Marshall Yard:

Largest U.S. Plastics Show puts Catalyst on the International Radar

The National Plastics Expo, truly an international showcase commencing every three years, is the place to be for thousands of contenders representing the global market. The 2006 show (June 19-23 at McCormick Place in Chicago) fostered record international participation and drew an incredible 9% more attendees than did the show prior. Catalyst Exhibits, one of many exhibit houses vying for the opportunity to tout their wares, made quite a mark on the show floor – with 19 clients and a total of 29,815 square feet of exhibit space…three percent of the entire show. Not bad for one exhibit house, hey?

Catalyst’s exhibit solutions – designed to embody a colorful affluence of marketing objectives, aesthetic preferences and functionalities, ranged from a 10×10 to a whopping 75×85 space. Managing this type of event is not for the weak of spirit. Catalyst Account Managers, Production Supervisors and Sales Executives swiftly navigated NPE’s near million-foot floor plan from set-up to tear-down, ensuring each exhibit (regardless of size) was erected seamlessly and that each client was given undivided attention. Cutting-edge design and extraordinary attention to detail helped make NPE 2006 quite an experience for all involved. Quite an experience indeed. 

NPE 2009 has some big shoes to fill and Catalyst is on deck to hit a home run. With enhanced rental inventory, polished branding and streamlined service, Catalyst is no doubt cultivating yet another competitive edge.

“Would I recommend Catalyst to others? Of course, because the service and support during both this torturous and fun experience is second to none.”  

— Bob Hawkins, President, Kiefel, Inc. 

The design, level of attention and superb service – that is why we chose Catalyst.” 

— John Moyer, President, Asahi KASEI

You are going to exhibit at a trade show, now what? If you don’t know where to begin your trade show planning, start with an exhibit house that will help you with an entire 3D Marketing Strategy.

Whether you are a seasoned exhibitor or an exhibitor in their infancy, you need a plan.  You may have done your research and know your target audience and signed up for your booth space, but now comes the trade show planning for success. 

If the trade show will go hand in hand with a new product launch, why not start a teaser marketing campaign?  Drum up some pre-show interest; approach your clients with solutions early on.

Entice your target audience with something that will grab them, ISSA 2008 in Las Vegas, on September 8^th – 11^th, 2008 exhibitors could use a teaser campaigns such as:

Touch what? That statement is no longer a concern….

Tackling the dirtiest job….

Wipe up your competition with….

Sniffing out…

Boosting your productivity and profits is the reason for exhibiting, networking with individuals that are the decision makers, encompassing your products and services with an exhibit booth that will increase your traffic and deliver the maximum benefits.

M - Manage your time between online campaigns, print campaigns & make sure you have personal
contact with prospects on a weekly basis if not more often.

A - Advertise yourself where ever you can, the online possibilities are endless

R - Reach out to multiple audiences by attending a variety of tradeshows

K - KISS - Your message should be “Keep it Simple & Straightforward”

E - Evaluate the competition and plan your strategy for upcoming trade shows & conventions

T - Target your market by making an exhibit booth that will shout…………………

I - IMPACT - Idea generation with an experienced Exhibit House Team can bring easy 3D Solutions

N - Networking at trade shows and conventions can bring your product and/or service to the front lines

G - Global Marketing can be effective through online tools, advertising networks, social media marketing,
blogging!

The medical profession is an ever growing and innovative marketplace, consider the advancements in medical history.  The first heart & lung machine was introduced into the industry in 1955, to the medical advancements of today’s implanted insulin pumps.   It is utterly amazing to see the growth of these global changes that occur under our noses each and every day.

HIMSS - Healthcare Information & Management Systems Society had over 850 exhibitors and 200 education conferences held in the Orange County Conference Center in Orlando Florida.  Exhibiting in over 10,800 feet of exhibit space, Catalyst clients were among the exhibitors there networking to develop quality and innovation in medical advancements. 

Medical technology is on the rise and with the growing concerns of healthcare, networking at medical tradeshows is key in the industry.  

ACOG -  New Orleans, May 2008
ASCRS - Chicago, April 2008
Audiology Now ,  Charlotte, North Carolina - April 2008
AANS - Chicago,  April 2008
Medtrade Spring - Long Beach, May 2008
AUA - Orlando, May 2008

That is just a sample of medical tradeshows that will be taking place in a short period of time.  Given the growth of technology, keep your exhibit booth & design on the cutting edge of the growing industry.

