NEW YORK — As people say at all lightly-attended trade shows, “it's quality, not quantity.” That’s the consensus from exhibitors on the first day at the Direct Marketing Association's DMD Conference & Exhibition at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.
It is unknown how many attendees were at the show's first day because the DMA does not release attendance figures, nor does it submit the show for third-party audits. However, several exhibitors said traffic was lighter because of the conflicting Catalog Conference in San Francisco.
Also, the sessions at this year's show are a solid five-minute walk away from the trade-show floor, whereas last year's sessions were adjacent to the exhibit hall. Several people also commented that last year’s show — the first at Javits — was much better.
“We were on the exterior rim last year — and when sessions let out, the surge [in booth traffic] was immediate,” said Craig Blake, an account director at direct mail and fulfillment services provider W.A. Wilde Co., Holliston, MA.
Blake said traffic at Wilde's booth “from noon to 3 was strong.” However, he said, “You also have to do a lot of the pre-show stuff to drive the traffic.” This year, Wilde mailed “Titanic” DVDs to trade-show attendees under the company's theme, “You will achieve blockbuster results with Wilde behind the scenes of your marketing strategy.”
Traffic was better last year, “but we're getting good quality leads who look like they want to do business,” said Paul Ercolino, director of sales at US Monitor, New City, NY.
“Attendance was moderate, but we heard that several people were red-eying from [the] catalog [show],” said Joe Frick, marketing manager at Adrea Rubin Marketing Inc., New York.
Michael Mazzone Jr., vice president of the wholesale division at Hugo Dunhill Mailing Lists Inc., New York, said traffic was better in the morning.
“Our aisle did very well, but our booth was right in front,” he said. “This afternoon has been light.”
