Elevating The Tradeshow Experience

When the Greek philosopher Heraclitus wrote: “Change is the only constant in life,” he created an aphorism that is as true today as it was in 500 BC. In keeping with this vision, here are trends and tactics leading to a rapid evolution in the meetings and event business.

The Paradigm Shift

Attendees now have different expectations when they attend events. Their thinking is, ‘If I’m going, I have to be able to set my objectives and desired experience before I go,’ and that is creating a need for not only how marketing needs to be framed, but for what event planners can deliver.

At the heart of this challenge is how event planners can meet a major shift in attendee expectations and deliver bigger and more tangible rewards, as more (and younger) eventgoers are coming to events with an objective mindset and looking to leave after having had a positive, impactful and rewarding experience.  The shift occurs with people attending who also want to have fun, be surprised, and be treated to an immersive experience. There is a major trend towards more immediate and intimate networking during the event. Overall marketing and messaging are also shifting, with a greater focus on segmented campaigns and targeted messaging as it becomes more emotional and personal to fulfill the goal of sparking joy, which leads to greater retention and an increased likelihood of people wanting to return.

Takeaway:  Attendees register to meet objectives but return for the experiences.

Who’s Coming To The Show?

Event professionals can tap into a robust and expanding set of tools to increase the chances of more people attending their events. At the annual IMEX America Event held in Las Vegas, the industry’s largest trade show revealed a strong and positive outlook for 2025. Major themes emphasized inclusion, sustainability, technology, sports events, and wellness.

Video is an essential tech tool and a growing trend – it can be used to spark interest and desire even before a show opens, during the event to drive marketing, increase engagement and deliver key messaging, and even after the show to reward attendees with a continuation of the excitement they experienced. It can be used in so many ways – like ‘A Day in a Life’ which can make people and ideas relatable. It’s an excellent platform to present objectives and interviews with speakers as incentives to attend an event by highlighting shared interests. And video is perfect for delivering personalized and ‘special’ invitations. The sky is the limit!

Takeaway: Make your pre-event marketing relatable.  Attendees want to see themselves in your messaging.

Fostering Engagement

More and more event attendees are seeking greater levels of engagement. They are also looking for quicker and more effective networking opportunities and to meet up with like-minded individuals. Savvy planners will be sure to offer mini meetups to facilitate discussions, themed lounges for roundtable discussions, and ambassadors who assist with networking and show tours.

Here are some of our favorite tools to help foster greater connections:

• To build community, Jabberyak
• For user-generated video, Gather Voices
• For management and member engagement, Personify and Swapcard

Other trends on the rise are ‘Welcome Greeters’ – energetic and enthusiastic individuals in the registration area who are ready to offer up ‘free high fives!’ and the ‘Show Master’ who is well-versed in everything and everyone at the show and eager to dispense knowledge. And let’s not forget the ‘Gossip Guy/Gal’ who has their ear to the ground and has interesting tidbits to share.

Hackathons are also on the cutting edge of trends, presenting attendees with the opportunity to solve an industry challenge as individuals or teams. Couched with friendly competitions, hackathons are an excellent participatory tool and dovetail perfectly with attendees’ desire for greater one-on-one involvement. Activations are big, too, and can include accessible sports and community service projects.

Takeaway: Build that community through engagement.

Mentoring

As Gen Z overtakes Boomers in the workplace, opportunities to mentor younger professionals and pass along knowledge and experience are abundant and appreciated. But there are also excellent opportunities for ‘reverse-mentoring,’ and they should never be overlooked.

Develop a good relationship with an emerging Gen Z professional.  Because of their age, their positioning is fresh and unencumbered by data or a jaded view that often comes from past failed opportunities. Despite very different backgrounds and levels of experience, our age difference is not an obstacle – it is an asset allowing us to see things with a fresh perspective.

Takeaway: Mentoring is experience-based, not age-based. 

Overall, the future is bright and presents new challenges and opportunities as the business model evolves.  It’s a great time to be an event professional!