Xplosive Blog

January 29, 2013 • No Comments

 

“Showcase season,” as we call it here in the biz is a busy time of the year for entertainers, venues, event planners and photographers. This is our time to “showcase” our products, highlight new options, and connect with both present and future clients. In this short blog, we want to stress the importance of visiting showcases. Whether you are planning a wedding, bar/bat mitzvah, or a sweet 16 showcases provide you with vital decision making information. When attending showcases or event expos, you will have an opportunity to see firsthand many key factors which should influence your special event decisions. While walking the show floor, take notice of how the vendors display their products. Observe if they take pride in their table and booth displays. Notice how they dress, how they speak to customers, and how professional they appear. It’s also important to note how organized they are. Do these vendors seems frazzled by the crowds of people? Do they seem prepared with the proper amount of marketing material? And as silly as this sounds, do they have a pen available to write down vital info? Again, while this may seem silly, leaving a pen home on showcase day is like a DJ leaving his/her laptop at home, or a photographer leaving his camera back at the office.

Here are some pointers and responses to frequently asked questions about showcases:
1. Clients often ask what should I bring to a showcase?
a: First… Dress comfortably. In a room with so many guests, it may get busy and warm, so be prepared to take your jacket off. Wear sneakers since you will be on your feet most of the time. We also, strongly suggest creating a new email address specifically for your upcoming event. Use gmail, yahoo, or any other free and easy to use web-based provider. Creating an email address like georgeandjamie2013@ymail.com or Joshgetsbarmitzvahed@gmail.com is simple and takes just a few minutes. Now, all your event emails will end up in this inbox rather than flooding your personal or business email accounts. We also suggest making labels in advance. While this isn’t necessary, you will find that after attending several showcases, it will save you valuable time. Most vendors at these shows will ask for your name, email address, and phone number. If you pre-print labels, it will save you the hassle of writing your info over and over again.

2. We hear comments all the time like: “My party is over a year away.” Or, “I already booked my vendors, there isn’t going to be anything at this show for me.”
a: You’ve heard the expression, it’s never too late to start planning. Well, that especially holds true with special events. You don’t want to miss an opportunity. If you find a DJ, band, photographer, or venue that you especially connect with, its suggested that you lock in the date immediately. There’s nothing worse than booking a date at a venue, then finding out your DJ is already booked that day. Additionally, going to these showcases doesn’t mean you are booking anything on the spot… instead it means you are educating yourself. Like buying a car, you rarely walk into one dealership and leave with the keys to a new car. Instead you visit several. You speak with many sales people. And you eventually buy from the person or company which makes you feel the most comfortable and provides the best overall value (not always lowest price). Very often these showcases give clients ideas or motivation for their events. For instance, you may see a floral display that suits you perfectly. Or, you may have wanted a band to perform at your affair, but then when seeing a DJ showcase at a bridal show just minutes after a band, your feelings may sway based on certain characteristics. And, one other reason to attend several showcases is… DOOR PRIZES and DISCOUNTS. Most showcases provide prizes and incentives to attendees. We’ve seen these incentives range from $100 off coupons through free honeymoon vouchers and diamond rings. Based on the size of the showcase, the number of participating vendors, and the expected attendance, these prizes vary. Who knows, you may be a winner!

3. In the world of Entertainment there are so many options. Is there any opportunity for my family to meet your full staff and/or see all the available options?
a. Well, showcases are the perfect opportunity to meet our staff and try our event enhancements. While it’s impossible to have the entire staff and full warehouse full of event enhancements at every showcase, we do our best to rotate our staff and bring an arsenal of event extras to each showcase. Depending on the genre of the show, we generally have two or three MCs and a minimum of one or two enhancements at each show. These enhancements vary from lighting, to plasmas, to custom gobos and photo booths.

At Xplosive Entertainment, we have a very busy showcase calendar. Through the months of January and February, and March we will be appearing at over 15 different shows. We have split our time to provide an equal match of bridal and mitzvah shows. We also have tried to vary our territory reach by electing to participate in shows from as far South as Trenton, NJ and as far North as Jersey City, NJ. Additionally, some of these dates scheduled on weekends for your convenience and others are mid-week after work hours so we do not take time from your busy weekend schedules. Please visit our website for an up to date showcase calendar or simply give us a call to see where we will be next!

Congratulations on your upcoming event. We encourage you to ELEVATE YOUR EVENT EXPECTATIONS!

Xplosive Entertainment
732-866-1620
866.XPLO.ENT
www.XEevents.com