A session delivered at Exhibitor Live 2023 by Jim Gilmore
We recently enjoyed a trip to the States for ExhibitorLive 23 which was both a thrilling and enjoyable experience. Our conference session journey started with Jim Gilmore’s Creating Innovative Exhibit and Event Experiences.
During this two-part session, he shared a range of insights and specific tools for designing experiences that captivate and delight your audience.
Read on to discover what we learnt.
Challenging the exhibiting norm
Jim challenged the attendees to think beyond the traditional exhibit design and marketing strategies and to embrace the principles of the experience economy. At the core was the concept of the Progression of Economic Value from Commodities (Extract) to Goods (Make) to Services (Deliver) to Experiences (Stage). To fully convey its meaning, he gave us examples of how different companies and organizations have used experiential design to create value and meaning for their audiences.
One of the most valuable takeaways from the sessions was the in-depth discussion on how to use practical tools and techniques to improve exhibit and event experiences, such as how to:
- Experientialise goods and services
- Use the four different realms of experiential value: entertainment, educational, escapist, and aesthetic
- Compellingly theme any experience
Live events like trade show exhibitions have always been about experiences, even before experience was a recognised economy. These events rely on human interaction and collaboration among individuals and groups, which makes them uniquely suited to thrive in the experience economy.
Understanding How to Create Your Activation
An activation created for a trade show should match the theme of the event or the message that you are trying to convey — a seamless blend of educational content and experience. But do the same ideas work for every trade show?
No, and that’s the point.
People react to the things around them based on the personal meanings they give to those things. These meanings can change through social interaction and communication with others. Each trade show has its own audience, goals, challenges, and opportunities. Therefore, each activation should be tailored to fit the specific context and objectives of the event.
Jim Gilmore’s session was a great way to start our conference sessions journey at ExhibitorLive 23. It inspired us to think creatively about event experiences and how we can make them not only attractive and engaging but also meaningful and memorable for attendees.
If you need help to conjure innovative exhibit and event experiences, drop us a message and one of our expert team will be on hand to help.