Today we’re excited to welcome trade show consultant Linda Musgrove to our ‘Interview with the Experts’ Series here on the Exhibit Edge blog.  Linda probably needs no introduction to many of you, as she is one of the most sought after consultants in the trade show industry.  She is CEO of Miami-based TradeShow Teacher, authored “The Complete Idiots Guide to Trade Shows, was named one of the “Top 40 Under 40 in the Trade Show Industry”, and has spoken at many trade show covering a number of different topics.

How did you get started in the trade show business?

While working in the marketing department at a former employer I got asked to attend Comdex, which in those days was the by far largest show in the High Tech Industry. The show was enormous, encompassing the entire Las Vegas Convention Center and several surrounding hotel convention facilities.

As I navigated the scores of halls and rows, I felt invigorated and excited by the buzz of the exhibit hall. The creativity of the booths impressed me. This artificial world of lights, sounds and creativity was such a captivating experience for me and I instantly felt a desire to be part of it, and be part of shaping and building it.

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Today we’re excited to welcome published trade show marketing consultant and trainer, Marlys Arnold, as our guest in ‘The Trade Show Experts’ series. Marlys is the author of ‘Build a Better Trade Show Image’ and the ‘ExhibitorEd: Tips, Tools & Action Plans’ training kit. She also publishes a monthly e-zine and hosts a podcast on trade show news, tips, and tools.

How did you get started in the trade show business?

As an image consultant, I was exhibiting to gain clients for my business and had also helped to produce several small expos, so had seen shows from various perspectives. One particular show brought out very few attendees, yet my booth managed to get some very good leads. After listening to other exhibitors complain, I began to analyze what I had done differently that worked and began to compile notes. These became not only the basis for my workshops, but also for my first book, Build a Better Trade Show Image. (It’s like the how-to manual I wish I’d had starting out as an exhibitor.) When I decided to add trade show marketing to my consulting business, I had no idea there was an entire exhibit industry out there!

Looking back, there were signs that exhibiting was in my blood at an early age. My mom reminds me how as a child at the State Fair I spent more time exploring the exhibits than the carnival rides!

Can you tell us about the types of clients you serve, and what services you provide to them?

Over the past decade, I’ve worked with exhibitors and show managers in all sizes of shows in a variety of industries — although it has seemed to tend towards construction, manufacturing and public works. Working with show managers, I provide consulting (for marketing, social media, sponsorship, etc.), exhibitor workshops, or booth evaluations. For exhibitors, I provide marketing consulting, exhibitor training/coaching, or ‘mystery shopper’ evaluations for them vs. their competitors.

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We’re excited to welcome Barry Siskind as our newest guest in our interview series ‘The Trade Show Experts’.  Barry’s name is probably familiar to many of you, as he has published numerous books including ‘Powerful Exhibit Marketing’, CDs, DVDs, and hosted countless workshops training clients on how to generate profitable leads at their trade shows, consumer shows, and face-to-face marketing events.

How did you get started in the trade show business?

I got my start in the business 30 years ago. I was in the retail display business and participated in 10-15 trade shows per year. I have a background in sales training, and I started to notice that lots of money was being spent on the displays but very little was spent on the human element ─ an equally important piece.  At that time there were over two million North American companies who participated in trade shows annually and less that a handful of consultants available to help them. I saw this was a place where I could add value based on my experience and training. So it was a natural place to start my new business once I sold my retail display business.

Can you tell us about the type of clients that you work with? Sizes?  Product/Service offerings?

Our clients really are all over the board, but I can group them into 3 large categories:  Corporate clients – large manufacturing companies, etc.  Governments – they do an awful lot of exhibits,  Show Managers – They hire us to come and help with their exhibits.  Our clients literally span every industry, from pharmaceuticals to packaging, and are all over the globe, so I spend a tremendous amount of time on airplanes.

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Our latest entry in our interview series ‘Trade Show Experts’ bring us Mark Amtower.  For those woking in the Government space, you’ve very likely heard Mark speak or have read one of his many articles as he is the leading authority in training businesses on how to secure work from the government.  For more information on Mark and the services his company offers, visit his website here.

Can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you got into government focused marketing?

In the early 1980s I sold management training to Fortune 1000 companies and the government. I went from that to Government Computer News as the first circulation director. At both positions, especially at Government Computer News, I saw that no one treated marketing to the government as a separate discipline. I opened my company in 1985 and have focused on marketing to the government ever since. I also learned early on that this is a relationship driven market – you need to develop deep relationships with those occupying space in your niche on both the vendor and government side, as well as the trade press and event producer sides.

Can you tell us about the types of clients that you work with? Sizes?  Product/Service offerings?

Client size or product/service does not matter as much as the willingness to listen and act on my recommendations. I have worked with very large (Fortune 100) and very small (2-3 people) in both the product and service areas and the clients that listen and act are the ones that benefit. It is usually easier to get traction faster for product vendors, but any company coming into the market has to understand that it is a highly competitive and crowded market and no one enters quickly.