There are several tradeshows that are upcoming in the spring time, while researching a few of the events that will be taking place at Offshore Technology Conference on May 5th, in Houston, Texas.  I thought the theme “Waves of Change” was a very fitting not only to OTC 2008, but could be equate this to each and every industry we come across.

When you are launching a new business and trying to break into the fast paced growing industry standards, your marketing endevour for first time exhibiting can be quite frustrating, I recently read a post at Domestic Diva that brought to light the struggles of exhibiting for first timers. 

Decisions to exhibit should be weighed carefully and several months in advance, looking for prime trade show floor space with alot of traffic.  If you start early, you are more apt to get a prime location for your exhibit.  National Hardware Show is another tradeshow that will be taking place at the Las Vegas Convention Center - May 6th-8th.  There will be over 18,000 buying attendee’s, planning to exhibit at a tradeshow in your industry could bring in new relationships, transmit your message to a large audience, help with service related issues and stimulate add-on sales.

Looking ahead at trends in booming marketplaces can become a complex process, recent advances in technology can help you capture your prospective clients attention.  If you are not infront of them, someone else will surely jump at the chance.

If you are contemplating exhibiting and marketing your business in the trade show arena, look ahead and start your strategy with an exhibit house that can offer you customized solutions.  Customized Rental Exhibits give you flexibility and can assist in your branding efforts. Offering you a valuable opportunity to introduce your products and services in a 3D Marketing environment.

Thank you Brad Trnasvsky of Sales Management 2.0 for hosting this weeks carnival

Several of the pieces that were included I have to strongly agree with.   Jim Logan of Accelerate Business Group, LLC   discusses Customer Loyalty.

With the following statement:

 ”I believe the foundation of customer loyalty is trust, predictability, and dependable quality”

Adding to those, I believe with innovation, efficicency, growth & quality, customer loyalty can become the solid foundation of any business plan. 

If you are planning on a business venture there is some smart advice about the marketing scheme of your business name that can be found over at Yes to Me.  I enjoyed this article because of the fact that we are in an “instant” society, with everything right in front of us for quick action. 

This made alot of sense in planning and strategy for marketing.  The best laid out plans seem to have the largest impact when it comes to exhibiting, we feel the time line for a successful exhibit as well should be well thought out so this article struck a cord with me. 

I have to agree with the post from Changeologists as well, being ready and being prepared for change.  That falls into my growth part of a business plan, if you have ever been in a company that is stagnent, you will agree with this article as well.  Change is inevitable, the only constant in life.  Being able to hurdle over several of the obstacles to expand, is a business challenge, and does need to have attention to detail. 

Thinking back about ten years ago, I recall doing mass mailings and postcard campaigns to prospective clients.  Running to the post office and trying to get everything out by your deadline.  Marketing has taken a completely different turn in the last few years, by way of social networking.  Where do we go to look for information? How many times a day do we tend to run to our computers to look something up? Even when we are interested in finding the best trade shows for our product and services, we head to the internet. 

I recently spent several days reading and catching up on all the events that happened at CES 2008, the largest consumer electronic trade shows. Spending several hours reading and keeping in touch with the upcoming trends can be a time consuming task.  With all of the new sites that pop up each and every day online that can give you an avenue for your marketing strategies, it is something that we should all be considering, and that manpower is needed for all the facets of social marketing.

Viral Marketing is defined as marketing that propagates itself, this type of marketing is at full throttle around all of us, it is quite an interesting but simple concept and trying to explain it to anyone that is not familiar with it becomes a rough and often times lonely road.  When you begin the process of this type of marketing, you will feel as if you are beginning to swim all over again.  There are several groups and forums to join and read, and this is where the masses of the internet marketers, search engine marketing & search engine optimization experts all hang out. 

Some take this to extremes and solely rely on cyberspace campaigns for marketing these days, is that smart, if you are in that business it is, if you know a lot of the heavy hitters among the forums and boards and top social sites, you can reach far more people than anyone that has just ventured into this type of marketing.  I believe that with most marketing campaigns a bit of balance is needed – continue with your print advertisement, exhibiting at trade shows, mass mailings and viral marketing.  All of these elements can get exposure and introduce you to prospects that may have been overlooked.

Viral Marketing is a tough campaign to sell to anyone that is from the old school, and relying solely on what they are familiar with.  Start out small, show the effects, keep logs of your success and failures, if this becomes a passion and you are enthralled at the outcome and the social contacts that are to be had, continue to push forward.  

