Feature
EN GUEST EDITOR R U T H CARTER LOOKS AT THE ROAD TO RECOVERY , AND HOW THE FACE OF EXHIBITIONS MAY NEVER BE THE SAME AGAIN
y four-month interim stint as guest editor of Exhibition News has been quite an experience . I have spoken with some of the most interesting , influential , controversial and clever people in the exhibition world . I have heard directly from the mouths of a whole stable of horses as to where our world is heading and between you and I , the future genuinely does look exciting .
It has been fascinating to hear the emergence of our latest buzzword ‘ omnichannel ’ and learn how some of the biggest companies in our industry are refocusing their businesses around an omnichannel strategy . It is also interesting to see that an omnichannel approach does not have to be the privilege of the large organiser . There seems to be an equal number of enterprise organisations following that route as there are larger ones .
But omnichannel is not the only answer . I remember being criticised back in the early 2000 ’ s for running
“ THE EXCITEMENT WE SAW IN OUR SOCIETY WHEN THE PLAN FOR EXITING LOCKDOWN WAS REVEALED , SHOWS JUST HOW MUCH PEOPLE STILL WANT THAT PHYSICAL INTERACTION .” a ‘ silo organisation ’ as my events business only did one thing . But we did it well and nowadays , instead of saying ‘ silo ’ like it was a dirty word , we would be called ‘ centres of expertise ’. There will be as much room for the experts who do one thing but do it exceptionally well as there will be for those organisations who take a media neutral approach . Both are right .
Digital has been a fascinating debate and one that brings a real dichotomy of opinion from those that think it is a massive part of the future to those that think hard core , high quality physical exhibitions will win the day . While both are right , I can no longer imagine any show strategy that does not have a serious wodge of digital in it . Having two strings to the bow gives the potential for twice as much revenue – or at least an additional route back to the levels of pre-Covid-19 .
We have every reason to be confident that people will flock back to exhibitions in the near future . The excitement we saw in our society when the plan for exiting lockdown was revealed , shows just how much people still want that physical interaction . We should never ask ourselves as to whether there will be a place in the world going forward for exhibitions . Digital can take us so far but will never replace what we offer with a physical show .
Walking away from what we have learned over the past year in terms of digital is not an option though . There is a universal acceptance that we are some way down the line from finding the perfect solution to a digital exhibition . But there could be two reasons for that . Maybe there will never be a true solution that will solve the ‘ learn-trade-network ’ combo so uniquely provided by a physical show . Or maybe it hasn ’ t been invented yet . When the early aviators first tried to fly , they stuck feathers on their arms . Nowadays , that just seems plain stupid . But if we had told those pioneers that the solution was not doing what those already flying ( i . e ., birds ) did , but was to use a turbine to suck air through compressors in order to spin blades attached to a shaft , it would have been met with incredulity . Maybe , just maybe , we should stop trying to ‘ replicate what birds do ’ and think differently .
The issue of diversity has been a glaring one for me . Talking to the great and the good in the industry has highlighted that , with the exception of primarily Hannant , Jackson , Barrett , Hoinkes and King , we seriously lack women at the most senior of levels . But while we must continue to champion diversity ( and all diversity , not just gender ) in our organisations , there is a glimmer of hope as middle management is positively teeming with smart , successful , driven women who , within the next 5 to 10 years will be the future leaders of tomorrow .
But Ladies , let ’ s make sure we get this balance right . It isn ’ t ‘ our ’ time ; it isn ’ t about retribution ; it is genuinely all about equality and balance . I recently spoke with a woman in our industry who said that being a gender diverse culture meant that she now had the right to cry and be emotional in the workplace . Despite being a ‘ woman of a certain age ’ where emotions tend to be unpredictable , I absolutely , fundamentally disagree with this . If we think we can cry at work , then men should be allowed to scratch and ‘ mansplain ’. If you can ’ t have a scanty Kim Kardashian calendar on a desk , neither can you have an oiled and topless Chris Hemsworth . Ladies , let ’ s cut the chaps some slack as this new world of balance will take some navigating by both genders .
The roadmap announced at the end of February has filled everyone with hope and has got everyone back in a positive frame of mind . But we need to remember the pain of last year and use that to find our own roadmap going forward .
March-April — 13