A few practices keep chipping away at the integrity of professional events. Chief among them are outboarding, when companies bypass exhibiting or sponsoring and set up shop on the fringe of your event, and suitcasing, which refers to non-exhibiting sellers who work the aisles or hallways. Lobby rats — non-registered folks who hang out in public spaces, hosting a series of meet-ups with your badged attendees — is also a growing problem. Left unchecked, these scammers pose a major threat to … [Read more...]
Leeches, Poachers And Outboarders: Controversial Tradeshow Challenges
Recently, Rick Calvert, CEO & Co-Founder of Blogworld & New Media Expo, wrote How Suitcasing and Outboarding Harm Events. The post attempts to tackle two very controversial challenges for our industry: suitcasing and outboarding. Go ahead and take a few minutes to read Rick’s entire blog post and leave a comment with your opinions or support. I’ll wait here while you read and comment. It’ll be worth it. Defining Suitcasing and Outboarding To make sure we are all on … [Read more...]