Looking for the most stunning exhibit for CEDIA Expo 2008? If you are looking for variety, a custom rental exhibit is a great place to begin.  With successful exhibits at CES 2008, Catalyst Exhibits can help. 

Whether you are a first time exhibitor or a seasoned veteran on the trade show circuit, The Catalyst process is to create a noticably different and inviting enviornment for trade show attendee’s to flock to.

Knitting together the elements of your products and services in a display that will dazzle and will drive traffic into your exhibit space.  CEDIA Events  happen year round and the calendar is full, if you are planning on exhibiting at the CEDIA Expo - September 3-7th, 2008 in Colorado, a custom exhibit rental solution could be the best solution.  With several other events throughout the year with the CEDIA Organization, instead of an exhibit purchase, why not invest the time and effort into an exhibit rental that will give flexibility and variety?

If you purchase an exhibit, you are completely stuck with that entire look and feel for all of the trade shows that you have on your upcoming trade show calendar.

When it comes to exhibiting, there are many questions as well as varying right & wrong answers, customized rental exhibit properities give you flexibility to change things up and reach out to different audiences with different messages.  Attending several trade shows a year, as many corporations do, you want to excite and create an impact with the trade show attendee’s, if they see the same booth year in and year out, they may not see beyond that.

Change it up - Customized Rental Exhibits & Displays.

It must be that time of year, there have been several employees talking about these events.   Because of my complete lack of knowledge on the activity of a Pine Wood Derby, I really thought these participants were going to be standing out in the icy arctic freeze,  a little bit crazy I thought.   Alas, it is the miniature event that happens during the artic freeze in Chicago and it happens inside.  Who would have known!Catalyst Exhibits, Inc, recently sponsored a car for Dave’s son Craig, he is enrolled in the Cary, IL Cub Scouts Pack 857 - Den 1.  They recently participated in the 2008 Pinewood Derby on January 26th.  This was very exciting for the both of  them since this was their first year participating.The top 10 best times of the 50 cars which were entered in the Derby went ahead and advanced to the finals which will be taking place in Rockford, IL.  later this year. Unfortunately, they did not qualify for Rockford but they did win something else.

When you begin to plan your marketing strategies, and you come across the column for trade shows,  keep in mind what it is you are trying to accomplish.

Set your standards a little bit higher, you want your exhibit to send an aspirational message.  If you are investing your exhibit dollars to attend trade shows in your market segment, in all likelihood the competition is out there. 

Rent big

Buy small

With customized rental exhibits, your exhibit space can be a beacon of success on the trade show floor…a beacon of light that will shine well beyond the trade show.

Think leadership, your exhibit space should communicate leadership, along side your products, service and ideology.

MDM East will be hosted at Jacobs K Javits Convention Center in New York, June 2nd-5th, 2008.  Medical materials, electronics and computer aided designs will only be a fraction of what will be housed under 135,000 square feet of exhibit space. 

Seperate Pavillions with an array of specialty sessions and products will be available for education and networking with some of the industry leaders.  MDM East started in 1983, and is a great resource for Medical Equipment Manufacturers in North Eastern United States, an industry that continues to grow at unforseen speeds.  With the advancement in technologies, the trade show floor houses some of the most extraoridinary advancements in the medical device industry. 

Over 900 exhibitors, this is a prime trade show to take advantage of such an experienced group of suppliers in all facets of the medical device industry.

Whether your trade show booth is a 20 x 20 penisula, 40 x 40 or custom double deck exhibit, the ultimate goal is to produce an environment that portrays your corporate branding and products, planning for trade shows such as MDM East should be well thought out, discussed and reviewed a few months prior to the show date.  With a well thought out strategy and support of a highly trained manufacturers and designers of exhibits, you can go with confidence to trade show opening.

There will be four other events that will be happening at the same time at Jacob Javits Conference Center;

Atlantic Design & Manufacturing Trade Show

EastPack

ATX East - Automation Technology Expo

Plastec East

Your visit to MD&M East includes admission to
four co-located shows—delivering design, processing,
and packaging solutions…and everything in between.

Live from Washington D.C. beginning April 12th, 2008, the leaders in the news industry will be networking at the Washington Convention Center, for Capital Conference ‘08 Trade Show which will combine:

Nexpo, NAA & ASNE

Nexpo will run from April 12th-15th, 2008 - NAA & ASNE will run from April 13th -16th, which does include all access to Nexpo activities.

