Get the Most from Trade Shows

June 01, 2023

Get the Most from Conferences and Trade Shows

Attending a trade show or conference soon?

That’s excellent, and since you’re serious about your career and business, you may want to get the maximum benefit from your visit.

And there’s the new contacts, and business boosting products, services and advice you’ll be learning of.

Spend the Most Time with Your Key Companies

Your conversations with the ManageCasa team could be the most important ones you’ll have this year. Our team is intimately involved in technology design and digital services provision and are best suited to resolve your challenges. Bring your problems to us!

Overall, it’s a fun experience to meet and speak with so many pros in the rental property business. Many of the shows are fun and relaxing, however, it’s important to ensure you access the key benefits you’re seeking at the conferences.

Your Trade Show Plan

At the show, you’ll be pressed for time attending educational seminars, visiting busy vendors booths to ask questions, testing out apps and products, reading marketing collateral, chatting with other attendees, and listening to speakers.

Whether you’re attending solo or with your property management staff, you need a basic plan to make sure you get the information you need. These events are rare and time is precious, so let’s get organized!

Preparing for the Show

Because time is brief, the conversations you initiate at the show, might be preludes to discussions with them later, either in person or via email or phone.

The conference focus is about your business challenges, what topics/solutions you need, and who you need to hear and speak with. Out of all the sessions available, you only be able to get to one third of them. For attendees, post conference videos may be available. The videos won’t have the same value as actual attendance.

What do You Need to Learn? If you’re considering automating your business, or you have specific accounting problems, want to know about data migration, or about scalability issues, and costs, write them all down along with key inquiries you need to make. Note their comments and advice, get their business cards and social media handles. The most important questions/issues for your will pop out as you work on this.
Do you have a map of the trade show floor? Which pros and technology vendors do you need to visit or connect with? Certainly, you’ll want to identify the key vendors related to the work you do. Mark their booth locations on the expo vendor map. Mark them off after you’ve visited and then head to your next prioritized vendor. Avoid wandering and instead go first to your top 5 vendors you must spend the most time with.
Which conferences and trade shows should you be attending? If you’re an apartment landlord, then Apartmentalize is a must visit (which is why they see 10,000+ attendees), and for property managers, the NARPM event brings together single family managers, and the MNHC show gathers multifamily managers, while the REALTORS event is for real estate agents. Of course you’ll find property management technology providers at all the events.
Which speakers you need to connect with? Visit the trade show/convention websites (Apartmentalize 2023, NARPM 2023, or REALTORs 2023 conference, and get up to date with what they’re doing and how they can help your business.

The events aren’t all about technology, but as you can imagine, PropTech is delivering so much cost savings and staff work productivity gains, that companies such as ManageCasa are the most desired connection.

Identify Your Top 3 Vendors

Identify the 3 top vendors you need to speak with and try to spend as much time as you can with them. These face to face meetings can generate more knowledge and guidance. Make sure you have your questions ready.

At Apartmentalize, your top 3 connections might be ManageCasa, while at NARPM you might be wanting to speak developers in the built to rent space, or the NMHC event, you might seek out smart home tech vendors.

If you’re investing a new property management platform for your business, look for the franchises and look for independents and compare the value for you as an entrepreneur or property manager.

Ensure you have a backpack or sturdy bag to contain your materials and the handouts they provide. Don’t accept collateral unless it’s of real interest to you. You’re going to have to carry it. If you visit us, we may have some bling for you! Make sure you visit us first.

Expand your Professional Network

Do you have your business cards ready? Be ready to network, to tell others what you do, what your value proposition is, where you’re headed with business, and how you can help them. If others find you compelling and helpful, they may refer new business to you, or connect you with someone important to your career or business startup.

Be curious about people and find out what they do. Professionals at a major trade show could be vital to your business survival and profit. These are often the brightest, most progressive people in the real estate and property management business. They wouldn’t be attending unless their mind is open and they’re on the ball.

What you can get out of attending a property management trade show is really up to you. Get organized, plan your itinerary, and make contact with as many people as possible. Too many people attend these shows and then complain later that they didn’t get much out of it. That won’t be you because you’re creating a plan and you’re taking charge of your results.

Good luck at your next trade show or expo. They are a fun, interesting way to improve your career.

We hope to meet with you at the Apartmentalize 2023 conference in June. See our past events including the NARPM, NMHC Optech, Cooperator Expo in Chicago, Apartmentalize in Denver, or Cooperator Expo in New Jersey.