March 2006
10 Easy Places
Secrets from operations experts on the easiest cities in which to produce events
By Patricia D. Sherman



“Finding an easy city to produce a show is almost always a trade-off,” says Meg Ellacott, President of Ellacott Productions (www.ellashow.com), based in Fairfax, VA. “What’s easy? It depends on so many things. You have to decide what you value most and weigh the factors.”

To help organizers weigh the factors they value most, we identified 10 parts of the show production process and surveyed operations experts — association and for-profit show organizers with experience running a variety of shows in venues across the country — to determine some of the easiest cities in which to produce shows. While our results aren’t scientific, they do provide insight from industry experts who’ve been there and done that. Find out their secrets for the easiest cities in which to produce shows.

1. Labor: Indianapolis
Organizers identified Indianapolis as a city that combines high quality labor, reasonable cost and availability. “We run four or five shows a year at the convention center, and I never hear exhibitors complain about labor,” says Debbie Locklear, President of Meeting Services Unlimited (www.conventionmanagers.com), based in Indianapolis. “Good management keeps the labor pool stable. They know the building. In pre-show planning, they tell me what I need to know immediately and, during the show, they make adjustments within minutes.”

Relaxed labor rules help exhibitors control costs, says Catherine Lyons, Director of Meetings and Trade Show Management, who took the International Sleep Products Association Expo (www.sleepproducts.org) to the city in 2004. “We have very large machines. Some pieces can take up to 4,000 square feet. The exhibitors spend a fortune getting the machinery to the show. They’re very particular about set-up and calibration, and they want to do it themselves. In Indianapolis, they were able to. They didn’t have to call three different unions to do three things and pay a watcher.”

2. Convention Center Staff: Chicago
“Chicago is tops on my list. The city and mayor have gone to extreme lengths to drive convention business to the city. They have one of the best convention centers in the country,” and the attitude of the convention center staff reflects the value the city puts on shows and meetings, says Scott Stallings, Vice President of Operations, VNU Exhibitions (www.vnuexpo.com), Chantilly, VA.

The National Confectioners Association (www.candyusa.com) show draws 20,000 attendees and 500 exhibitors every June to McCormick Place. Libby Taylor, Vice President, Meetings and Membership, says the center staff is part of a seamless commitment to show success. “They’re part of our team. They anticipate what we need.” She singles out center staff support at every step of the show production process: a benefits program for repeat shows, a telemarketing service to help call past attendees, skilled execution of tight move-in schedules, arranging for the mayor to visit the show floor, and attendee-friendly touches, such as free refreshment stations by the bus and taxi stations.

3. Convention Center: Moscone Center
Show organizers like San Francisco because it’s a reliable attendance draw, and the Moscone Center (www.moscone.com) complements the city’s high profile with attendees. The center is in dense urban surroundings and the newest part, Moscone West, is on three levels. Nevertheless, thanks to good planning and facility management, show organizers find the logistics and design present few, if any, challenges.

“We worked with the architect to make sure everything in the building works for our clients,” says Julie Burford, Assistant General Manager. “We made sure that huge elevators were part of the plans. We have our own dock management department to make sure freight is delivered on time. We meet regularly with all contractors to make sure all parts work together.”

The Face and Body Healthy Aging Conference moved to Moscone West last year after outgrowing facilities in smaller cities, says Sandy Chapin, Event Manager for Allured Publication Corp. (www.allured.com), headquartered near Chicago. “It’s a beautiful facility with lots of glass and light. There’s an 83,000-square-foot pre-function area that was perfect for our needs.”

The three levels were a plus rather than a negative for her group. “We used the first level for exhibits, the second for meetings and the third for lunch. It was easy to move around, and we liked having the levels devoted to different functions.”

The move to downtown San Francisco prompted a 25 percent jump in attendance to 7,000. “It’s primarily a regional show, and we have a lot of drive-ins, but there were no parking problems,” she says.

4. Convention Center Services: Georgia World Congress Center
Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC, www.gwcc.com) has a reputation for service. “You can’t find friendlier people anywhere — which is very important in the hospitality industry,” says Stallings.

“The GWCC will bend over backward for you,” says Barb Stroup, VNU Group Operations Director based in Atlanta. She manages retail, design, building and healthcare shows in the center, including the Bed and Bath Show and MedTrade. “Any idea I have, they always find a way to make it work. I tell them if I have a concern, and they focus on it so I can forget about it.” She cites instances when the center hosted events for site selection committees and ways the center helped cut costs to maximize proceeds for a fund-raiser.

5. CVB: Long Beach
The Long Beach CVB (www.visitlongbeach.com) is appreciated for doing its homework and working closely with the convention center and hotels. “I hate it when I get to a city and the CVB rep asks, ‘What was your show again?’ ” says Lawson Hockman, CEM, Vice President, Association Services, IMN Solutions (www.imnsolutions.com), Arlington, VA. His company manages 600 meetings and 15 major trade shows annually. He travels to dozens of cities inspecting sites for association shows and meetings.

“One of the things I like about the Long Beach CVB is that they’re very targeted. By the time I get there, they already know the history of my show in other cities, and they’ve thought about how it should be laid out. They consolidate everything, so I save time. It’s one of the few CVBs that organizers can depend on to work with them to negotiate good terms with the convention center and hotels.”

Stroup, who has hosted several shows in Long Beach, including the Imprinted Sportswear Show in January, describes the CVB as “Outstanding. They do their research. They’re very close to the hotel community, and they’re open to negotiating in any type of situation.”

The Long Beach CVB has gone the extra mile for Stroup in many ways, she says. They provided a signing interpreter to meet ADA standards for one show. For another, they hosted memorable entertainment for her exhibitors. On one occasion, when drive-in attendance exceeded her plans, the CVB found extra parking and provided shuttle service at no extra cost.

