it all year round. Everything you do for 12 months is focused on three days where all your planning must come together to ensure your clients meet as many relevant buyers as possible. The immediate run up to the show is incredibly stressful without the added worry that visitors and exhibitors might not actually be able to get to your show and you could be looking at some empty aisles (always an organiser’s worse nightmare) and empty stands. Should you be an exhibitor in this situation and be concerned about your investment in the event then please don’t get frustrated with the organiser as whatever you will be feeling they will be feeling worse. A lot worse.

We are off to fellow health and fitness show FIBO (www.fibo.de) which opens Thursday 22^nd April. It looks like the skies have reopened but we know that a lot of visitors have already cancelled plans because they are concerned about being stranded should the lockdown return. We think our flight out should be ok and we are looking forward to seeing the show and we wish the organisers every bit of luck.

Why are there so many bouncy castles

This is a question I have had to answer many times during my life on LIW and is generally asked by those on the health and fitness side of the show. Alternatively I am also asked why there is so many treadmills on the other side of the show by those in Attractions Expo – although I receive precious few complaints regarding those in lycra demonstrating the treadmills!

The answer to both questions is the same. The middle part of the show (i.e. Leisure Facilities, Eat and Drink) would not survive if you were to take one of the others away. They want to see owners of sites from across the leisure sector and would not be able to justify attending a show where they only saw gyms or only saw theme parks.

However, I think that is only half the story and perhaps our audiences could learn from one another. After all, they all have the same objectives don’t they? These are to get more visitors/members, get them visiting more often, get them spending more when they are there and keeping them safe while they are on site.

So next time you are visiting LIW and afraid to go to the ‘dark side’ – go and have a look at what makes their businesses work as they could be ideas that could work for your business too.