The news industry has changed and grown drastically in the last decade.  With information being instantly accessed and transferred, the point of impact and contact is endless.  Whether you have exhibited at Nexpo in the past, or this is your first time attending the conference, a rental exhibit is sure to help you broadcast your message.

Creating an exhibit environment that will speak to your readers (attendees) can boost your message to the front page headlines.  With the help of multi-media, webcasting, podcasting or simple news print, you can add enticing features that will showcase your services and products.

Plasma’s and monitors can add a dramatic effect and give your trade show exhibit  a well rounded and complete “visual display“. 

Why not utilize a monitor to fill in for your booth management team while you are engaged in conversation with prospects, attention getting presentations will give those trade show attendee’s something to stick around for.  Invoking questions that they can later ask you to answer. 

If you have a large exhibit space, what a better way to present multiple products and/or service divisions.   Large companies that have a variety of products often utilize plasma’s to showcase each division and with that it creates a seperate entity within the one trade show exhibit, but yet the entire brand is incorporated.

Creating a presentation to entice your potential visitors into your exhibit space, can be accomplished quite easily and a creating a marketing solution to include LCD’s and Plasma’s can help keep the flow of traffic consistent and will help you reach your trade show goals.

Grab your bags, Kevin wanted to go shopping! If you are new to Marshall Yard - The Trade Show Blog - Kevin is our resident Mascot and is a Mississippi Map Turtle.   Often times he journeys with me from trade show to trade show.  

Global Shop is returning to Chicago, March 18th - 20th, 2008, in the new West Hall at McCormick Place.   With over 8,000 new products being showcased, and 900 exhibitors, this is the largest annual retail design event in the United States.   There will be several conferences from scent marketing to woman’s retail rituals.

I wonder how exhibits are perceived from the view points of men and woman?  Is one exhibit booth more aesthetically pleasing than another because of our gender?  Have you ever bought something for the opposite sex that you thought was stunning, and yet they looked at it as if you picked it out of the trash can?  A perfume or cologne you love on a spouse, that they can not stand?

I really think the perception of anything visual does have some sort of gender boundry. 

I belive it takes a diverse team of marketing specialist to create and integrate idea’s and plans for a full impact trade show display.  Constant communication during design and brainstorm sessions can bring alot more clarity and balance to any project.  

Voice your opinion.. 

Thanks to Small Business Essentials for hosting this weeks Carnival of the Captitalists, with some interesting information on Word of Mouth Marketing , I agree with this article and I do think it is a necessity in any market, I also have to say it is not easy and it is time consuming. 

If a customer is happy and satisfied, there is no better advertisement, agreeing with the following statement from Word of Mouth Marketing,  I also feel that this is relevant to  social media and blogging:

The problem with word of mouth marketing is the breadth of buzz needed in order to see an increase in business–and the passive nature of the method itself. 

Blogging does not have to be passive, but blogging to drive business to your website is an on going process, it takes time and it takes readers to make it a success.  Offering your readers something to remember you by and something that they will begin to rely on you for.  But getting the word out can be a challenge.

PR Marketing Trends is another article that caught my attention, we don’t want to admit it, but things could slow down economically and often times, it is the marketing department that suffers.  I really liked the simplified tips that were written at Business and Blogging - simple, direct and to the point.

It’s hardly the season now but a good marketer always thinks ahead doesn’t he? What sport is associated almost exclusively with high rollers and money-bags? Almost certainly the answer is golf.  Congratulations if that’s your target audience. Now it’s time to think of this for your next trade show! How do you choose golf related corporate gifts or trade show giveaways? 

Is it really wiser to present golf related promotional products that cannot be really used in the game but they are nice reminders, that this game unites thousands of powerful and wealthy of supporters and players all over the world?Tradeshow gifts for golfers should be selected by someone who is equally as keen on this game as your target audience. The best time for golf giveaways at trade shows is around the beginning of April when the excitement about the looming start of the season is at peak.

Golf gifts  are irreplaceable in the business world today. Other than that, golf helps develop concentration, attention, precision and patience – something that any successful businessman possesses. Top honchos and wannabees – all play it either to keep the success and repute or gain it. Golf items as potential promo gifts at the next trade show are a must – your visitors will absolutely love gold-gilded accessories, golf souvenirs, imprinted golf tees and golf ball sets, golf bags or accessory holders. 

