Strategy in TECH...
Event season is upon us, as evidenced by the two major events that took place last week – CEDIA Expo Virtual 2020 and Crestron NEXT. This year, thanks to COVID-19, these normally in-person events took place in the digital domain as virtual events. And the next big show that integrators are going to want to watch for – which will also be a virtual event – is the upcoming Snap Pro Live being produced by industry powerhouse SnapAV.
At the dawn of the custom integration industry (then custom installation industry), it became clear to many that there was strong consumer demand for a more custom solution that allowed clients to reclaim floor space lost to big box speakers. This demand led to the creation of in-ceiling and in-wall speakers. Certainly, for many consumers, this was a dramatic step forward in regaining control of their interior design. Yet as time went by, it was clear that what many clients really wanted was…completely invisible sound.
But invisible speakers generally don’t match the sound quality of traditional visible in-ceiling/in-wall models – a major performance compromise that causes many integrators to refuse to offer them. But in a press conference at the CEDIA Expo Virtual this week, Sonance told the gathered media that they have solved the conundrum of the sound quality compromise of invisible speaker performance.
CEDIA Expo Virtual was almost exclusively an online media event…rather than a real, in-person trade show. I know…duh! Yes, I knew this logically, but it hadn’t really hit me viscerally until I actually attended the event. But what that means for Emerald Exposition is that their expertise in fielding large scale, B2B, in-person events really doesn’t apply here. And that fact forced them to rely exclusively on CE Pro for almost the entire event, including content strategy, seminar production, and show performance.
I don’t know about you, but at this point in our pandemic-impacted new normal, I’m getting a little Zoomed out. Do you know what I mean? So when I learned that there would be two big virtual events in one week (CEDIA Expo Virtual and Crestron NEXT), it didn’t exactly extract a big WOO-HOO from me.
So how do virtual event promoters rise above the morass of brain-addled ambivalence from the many industry denizens overloaded by Zoom meetings? They deliver truly motivating content that shakes the attendees out of their Zoom-induced comas. I’m pleased to report that Crestron NEXT has delivered on the promise of offering truly interesting and impactful content for integrators, at their first ever online, virtual integrator conference.
Creston, one of the industry’s largest and most respected brands of control and automation solutions for the residential and commercial channels, is holding their Crestron NEXT virtual event next week – and it looks extremely interesting. Taking place over two days – September 15 & 16 (yes, during CEDIA’s virtual show), there are two versions: residential and commercial.
The Florida Audio Expo announced this week that they are cancelling their February 2021 high-end audio exposition due to “the extraordinary times and continued uncertainty.” Although their announcement does not explicitly name COVID-19 or SARS-CoV2, comments by show founders make it clear, noting that they “put our customers well being first.”
Emerald Holding Inc. (NYSE:EEX) – formerly Emerald Expositions Events, Inc. – released their fiscal 2020 second quarter results this week and it’s no surprise that they were brutal, as the company continues to find itself caught in a COVID catastrophe that is killing in-person events, like the very expositions they produce. With the second quarter covering the period of April – June, the previous peak of the pandemic’s infections and deaths (since exceeded), the company performance – as expected – was really challenged, with the bulk of their various trade shows and in-person events cancelled or postponed.
But the company did have one piece of good news…the insurance companies providing event cancellation insurance to the company have begun paying against their claims.
A few months ago, I unexpectedly became unemployed. There had been occasions in my career when it was clear that I needed to get the hell out of Dodge —but this wasn’t one of them.
A new job would not appear overnight; that was obvious. I was up to my ears in fearful self-absorption.
Then things changed…and the world was in upheaval.
On Tuesday, promoters of the Rocky Mountain Audio Fest – a well respected and popular event for the high-end specialty audio segment – announced that they were cancelling the show scheduled for October 2-4, 2020 in Aurora, CO. Like many other industry events this year, the reason was due to the disruption caused by the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
Saying they are putting “Health and Safety first,” IFA announces they have received the appropriate government approvals to hold a live, in-person trade show event in Berlin this coming September. The announcement was a dramatic departure from their previous announcement in April cancelling this very event. But will anyone choose to attend?
