A Happy Booth Staff = Successful Show!

I might be biased, because we have spent the last 3+ years building technologies that deliver a better booth experience to both booth staff and visitors alike.  However, it befuddles me why a company (or Show Provider) would want to make life more difficult to the booth staff!

Isn’t it enough that your staff had to travel to the show, miss time with their families, coordinate a million aspects of the show, and sleep in awkward bedding so that they can promote your company?

Booth Staff are the face of your company at engagements that you have spent considerable time/money/resources on.

Do you want them to be warn out or so focused on broken booth design/technology that hinders them from functioning in the professional/upbeat manner that you were aiming for?

Case in point, why are people using the show provided scanners?

Who ever thought that it would be a great idea to use a different technology every week that doesn’t collect the best data possible?   Could you imagine showing up to work each day to find a different computer with a different password on your desk each day and getting to configure a new email client while you are at it?  Truly insane, and it would frustrate any of us.  Yet people subscribe to this mentality.

Or how about this one:

Licensing that requires you to remove an app from your device to that you can “share” that license on a colleagues device at the next show.

THEN when you are staffing another booth (maybe months later) you get the special treat of reversing that process and trying to remember a password that you rarely use… and all because the software provider wants to gouge you on a 1990s licensing methodology that doesn’t take into account the effect of the end user.

Don’t even get me started on how annoying it is that now I have to carry my phone AND a big ugly scanner that feels like a transporter designed for a 1960s episode of Star Trek.
Now I’m told that I have to carry this device and share it with my colleagues (again, because the show provider wants to maximize revenue instead of making the booth experience enjoyable to the staff). 

Lastly, seating and carpet.

Seats and carpet are insanely expensive at shows.   We recently spent $250 to RENT a seat that probably retails for $89.   It’s insane and unfair of the show suppliers to gouge their exhibiting partners in my opinion.  At the same time, what is the lost value of a booth staff that is burnt out and beat up physically after the first day of the show?  You are there to meet people and have lively conversations over three days.  If you are seeing drop off after the first day of a three day show that you spent $25,000 on; you are probably losing $10,000 dollars of value because the show and your company didn’t take care of your staff.

More importantly, if you are expecting a 6X ROI on each show, then you are being penny wise and pound foolish not to invest appropriately with the well being and happiness of your booth staff in mind.