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THEME:
Dedicated event marketing departments are being born and staffed and although many are years away from implementing true “event strategy,” they start to embrace a measurement mentality amid chief marketers demanding to know what they’re getting out of face-to-face programs. For some, measurement is premature and unobtainable. For others, ROI numbers are substantial and a preview of better metrics is to come.

TREND:
New technology starts to show off the potential of connected experiences. Wireless attendee tracking systems are showing up at b-to-b events, allowing marketers to track traffic, generate leads, push to websites and, in some cases, allow attendees to communicate with other attendees (a nod to early crowdsourcing).

TREND:
Pop-ups begin their reign as Delta Air Lines’ Song division opens a store in New York’s SoHo district… and changes the industry forever. The Song in the City store has six different areas to experience and features everything from cooking demos to entertainment presentations to comfy couches for hangin’ and a travel-planning area.

CASE STUDY:
Mobile marketers pull into trade shows, rather than exhibit within them as brands like on-demand TV company SeaChange Technologies hits the road with an 18-wheeler that serves as a mobile marketing vehicle—and its trade show booth.

CASE STUDY:
Monster.com turns a billboard into a magnet for a trade show booth. For a week before the SHRM trade show, Monster puts up a static “Billboard Painter Wanted” billboard. A local painter applies, is hired, and is used as a trade show draw. He’s stationed in front of the sign working to complete the message: “We got this guy his job.” Nice.