Canadian Music Trade - December / January 2020 | Page 16

NAMM News
By Luke Walton
Prepare for Your Future
at
W
The NAMM Show
e live in a time of constant
change and disruption. In
the last five years alone,
we’ve seen nothing short of
a retail reinvention. Look no further than the
growth of subscription models, the sharing
economy, and augmented reality as they evolve
and supplement the in-store experience.
With the pace of business cycles continu-
ing to accelerate, it is more important than
ever for companies to continually grow their
team’s skill level, as well as thoroughly eval-
uate their competition. The 2020 NAMM
Show is our sector’s resource to navigate our
new normal – an immersion into trends,
ideas, and contacts to better position your
business to thrive.
By attending The NAMM Show, you and
your staff gain insight into the current state
of the industry, allowing your business to
identify and cultivate unexplored opportuni-
ties and mitigate risk. The NAMM Campus
makes the intangible tangible, with network-
ing events assembling the top executives from
across the global retail and manufacturing
spheres. Each January, this investment into
your future empowers your yearly growth,
cultivating strategic plans and deepening
industry relationships.
Professional Development
In addition to networking events and the
invaluable perspective on the show floor,
NAMM U education provides a platform for
every member of your organization to develop,
with multiple learning tracks across music re-
tail, strategy, public policy, audio production,
and more. Before the show, view the education
schedule at namm.org, and plan your schedule
16 CANADIAN MUSIC TRADE
in the NAMM Shows Mobile App. After
key sessions, stick around and chat with the
presenters – you’ll likely meet like-minded
peers facing similar business issues as you.
Lifelong friendships and profitable business
ideas often form this way, paving the way for
future networking and growth opportunities.
Planning for the Future
Attendance to our industry’s global gathering
allows a chance to think beyond your current
objectives. Held the day before the show,
the Retail Innovation Summit will feature
best-selling author and sales and marketing
expert Marcus Sheridan, who will walk
attendees through the changing behavior
of consumers and strategies to deliver in
your business. At this summit,
attendees discover how the shift
in buying will influence sales and
marketing in the retail music
business going forward and what
types of content and messaging
do and don’t move the revenue
needle. Sheridan will also reveal
how to integrate video effectively
into your sales and marketing ef-
forts, and how you can set up an
in-house media company at your
own business to increase traffic,
both online and in-store. Pre-register for this
free summit at namm.org.
Outside-the-Box Ideas
The NAMM Show is a playground for
discovering new ideas, and you never know
where your next opportunity might come
from. Retailers pick up creative inspiration
or product-line expansion ideas from record
producers speaking at TEC Tracks or from
discussions on future-forward music-making
technologies at A3E sessions. Likewise, the
Pro Production and ESTA-curated edu-
cational sessions unveil the world of stage
lighting and entertainment tech – and new
concepts to grow your enterprise.
Getting Around
Explore the education offerings and show
floor by searching for “NAMM Shows” in
the App Store or Google Play. Be sure to set
some time aside for walking the NAMM
Campus – you might find your next big
product. We’re also unveiling new features
for the NAMM Shows Mobile App, with
a new and improved NAMM Bot offering
tips for navigating the show. Likewise, this
year will usher in the new NAMM Quest
game, rewarding users with great prizes for
creating profiles, networking with their peers,
and interacting with the show floor. With
a sprawling footprint and more than 300
education sessions, it is recommended to plan
ahead, setting up appointments so you can
meet with the key brands and partners for
your business.
Having Fun
The 2020 NAMM Show will feature an
immense schedule of events with A-list
musical performers to excite and unite the
industry, presented by Yamaha, The NAMM
Foundation, and Bands @ NAMM. Join us
in Southern California to enjoy great music,
food and drink, all while growing your busi-
ness network organically. We’re lucky enough
to work in the music business after all!
We look forward to hosting you from January
16-19, 2020, at the global crossroads of
music, sound, and entertainment technol-
ogy, uniting our shared industries. Be sure
to set your team up for success by utilizing
our planning tools at namm.org and the
NAMM Shows Mobile App, available in the
App Store and Google Play. After setting
your plans and registering your team, we’ll
see you in Southern California, empowering
your business strategy and fostering new
networking connections and unique concert
experiences.
We hope The 2020 NAMM Show will
prove to be a sound investment, powering
success for the year to come.
Luke Walton is the marketing manager for
the National Association of Music Merchants
(NAMM), the global not-for-profit trade
association representing 9,000 manufacturers
and retailers of musical instruments and sound
products. NAMM’s mission is to strengthen
the music products industry and promote the
pleasures and benefits of making music.