Vendors optimistic about Macworld Expo
With the news that Macworld Expo will move from its traditional time in January to February in 2010, IDG World Expo is trying to rework the annual trade show to make it more appealing to show-goers and vendors alike.
One of the advantages is the reduced costs that companies will have to pay to attend the show.
Early January is still peak holiday travel season, so prices usually remain high. For companies transporting several people (sometimes 10 or more), the savings on travel, hotels, and other associated costs by moving the show to February 9 – 13 can be significant.
"As a businessman I need to look at all the costs," Paul Kafasis, CEO of Rogue Amoeba Software, told Macworld. "And we need to know that people will be there. We definitely want to be there."
Longtime Mac developer Rich Siegel, CEO of BBEdit-maker Bare Bones Software, said he hasn’t made a decision on whether or not his company will exhibit in 2010.
However, Siegel said that his position is no different than any other year for him. "We tend to make those decisions on an operational basis," says Siegel. "When we get to the commitment point, we’ll make the decision."
Siegel and Kafasis both say that they will be attending the show regardless of whether their companies exhibit or not.
Jean MacDonald, marketing director for SmileOnMyMac, said the company has signed a letter of intent with IDG World Expo to exhibit in 2010, but hasn’t made a final decision on whether or not to exhibit.
"It is too early to say whether we are going to commit – we are still waiting to hear about pricing. Until we have a better handle on the costs, we won’t be able to say yes for sure."
One change that all of the developers really liked was having expo open on Saturday.
Typically, the conference and exhibit open from Tuesday to Friday, but in 2010, the conference portion of the show will run from Tuesday to Saturday and the exhibit hall will be open from Thursday to Saturday.
That’s an important change for two reasons.
First, Paul Kent, vice-president and GM of Macworld Expo, says that the reduction in exhibit hall hours will be factored into new rates for exhibitors.
Second, vendors hope to attract new people to the show.
With the exhibit hall being open from 10am to 6pm daily, some vendors felt that they were missing out on a lot of potential customers who couldn’t make it because they had to work – by opening the show floor on Saturday, everyone has the opportunity to make it for at least one day.
"Having [the exhibit hall] open on Saturday is going to be a good thing for consumers and businesses," says Alex Grossman, president and CEO of Raid storage company Active Storage.
Grossman, a former executive on Apple’s server team, is waiting to see what IDG World Expo does to attract professional customers.
"Pros need a place to go," says Grossman. "I hope that Macworld is that place."
With the pro enterprise market, customers want to sit down and talk about products – most companies are not willing to make a large purchase based on marketing material on a Web site.
Macworld Expo gives customers a place to see how things are done in the real world.
The conferences are another area where Grossman feels Macworld Expo has an advantage in the industry.
"There aren’t a lot of places today where you can get seminars on Apple," he says. "If you can get them they are consumer-oriented. This gives us a way to get in there and do it".
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