CyberCoating 2007 – A New Avenue or a Dead End?

It seems that everything is being swept into the infinite arena of cyberspace these days. Years ago, our forms of communication expanded to include the modern marvel of electronic mail. Today, the ability to have video board meetings with clients overseas has made it more cost efficient to simply conduct business from the comfort of your own office.

The ability to be two places at once is something humans have longed to have (and has been the brunt of many sarcastic rebuttals – “I can’t be in two places at once, you know!”) since the dawn of our existence. As we begin to develop new technologies that make this increasingly possible, it is interesting to watch as innovations come out of the woodwork. Take CyberCoating 2007, for example. This 3-D, virtual, online trade show was held in Cyberspace (Can’t you see that becoming a new location? Somewhere on par with those two-letter, postal code, state abbreviations we had to remember in middle school – IL, CA, OH, AZ…CS?) from October 15th to October 26th, 2007, and is a first for the coating industry.

Among the listed benefits (and they are numerous), the facilitators of the event, the Powder Coating Institute (PCI), tout that all of the elements of a physical trade show are encompassed in their virtual conference. This includes custom exhibits running the gamut of standard trade-show sizes, the ability to display and ‘hand out’ literature and brochures, and, most importantly, conversing with other attendees. There are even some surprising advantages to attending a cyber trade show. Take, for instance, the feature that allows companies with 40’x40’ exhibits to set up a virtual, working model of one of their machines, allowing attendees to view the machine as a whole or in cutaway modes. There is also the added benefit of being able to attend any technical session on demand; so you can press play, sit back and relax with a nice hot cup of coffee and a fresh donut while you learn about heat sensitive substrate coating.

Along with the practical features, the software includes some pretty quirky features, too. Not only can you walk and run around the exhibit hall (which is pretty massive, featuring a large domed foyer and an information kiosk for new arrivals) you can also fly from one exhibit to another. You might even catch a group of people hanging out in the rafters having a conversation.
Many people had a difficult time even starting conversations, however, as a lot of time was wasted (I have to admit, even I was lost at times) trying to figure out how to move, speak, and  interact within a virtual world. The conference planners must have taken this into consideration—the expo was open for 12 days straight, giving even the computer illiterate among us a fighting chance to partake in the anticipated event.

So far, the cyber expo seems like a fantastic idea. It offers most of the benefits of attending a physical conference, but without the added costs of hotel rooms, travel, meals, exhibit shipping and assembly, and more, associated with a conventional trade show. Let’s now look at some of the ‘cons’ to exhibiting at a cyber expo. 

I recently caught up with Griffe Youngleson, Director of Technology for the full service web design company, Zurv, to get a more in-depth opinion from someone who, in essence, works in cyber space. Griffe had the opportunity to attend CyberCoating 2007 last month, and shared with me his perspective of the show. “Many companies who would consider exhibiting at a virtual trade show are the same ones that already have some sort of internet presence. In a way, by purchasing a virtual booth they are paying to replicate something they have already paid top dollar to build – their website. All of the information found at their booth can be found, perhaps more extensively, at the company’s home page. It is much quicker and easier to type in a URL than it is to, say, register for a conference and download and install the proper plug-ins before a user can even see the exhibitor.  In my opinion, a company’s money would be much better spent by enhancing their current web presence. For example, they could get just as many new clients by optimizing their results in a search engine, and they could even have interactive product demos built directly into the site itself. This would be a permanent investment, as opposed to a 12 day investment”.

Another issue he pointed out is that “though many people may attend the conference, it is unlikely that many sales and transactions will ensue. People like to know what they are going to invest their money into. Looking at a 3-D model of a powder coating gun is not the same as picking one up and testing it out for your self. Cyber interaction will never rival tangible interaction, though it does a very good job in many areas”.

Obviously, the value of exhibiting or even attending a virtual conference is determined on a case by case basis. Overall, however, I think that as long as the virtual does not completely replace the ‘tangible’, companies and individuals may benefit in the long run by incorporating a bit of both into their yearly trade show repertoire.

To learn more about CyberCoating 2007 and future shows, visit CyberCoating 2007 - Home Page.

Written by Anna Levitsky editor of the Southern Metal Finishing newsletter.