Every time I’ve gone to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, I’ve never come back disappointed.
That was, until CES 2008.
Admittedly, I go to the show for a mixed bag of reasons. I’m a hobbyist, and I want to see what bleeding edge stuff is coming out next. I’m a reviewer, and I’m interested in identifying what works, what doesn’t, and conveying how to improve products. I’m an arm chair psychologist, and I enjoy people watching, mass crowd manipulation, and the interactions that happen between consumers and vendors. I’m a purchaser, looking for products that will improves my business and clients’ success. I’m an entertainer, and like to see performances by others. I’m also a marketer, and I like to see how others sell products.
CES, for me, is one of the rare times when all these elements come together. For instance, in years past, I’ve watched as entertainers and booth girls attract attention, pulling people out of the crowd into the vendor area. Then, with a promise of a prize or raffle, or perhaps some interesting swag, get the person to emotionally commit to giving a product attention. A quick, flashy, glitzy presentation subtly conveys memorable sales information, and when all is said and done, the consumer walks away happy, entertained, informed, and, if done right, has reason to tell others to come see that booth. Done real well, sales result for the vendor.
Effectively, you have many vendors competing for product attention at once, and the winner has to be good at not just the initial draw, but also at retention. That means starting with a good product. That means crowd manipulation. That means showmanship. That means sales. Everything.
At CES you never know what you’re going to find. Performers. T-Shirts. Gizmos. Great deals. Innovation. Music. Creativity. And, swag.
This year was different.
If I had to sum up CES 2008 in a single word, it’d be this: boring.
I didn’t see any stunning innovations or uses of technology that just blew my socks off as I had in years past.
Normally, I walk out of each day from CES with my arms filled with product information and swag. Instead, I literally walked out on CES this year by day two. I felt it had let me down.
And, it turns out, I wasn’t the only one. Whether back at the hotel, riding an elevator, or standing in line for a Vegas attraction, show, ride, or meal, I talked with other CES attendees, and they all seemed to focus on the lack of luster of this year’s conference.
My favorite story came from a gentleman who was a VIP, he explained that they were provided musical entertainment in the form of an exclusive show. Well, apparently the organizer of that event didn’t seem to realize that older, more conservative, business men weren’t exactly fond of rap music. The generation gap was dwarfed by the culture gap, and it conveyed a pretty negative message, and he questioned his future involvement with CES.
Even a number of big name vendors made a no show this year. Their absence was noticed as a vote of no confidence.
Vendors didn’t engage the crowd, the swag was pitiful, the drawings limited, and the product demonstrations infrequent. The last thing I want to do if I’m interested in a product now is to be told to return in two hours for the next 10 minute demo.
All in all, it was quite disappointing. And, while I have my speculations on what caused this year to be sub-satisfactory, I sincerely hope that CES 2008 becomes a wakeup call for vendors and conference organizers, rather than a death rattle.