PGA Merchandise Trade Show will be starting January 17th - 19th, 2008 at the Orange County Convention Center

The Golf Industry Trade  Show - January 31st - February 2nd, 2008 - Orlando Florida with close to 1,000 exhibitors last year, covering almost 300,000 square feet of exhibit space.  

Golf seems to be taking on a life of it’s own,  whether you are attending a trade show or manning a trade show booth, it seems these days that these types of items will not be left behind.  

Different trade shows have different audiences, it is vital that as the New Year gets underway that you take the time to assess your marketing strategy and strategic development. Owners, Developers and Businesses in general need to remember that they need to market for IMPACT.

I = Image

Amplify your image; give yourself the flexibility for innovation and growth, by not marrying into a purchased exhibit, you can have the options of speaking to different audiences and conveying different messages quite easily.  Creative designs that will help your company stand out on any exhibit floor will give you more potential for reaching different divisions.

M = Marketing

When it comes to trade show marketing – remember it is not simply about the exhibit hall experience. It is about getting the message out, loud and clear.  That should be one of your primary goals, with a sold marketing partner; you can create a refreshing and effective message for new product lines and new services.

P = Potential

Potential clients, potential success! It should be all about clients, and the success that you should be able to bring to the table for them.  With the trade show abundance in the United States, there is never a loss of places to exhibit, research the potential shows and find out where you have the best fit, with an established exhibit house, you should be teamed with the correct professionals that can direct you to the best venue’s and upcoming shows.

A = Advancement

We are all in business to advance.  Climb the ladder of tradeshow success, get yourself out of that murky 10 x 10 pipe and drape exhibit and start showing off your willingness to advance in your marketplace.   When you take the time to invest more of your marketing dollars into the exhibit booth that will be your image, you will see advancement.

C = Communication

Not only communicate with your leads that have been generated by trade show marketing, communicate with your already successful relationships.  Communicate with your employees, who communicate with your successful relationships.  People like to be heard, they also like to be acknowledged, remembering small information from potential clients can take you far.

T = Traffic

Sometimes a nightmare, but in the trade show industry, this is what brings in those potential clients, that begin the communications for relationships.  Researching the best layout for your exhibit booth as well as the best possible area on the exhibit floor takes research, doing this in advance can help you land a prime piece of trade show real estate.

IMPACT 2008 with successful marketing and planning!

Catalyst Exhibits, Inc wishes you the happiest and safest of New Years!

When Wednesday hits and we all return back to our routine - do not forget to begin marking your calendar for upcoming shows and start planning accordingly.   Remember the time frame for exhibit design and details.  If you are planning on a trade show in March, April or May.  The best results will be reached if you begin your planning strategy right after the New Year holiday.

Just a few of the larger shows that will be taking place the first quarter of 2008, get your exhibit strategy in place - Think Early - Think Smart

AAOS - American Academy of Ortopaedic Surgeons will be held March 5th - 9th in San Francisco

GlobalShop 2008 - will be held at McCormick Place Chicago  - March 18th - 20th, 2008

HIMSS - February 24th - 28th at Orange County Convention Center in Orlando Florida

ConExpo/ConAgg 2008 - March 11th - 15th, 2008 at the Las Vegas Convention Center

Smart Detail & Smart Design are two concepts to keep in mind with the opening of the 2008 first quarter trade show schedule.

Happy New Year

As the busiest season is just upon us, there are many tips and ideas for your upcoming trade show success.

When you start to plan for your upcoming exhibit, finding a marketing partner that will consider your message is the beginning steps of a successful outcome.  By knowing what it is you are trying to accomplish will make it much easier for the exhibit house to understand the avenues in which to take you; to get you across that finish line with the first place ribbon.

Time is always of the essence when it comes to adding value to your marketing strategy and plans for success.  We all know that there are last minute opportunites that come up and sometimes we may not know that we will be at a particular show until the it presents itself.

Establishing a time line for an exhibit whether it is a , 10’ x 10’s trade show booth or 10’ x 20’ trade show booth, should be approximately eight weeks before the trade show event opens.   If you are planning on larger exhibits the time line should increase slightly.  The last thing you want is to get strapped with rush fee’s for deliveries – which are staggering with the price of transportation and gas.  

Printing time increases as well for graphic banners and turnaround times can become more delayed and leave little time for last minute changes.  With custom trade show display rentals, you have many more options and a lot more flexibility. 