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Our latest entry in our interview series ‘Trade Show Experts’ bring us Susan Friedmann, The Tradeshow Coach.  That name is probably very familiar to many of you, as Susan is one of the most sought after tradeshow consultants in the industry. In this post, Susan shares information on her company and focuses specifically on how to select the right trade show to exhibit your business or service.  For more information on Susan, and the services her company offers, visit her website here.

Can you tell us a little bit about your background in trade shows?

I started doing tradeshows as a teenager, helping my father selling consumer products at a month long Home and Garden Show in London.  During the few breaks he gave me, I walked around the show floor and was disgusted at the way other exhibitors behaved.  As a complete novice, this made a striking impression, so much so that I vowed that one day, I would teach people how to do a better job of exhibiting.

Fast forward 10 years and I found myself working for a PR agency, and my major clients went to big industrial shows around the globe.  I was in charge of helping them get favorable publicity and do a great job at exhibiting.

Fast forward another 10 years, when after three layoffs, I decided to take charge of my own destiny and start a small tradeshow coaching, consulting and training business.

25 years ago, exhibitor education had minimal recognition as being a needed skill.  However, over the years, more and more savvy exhibitors realize that they need training.

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We’re continuing our ‘Trade Show Experts’ interview series with another very interesting topic – Social Media!  In business, you can’t turn anywhere these days without being inundated with some guru or expert telling you to ‘be more social’ online.  To help us sort through what this means for the trade show community, we interviewed Nate Riggs, a social media strategist with extensive experience in helping clients integrate social media into their trade show exhibits.  For more information on Nate and the services his company offers, visit his website here.

Can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you got into focusing on social media?

In middle school and high school, I got hooked in playing games like Wolfenstein and Doom on an old Gateway PC.  When we finally got the internet (via the old AOL discs) I was able to find some chat rooms where people were talking about the game.  That was my first exposure to talking to other humans on the web.

My background has been in everything marketing and B2B business development, primarily with agencies.  I’ve had experience from everything to telemarketing to brand strategy agencies to SEO and web shops.  Back in late 2007, I made an effort at pitching the CEO at a SEO firm I was working at on allowing me to build out a department that would focus on helping clients with social media.  It didn’t get anywhere, and a few weeks later, I left and started my firm Social Business Strategies (SBS).  Then the economy dove off a cliff.  That was a fun first year!

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We’re continuing our ‘Trade Show Experts’ interview series with a very interesting and entertaining topic this week!  Our expert is Danny Orleans, a Chicago-based professional magician who has 20 years of experience performing magic at trade shows to help exhibitors attract more attention to their booths. If you are searching for a way to gather huge crowds around your booth and brand your company, Danny just may be the guy you are looking for.

Can you tell us a little bit about how you became a magician?

When I was 6 years old, my grandfather asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. He tape recorded me (on one of those old reel-to-reel tape recorders) as I replied, “A magician!” Turns out, I could predict my own future – even as a child!

Shortly after, he gave me a toy magic kit which I really loved. Visits to a New York City magic shop followed and then I found myself performing at neighborhood kids’ birthday parties. After college, I created a curriculum-based magic show which I performed at elementary schools nation-wide.

How did you make the transition from birthday parties and elementary schools to international trade shows?

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We recently had a chance to interview Peter LoCascio of Trade Show Consultants.  Peter has extensive experience in the trade show industry, and we’re sure that the information he shared with us during the interview will give you a unique and insightful perspective on exhibiting. For more information on Peter and the services his company offers, visit his website here.

Can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you formed Trade Show Consultants?

My dad, Joe LoCascio (1912-1988), was a graphic artist in and around New York City and an early pioneer in what today is known as the exhibit business. Starting at the age of 13, I worked weekends and school holidays with my dad at Exhibit Craft, Inc. in Long Island City, N.Y. doing whatever I was asked in any department that needed me. I eventually graduated through the ranks to manage 40 trade shows a year for Olivetti Underwood. Leaving ECI and moving to the client side of the business, I held positions as Corporate Trade Show Exhibits Manager for Sperry UNIVAC, Memorex, and Beckman Instruments.

I created Trade Show Consultants more than 35 years ago to develop strategic and tactical sales and marketing programs for trade show exhibitors, creating a finely tuned culture of service, customer support, and effective sales management. Many of the policies and procedures created to make the most of trade show exhibiting are imprinted on an exhibitor’s service culture and continue to be employed long after the close of the trade show.

Can you tell us about the type of clients that you work with? Sizes?  Industries?

Over the years, Trade Show Consultants has worked with clients from boot-strapped start-ups to Fortune 500 corporations in virtually every industry. The common denominator has always been to help maximize trade show exhibiting results and increase the effectiveness of exhibiting as it relates to pre-determined sales and marketing goals and objectives.

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