You Are Hereª Kiosks Add Convenience For Javits Showgoers

Have you ever found yourself lost on the floor of a trade show, trying to find a particular exhibitor or product, with nothing to guide you but a map printed on a poster? Well, that won't happen to you if you are attending the International Restaurant and Foodservice Show at the Javits Center on March 8-11. You're going to have some high-tech help in navigating the show floor.
Being introduced at this year's show is You Are Here™, the world's first interactive wayfinding, mapping and advertising system, developed by MarketArt (www.MarketArt.com). The system is designed to help attendees identify and physically find the companies, products and services they may want to see. Installation of the system is in response to past comments from attendees that the sometimes chaotic atmosphere, and the sheer number of exhibitors, makes navigating the floor of the show difficult. And from an exhibitor's point of view, it's important that good prospects be able to find their booths easily. You Are Hereª claims to address both of those concerns.
The system replaces the old-style "map on a poster" on the show floor with large interactive, touch-screen maps and directories, deployed strategically throughout the show. In addition, the system provides a unique, immediately accessible exhibitor-promotion platform. Each exhibitor has their own "page" on the system which attendees see when they search by company name, product category, etc. Exhibitors can put pretty much do whatever they like to promote themselves and attract attendees viewing their page, including adding graphics, video, detailed information on what they are showing in their booth, etc. Their page also gives the attendee a map with directions, which they can print out on the spot. Armed with that information, attendees can quickly and easily locate the desired exhibitor's booth.
Some exhibitors stick with a text listing, which works well if attendees know to look for them by company name, as they did with the old, paper-map system. The real magic of this new information system, however, seems to be in helping attendees identify and locate new products and new vendors among the many on the floor. From the exhibitor's standpoint, the system allows them to "speak" directly to that qualified prospect at exactly the moment they are most interested, and get that person quickly and easily their booth. Exhibitors who are interested in making themselves more visible to new prospects do so by adding their logo to the map on the screen, posting ads with graphic images of their products, taking top positions in search results (think: Google™) and more.
The You Are Here™ system will work well for all attendees -- the huge percentage of those who like to "shop" on the show floor, making decisions about who and what to see right on the spot -- and those who like to do a bit more planning ahead. There is a version of the system on the International Restaurant & Foodservice Show website (click on "View Floorplan" in the "Quicklinks" section on the show site at www.internationalrestaurantny.com,) which attendees can use to plan an "itinerary" of exhibitors' booths in advance. If you look at the system, try clicking on the "SW24" or "LeCoq" logos on the map to go right to their page on the system for a demonstration of how the advertising feature works.
This advertising feature appears to be fairly inexpensive - adding logos and graphics to an exhibitor's display, for example, is around $275. Compared with what it costs for other "traditional" advertising opportunities, which are much less targeted, the modest expenditure certainly makes sense. Of course, exhibitors can spend more if they want. Exhibitors can also brand the touch-screen stations that are displayed on the show floor, sponsor the printed maps and more.
One key to the success of the system, in helping both attendees and exhibitors, is that attendees use the system - a lot. You Are Here™ corporate spokespeople report that typically around 65% of attendees use the system at the show, and many use it over and over. They know this because they record all attendee interactions, providing exhibitors with detailed post-show reporting as well.