The benefits of trade shows:

Maintaining relationships

Transmitting messages to key accounts

Remedying service problems

Stimulating add on sales

Determine needs

Transmitting messages and

Committing prospects to a callback or sale

Plan early!

Plan smart!

For all of you Forrest Gump fans, I ran across a great piece of material that I wanted to share, in my opinion, in everything we do in life, if approached in a GumpStyle, we would all be better off.  Thanks Jon from OnMoneyMaking!

By: Susie Kleiner 

I recently pulled up Make your Business Stand Out  and I found some profound statements written.  Brand Awareness continues to be at the fore-front of many marketers minds as it should be in the competative arena for any business.  Award winning trade booth design has always been the approach that has worked in our industry.

Being Different as stated in the article written by Nikole Gibbs in the marketing section caught my attention, because if you leave an impression and give your potential clients, something different, they will not only become repeat clients, but they will become loyal clients. 

When you give your clients solutions they will remember the product and service that you have provided.  3D marketing can speak to an turn your company into a trade show superhero.    

One of our clients was questioned, in a pre-show survey, and stated they thought that just 26 percent of attendees considered the company a market leader. But after the CEO was in the booth at the exhibition talking about the industry, and the research and development staffers were talking about new products during the show, 96 percent of those surveyed post-event perceived the company as a market leader.

Rule number one in any marketing plan should be questioning your clients and gathering feedback from potential and current clients.  People in general love to hear themselves speak, and they also love to hear that their opinion is wanted.  Without information, and in the information age, if you don’t..shame on you. 

If for a moment you forget that on the other end of the phone, email, conference call or contract is a human being, you could have lost a potential project.   27 Exhibiting Do’s and Dont’s by Susan Friedmann has some very valid points, and I enjoyed #10-Don’t” “throw up” on attendee’s, it made me laugh, but it validates my point, ask them questions, let them talk.  They are going to be the one’s using your product or services.  Do not tell them constantly what you can do for them, let them tell you what they need done, and collectively come up with a solutions.

Designing exhibits for upcoming trade shows, can be a challenging task, listening to our clients, and understanding what they are trying to convey in their industry can only be learned by hearing what the client has to say.  

I would like to engage anyone in conversation that has exhibited at trade shows in the past year or two.  I would like to know your disappointments with your custom exhibit, rental exhibit and anything that you found frustrating on the trade show floor.  Is there a certain element missing from your exhibiting experience? Was there something you needed while on the show floor that you couldn’t find? Was there a lack of traffic during any specific time period?

I would love to hear from you.

December 3rd Edition of the Carnival of the Capitalists has hit the online community.  Hosted by One-Man Band with some fantastic information in regards to Analytics, Small Business, Commodities, Economy, Management, Marketing and Productivity. 

With Christmas looming not to far away, yet how could we tell that in the Windy City with all the rain that fell this weekend.  I loved the post under management in regards to the Office Christmas Parties written by Wayne Hurlbert at the Blog Business World  he couldn’t be more accurate in saying that you are still at work.  I think we have all been tempted to tip back another, but remember your surroundings, and remember the consequences.  Which, so often now a-days, we do not do, and we do not want to take responsibility for our actions. 

Another great post that was included in the Carnival of the Capitlists is a post from The Money Walks Blog regarding negociating your salary and benefits packages, I loved this piece because this just happened to me over the weekend regarding a piece of artwork that I did.  I listened to my husband, and shot high, and low and behold.. I got it! Never under-sell yourself, it only hurts you.  And as stated in the Money Walks Blog, it cant hurt to ask!

I have been thrust into the portal of my cubicle which is now a nice private little suite, thinking and learning different areas of marketing.   In the past few months, I have learned about blogging, social media, digg, bloggingzoom and just recently Blog Engage, this is similar to the other sites, but I for one have found it easy to use, and to understand. 

Within a short time after I engaged, I got comment back on one of my posts from the master engager! Thank you too for that.   I write here about the smart marketing for trade shows and trade show exhibits, trying to give clients that are searching an inside look with a personal touch about the people at Catalyst Exhibits.   Blog Engage has an easy feel to it, I have seen some of the faces and names throughout some of the forums and other sites. 

I look at myself as a novice blogger, learning, and I truly didn’t realize I had the writing skills in me, but it has been a fun process, and thanks to good folks like major engager Brian at Blog Engage, I have another tool that will help me get my name and my blog out there.  The more I read, the more I learn, what a great community out there in the blog world!