Gearing up for NEOCON!

NEOCON 2011 is being held at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago from June 13 - 15th. This is the premier tradeshow to go to if you're in the interior design / furniture industry for office, healthcare, educational, hospitality, GSA/gov, and retail. With amazing vendors showcasing their latest wares, this is the place to be to see the latest and greatest designs and schmooze with clients and vendors alike.

Check out NEOCON's official website here.
And follow them on twitter: @NeoCon

The bonus, of course, is that this is being held in an amazing city that offers a variety of shows, restaurants, and extra-curricular activities to attend. Besides the parties the vendors are throwing, you can catch an act at The House of Blues. Or, if you're in town for the weekend (10-12th), hit up the FREE Blues Festival.

And don't forget your restaurants!!!

The thing to remember with NEOCON is that it is a 3 day marathon of your senses. You're going to be meeting people, seeing tons of new designs, entertaining clients, being entertained, and you need to do it all in 72 hours (don't forget to sleep!). It sounds like enough time, right? It isn't. B&OI has been going to NEOCON for the past 15 years and every year they schedule as much as humanly possible in...it's an amazing feat.

Newbie tips
1. Research! Don't go in without knowing what you're coming up against. The show is on multiple floors and you're going to want to know where the vendors you're going to see are located
2. Start reserving restaurants now. Really? Yes. I tried to make reservations last year around this time and couldn't get in to 2 popular restuarants...you can not just show up with 5 people on Tuesday night.
3. Prepare! There are a lot of parties and special events going on. Know which ones you can get to if they're off site of the Mart. Check with your reps and vendors - they should know!
4. If something falls through, don't stress! A lot can go right at this event, but sometimes, things go a little haywire. Being prepared and knowing back up plans is a great way to avoid stress and frustration.
5. Have fun! This is an amazing event and enjoy it and Chicago while you're there!

Enjoy!

~ Kendal

Tradeshows (and why I love our Chamber)

It's a rainy Wednesday afternoon in the stadium district of Seattle and I have just finished an amazing venue tour and tasting at, of all places, the WaMu Theater/Qwest Stadium (turns out I would like to hold my hypothetical future wedding there...). Included in my tasting is free admittance into the annual Seattle Chamber of Commerce Tradeshow which B&OI has purchased a booth for. It's a B2B event with a focus on connecting businesses with other businesses - network, network, network. As my coworker, Aimee, and I perused through the aisles of vendors, I was struck at how much work and effort went into creating this event for the local community. There are bar height tables and a food area to relax at, a lounge-esque area, prizes and giveaways...a constant upbeat vibe. Though I wasn't a huge fan of the announcer coming over the loud speaker every 5 minutes with some bits of info or a new winner, I did appreciate  the focus to entertain and keep it lively - as well as the "social" push. Microsoft tags could be seen  at a lot of stations and  a constant twitterstream screen was up keeping track of the goings-on of the show. We left around 4pm, but it lasted until 7 and my coworkers running the event said there was a lot more people after we had gone.

Amiee and I in the B&OI booth

If you are fortunate to have an active Chamber of Commerce in your town, try and take advantage of their programs and possibly look into either having them set up or attend a semi-local tradeshow event with your business. Having an open platform to help introduce yourselves to the community you're based in (or near), as well as visibly showing a better definition of what your company is capable of is a great way to promote your brand and yourself. The Seattle Chamber (@SeattleChamber) does an amazing job at making all their members feel more human (as opposed to being another number) - especially at bigger events. Also, they offer special programs and classes that members can take advantage of and learn some great new tools and tricks. Not to mention the fun networking events.

The tradeshow is a great investment to have more visibility in your community. If possible, take advantage of these fun (though tiring) events and make the most of your local Chamber!

~Kendal

Celebrating your team!

Bank & Office Interiors recently held their annual sales meeting at the Elliot Bay Yacht Club in Seattle to discuss initiatives, review the past year, and to celebrate our success!

Rudy won 3 awards! All three poses were awesome...

I'm currently getting my Masters in Communication and Leadership at Gonzaga University and just aced my organizational leadership class (last day was the day of our sales meeting). What I really liked about the readings we had was the importance placed on motivating and listening to your employees. Events like a sales retreat away from the office is a great way to reestablish goals, learn new techniques and connect with your team in a social setting. Have you found any methods that help motivate your team? Any tips you've received or practices you've appreciated as an team member?

Side note: out of all the readings, my favorite was The Leadership Challenge by James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner.

Have a great week!

Kendal (the Marketing Rep)

Lessons Learned - On less space for your office

Steelcase, a major leader in office, educational and healthcare furniture, along with our main vendor, has done a lot of research into the continuously evolving workspace that people are going to everyday. In a recent article, they talk about the lessons they've learned from reducing the square footage of the office space. Here are a few of my favorite tips that they offer:

1. Don’t Just Shrink: Smaller by itself isn’t better, it’s just smaller. Smaller and harder working space is 1) multipurpose, 2) user adjustable, and 3) can be used by two or more people at least some of the time. If a space can’t do all three, it shouldn’t be in the floorplan.

2. A Moving Experience: People sometimes spend 14 hours or more a day sitting down while working and commuting. For optimal wellbeing, workers need to be able to move, even when seated. Ergonomic task chairs are only the beginning. Height-adjustable worksurfaces, stand-up café tables, chairs specially designed for collaborative work, and even treadmills with worksurfaces are ways to put movement in the office.

3. When in Rome…Understand the local culture, work conventions, and business customs before planning a workspace outside your home turf. Social scientist Geert Hofstede posts information on five cultural dimensions for individual countries on his website, a good place to being learning about business norms.

4. Listen and Learn: Last, but really first: don’t plan any workplace without engaging with workers at all levels. Use surveys, interviews, an outside resource to help uncover internal issues and work process needs, workshops to generate ideas. Involved, engaged workers help create a better work environment and embrace change faster.

For all 11 tips, please view the article Lessons Learned by Steelcase

~ Kendal the Marketing Rep