Change was in the air at the 21st annual Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce B2B Expo Oct. 3. The revamped event at the Springfield Exposition Center included a lunchtime speaker, new tabletop displays and an abbreviated format thanks, in part, to the work of a chamber focus group.
“The expo has been successful in years past, but it was time to change it up a bit,” said Kristin Lochner, special events manager for the chamber. “The focus group identified a few key areas to improve the event, such as length.
“Previously, the expo went until about 8 p.m., but attendance died down after hours. This year, the event will conclude at 2 p.m.”
Comprising longtime expo attendees, small-business owners, industry leaders and area nonprofit members, Lochner said members of the focus group envisioned an event business leaders could attend during the morning or afternoon, but still have time to return to the office before day’s end.
Daytime events included lunch speaker Jim McKelvey, cofounder of Square. The St. Louis native created the mobile payment platform with friend Jack Dorsey, best known for his social media creation, Twitter. The Square credit card reader for smartphones and tablets reportedly has been used in more than 500,000 local transactions totaling $22 million. In all, 3 million merchants use the device, and his company is processing more than $15 billion in transactions annually.
Tabletop trend Lochner said the new format, combined with the rebounding economy helped boost booth attendance to 150 this year, up from about 130 in 2012. Adding to the slate of businesses on the expo floor were the addition of more than 120 tabletop displays, a special chamber promotion in conjunction with its August membership drive that netted the chamber 423 new members. Rather than a full booth, the smaller option includes a six-foot table participants may use as they wish.
“The tabletop display was a perk for joining the chamber during the drive,” Lochner said. “Following the drive two years ago, we had a primetime tabletop event for new members. I worked with the membership committee to combine the two and hopefully increase traffic for both.”
New chamber member Justin Skinner jumped at the chance to showcase his graphic design and photography business, Prixel Creative LLC, through a tabletop display before the crowd of more than 1,000 expo attendees.
“It is a great opportunity to meet some new people and get to know other businesses involved in the chamber,” said Skinner, co-owner of the Springfield-based company with wife Kendra. “It also is a great chance for us to show off our style and what we bring to the table.”
Skinner’s first expo since founding the company in December 2012 at 311 W. Commercial St., the small-business owner said he plans to make the expo part of his marketing routine in the future.
Other businesses are reclaiming booth space after an absence from the event.
Springfield-based Rapid Refill Ink franchisee owner Howard LaFevers was a chamber member for two years before leaving to pursue alternate marketing options.
“I dropped out to join BNI, which has proved to be very beneficial, but I wish I had stayed with the chamber too. I feel like I’ve lost three years of bonding with other members,” LaFevers said. “I made the decision to return this year and intend to be very active with the chamber once again.”
LaFevers’ five-year-old ink and toner cartridge refill company at 4127 S. Kansas Expressway is one of four stores in Missouri and 110 nationwide. Before settling down for family, LaFevers worked for Dr Pepper Inc. for 33 years, logging 1 million American Airline miles in the process.
Audience matters Ranging from $425 to $735 per booth space, vendor attendance is up 13 percent. However, a few companies are notably absent from the 2013 list of attendees. Springfield Paper Co. occupied three booth spaces during the 2012 event but opted not to make a return.
“The return on investment wasn’t what we wanted, what we needed to justify having our staff standing there all day,” General Manager Kevin Smith said. “The events no doubt have a lot of traffic, but they don’t generate a lot of business.
“I was told about 5,000 people would come by my booth last year. That’s great, but when 4,500 aren’t interested in what we sell, it doesn’t do me much good.”
Offering office and janitorial paper goods, Smith said, in theory, everyone in attendance at the expo needs what Springfield Paper Co. supplies. However, reality was a different matter.
“A lot of people stopped to drop off their cards, but when 80 to 90 percent of them are insurance or real estate agents, that’s not going to help me sell paper goods,” he said, adding he felt his sales staff’s time and energy was better spent through other outlets. “I’m not knocking the chamber or the expo. We are chamber members and it’s a great thing, they do good work. This just isn’t the format we need it to be.”
Smith said he would consider returning to the expo next year following the format change, but he would first like to see more company decision makers in attendance.
“An expo needs people of influence to make it a success,” he said.
This installment of Springfield Business Journal’s Architects & Engineers Project Report showcases 26 endeavors by area design and engineering professionals.
