Your Show of Shows

If you are reading on a smartphone, use landscape / hold phone sideways. 

Your Show of Shows was a 90-minute long comedy television series appearing weekly in the United States on NBC, from 1950 until June 5, 1954. It was a very big deal. Only I Love Lucy would get more eyeballs during the golden age of TV.

This week, millions of people will attend InfoComm 2023 in Orlando (hyperbole intended). It's a big deal - if you are in the Professional AV business. InfoComm is a professional trade show for the audiovisual industry in North America. It features the latest technologies for audio, video, display, projection, lighting and staging, digital signage, conferencing, digital content creation, networking, signal distribution, and more. InfoComm is owned and produced by AVIXA, the Audiovisual and Integrated Experience Association. The first InfoComm conference was held in Las Vegas, Nevada in 1982. Since then, it has been held in many locations around the world, including China, Japan, Israel, Italy, Spain, Brazil, and many other regions of the United States.

On Wednesday there is another industry specific event in Hershey PA, with around 500+ attending. (No hyperbole). I'll be one of the 500. This too, is a big deal if you are in the telecom or technology business. And next month is the National Convention for Distance Learning - I'll be back in Orlando. Again, this convention will be a big deal... if you are in (fill in the blank). 

A trade show, also known as a trade fair, exhibition, or expo, is an event or exhibition where companies from a specific industry gather to showcase their products, services, and latest innovations to potential customers, business partners, and the general public. 

Trade shows are typically organized by industry associations or event management companies and are held in large venues such as convention centers or exhibition halls.

The primary purpose of a trade show is to provide a platform for businesses to promote their brand, generate leads, network with industry professionals, and conduct business-to-business (B2B) or business-to-consumer (B2C) interactions. These events often feature booths or stands where companies set up displays to showcase their products or services. Attendees can explore the exhibits, learn about new products, compare different offerings, and engage in conversations with company representatives.

Trade shows often include educational seminars, workshops, and keynote speeches by industry experts, providing valuable insights and knowledge sharing opportunities. They may also host competitions, demonstrations, or product launches to create excitement and attract attention.

Trade shows offer numerous benefits to businesses, such as increasing brand visibility, launching new products, building relationships with potential customers, identifying market trends, and gaining a competitive edge in the industry. Additionally, trade shows serve as a meeting place for industry professionals, fostering networking and collaboration opportunities.

Both exhibitors and attendees can benefit from trade shows. Exhibitors can showcase their products, generate sales leads, establish partnerships, and gain market exposure. Attendees, on the other hand, can explore a wide range of products and services, learn about industry trends, and connect with industry peers and experts. Overall, trade shows play a crucial role in facilitating business interactions, promoting industry growth, and fostering innovation within specific sectors.

This brings me back to Your Show of Shows - the TV show. Before TV, you had live shows, and you had the movies. If you wanted to see a comedian or a singer live - you would need to go (physically) to a nightclub or Radio City Music Hall or similar venue. Watching Elvis or The Beatles LIVE on TV was game changing. 

2023, everything is hybrid. Physically going to Orlando or New York City or Vegas is of course, common. Now that COVID has passed, people want to travel. They want to buy plane tickets, pay for hotel rooms, and "get out of town" to hang out with friends and colleagues. Or do they??? Hmmm... see tomayto, tomahto. 

The technology of today allows for a good part of the experience to be, well, experienced without the need for travel. Tools like BlueJeans by Verizon (Studio or Events) allows for HD Video, and Dolby audio - from anywhere. You can have 500+ LIVE at the trade show or convention, 50K+ LIVE via BlueJeans and 5M+ watching the Livestream, or watching the archives of the event like a TED talk. 

“No one goes there anymore, it's too crowded” is a famous quote by the late Yogi Berra, a professional baseball player known for his witty sayings. The quote itself is a contradiction, if no one goes there then it wouldn't be crowded, but it is.

And so, because of the technology of today - because of streaming media - because of HD Video and "the cloud" - no one travels to trade shows anymore, they're too crowded. 

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