Sounds like your first challenge is to determine your selling strategy, and then you can find a trade show that supports it. There are shows where each of those groups you mentioned tend to congregate. I was IAEE’s Expo! Expo! last month, and even though it’s all about the trade show industry, I was surprised just how different the audience is from The Exhibitor Show, which is also about the trade show industry.

-Bob

In time, if and when all trade shows have a virtual event to keep it going all year long, I would add it to the list. But for now, virtual events are not a main player, but definitely a growing part of trade shows. Thanks, Mike

I agree that the media is important, and for some exhibitors they are critical. Good media coverage is a major goal for exhibitors. Here’s a blog post about getting more PR value out of trade shows. And I would include bloggers as media, too. The only difference is they publish themselves, versus via a media company. When I saw you, Taryn Pisaneschi, and Jenny Frazier sitting at one table at the Social Media session at Expo! Expo! with your mac laptops open ready to tweet away, it reminded me of a Press writers room from days long ago.

You are so right — it was that session that got me to attend the Expo! Expo! show in the first place!