6. Infrastructure: San Diego
Organizers like San Diego for a lot of reasons, among them the nearly perfect weather, the 70 miles of beaches and 90 golf courses in the area and the world-famous zoo and other family-friendly attractions. San Diego meets the foremost criterion for a meeting destination: “People want to go there,” says John Skipper, CEO, National Conference Services, Inc. (www.ncsi.com), Columbia, MD.

In addition to its high-value destination draw, organizers particularly praise the city’s meeting infrastructure. The convention center is only three miles from the airport on the beautifully developed downtown waterfront. With the recent addition of the deluxe 500-room Omni San Diego, there are more than 10,000 rooms near the center. After meetings, attendees can stroll through the nearby Gaslamp Quarter, where they’ll find hundreds of restaurants and entertainment venues, art galleries and retail shops.

“Everything about San Diego is easy,” says Skipper, who has managed military and government meetings and shows in the city. He starts with the short ride from the airport to downtown. When attendees are there, they can walk or take a trolley or short cab ride to virtually all entertainment, restaurants and off-site venues. “There are huge convention hotels across the street from the center with lots of meeting space for smaller and mid-sized shows and there’s plenty of overflow parking,” he says.

7. Hotel Package: Orlando
Organizers who frequently take shows to Orlando (www.orlandoinfo.com) say the city’s hotel package consistently exceeds expectations. Orlando hotels won praise for reasonable rates, range of price points, quality at every level, convenience to the convention center, service and flexibility.

The show that Mary Upton, CEM, CMP, Vice President of Trade Show Operations, ASI Show Inc. (www.asicentral.com), Trevose, PA, takes to Orlando every year has about 900 exhibitors and about 10,000 attendees. “They want everything from the Ritz-Carlton to little hotels like Embassy Suites, where they can get free breakfast. Having high-quality hotels at every price point close to the convention center is a big plus,” she says.

She singles out the Peabody (www.peabodyorlando.com). “For me, it’s the hotel benchmark. The level of service is excellent, it’s beautifully maintained, the service is friendly, even the beds are great.” She likes the way the Peabody handles problems, too. For one of her shows, she recalls, the hotel overbooked. “They were upfront about it. They worked with every cancellation right up until the last day so they didn’t have to walk any of our people. They gave us full credit for our comps, too.”

VNU show managers frequently mention the Orlando World Center Marriott (www.marriottworldcenter.com), Stallings says. “It’s very easy to work in that facility.”

The huge inventory of hotel rooms in Orlando, with more coming on line every year, means that show organizers have room to negotiate. One hotel raised rates $20 for this year’s show, Upton says. “I dropped them. There are enough other hotels that there’s always competition.”

8. Locale: San Antonio
Show organizers say that as a meeting locale, San Antonio (www.sanantoniocvb.com) runs like a fine machine. “I look at other cities and wonder why can’t they can’t be more like San Antonio,” says Hockman, who has taken shows there for engineers, medical professionals, teachers and military groups.

“San Antonio has a tight package. Everything works together,” he says. “The hotels work closely together. The CVB coordinates with the hotels, restaurants and venues. The layout of the convention center is good, especially with the new column-free hall. The convention services staff is sharp. You don’t have labor issues, and exhibitors can do much of their own work. The Marriott and Hilton are across the street from the center, and there are a range of room rates nearby. You have the River Walk for entertainment, and everything from food courts to fancy restaurants. We’ve shuttled more than 5,000 attendees to off-site venues with no problems. Traffic flow is excellent.”

9. Affordability: Dallas
When organizers evaluate cities for affordability, Dallas (www.dallascvb.com) comes out on top in nearly every element of show production. “AV rates, decorating and general contracting may be the cheapest anywhere,” says Upton. She has taken multiple shows to Dallas in the past four years, the most recent in February. “You consistently get very good labor, and it’s a right to work state, so the rates are very reasonable. I can get blocks of rooms in the Adams Mark and comparable hotels for as low as $99 a night. That’s a big draw for attendees if they’re not on expense accounts or have to keep per diem costs down. The hotel food is excellent and very reasonable.”

“Organizers should take a strong look at Dallas,” says Hockman, who also takes shows to Dallas, including the National Science Teachers Association National Conference last March. “You can get a good range of airline rates and direct flights. The convention center space is reasonable.” He notes that the addition of the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center (www.gaylordhotels.com) to the Dallas-Fort Worth mix may contribute to keeping prices competitive for some time to come. With 1,500 rooms and 400,000 square feet of meeting and exhibit space and a location adjacent to DFW International Airport, it offers an attractive alternative to downtown for small- and mid-sized events.

10. Attendance: Las Vegas
For attendance, it’s Las Vegas, of course. Drawing attendees to the most recognizable destination on the planet is easy. An award-winning advertising campaign powered by a huge budget keeps Las Vegas at the top of attendees’ minds year after year. For shows that draw international attendees, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA, www.lvcva.com) announced in January that it plans to beef up international promotion — which is already considerable — focusing especially on China, as well as South Korea, Australia, France, Brazil and Italy.

“It’s a destination draw like no other,” says Ed Nichols, Event Director, Reed Exhibitions (www.reedexpo.com), Norwalk, CT. He has taken many shows to Las Vegas, most recently EMS Today in November. For the attendee, Las Vegas is an almost perfect destination, he says. It fits into a wide range of budgets. There’s plenty of reasonably priced airfare from all parts of the country. If attendees need to keep hotel costs down, they can find lower rates off the Strip, but still be within walking distance of attractions. Most of all, they have an unmatched range of entertainment options, and there’s always something new for repeat visitors. “The way attendees see it, they’re apportioning money on entertainment they would spend anyway. Why not spend it in Vegas?”