It’s Expo time. Soon the Indiana Convention Center will be filled with the newest and best tools and equipment the industry has to offer. Thousands of environmental services contractors will be in attendance, and you should be too.
This will be my third trip to the Pumper & Cleaner Environmental Expo International, and I’m excited to get back to Indianapolis and see so many industry professionals together in one place. Even a casual observer could learn a great deal over the four days of the Expo, and if you spend some time on the show floor and attend a few education courses, you’ll get enough out of the show to keep breathing new life into your business all year long.
The thing about the Expo, and its venue in downtown Indianapolis, is that everything is connected and the opportunities to grow in your industry are everywhere, from the moment you leave your hotel room to the very end of the night. In the elevator on the way down to the lobby, at breakfast, on the walk to the convention center and all throughout the day, you’ll have no problem striking up conversations with your peers wherever you go.
And don’t forget to give in the give-and-take. Just as you can learn from your peers, there are plenty of other installing professionals out there who could benefit from your story and the insights you have to share. We can even help with that.
This year we’re going to have a live video booth set up on the show floor so people can share their stories with all our readers and website viewers. We’re looking for some good candidates in advance, people who’d like to answer a few questions and tell their stories to our audience. These three-minute videos will be posted at www.onsiteinstaller.com and participants will all receive a free “3-Minute Pumper” T-shirt for their time.
Above all, whether you’re walking the show floor or sitting in a classroom, the Expo is about education. My advice: Pick a few topics you’d like to learn more about and focus on those as you plan your week in Indy. Whether it’s grease trap service or industrial vacuum loading, seek out opportunities to learn everything you can about those subjects. There’s no better place to get a thorough education.
Use the online planning tools at www.pumpershow.com to get familiar with the schedule of education seminars, event schedules and the vendors who will be exhibiting.
When the show floor opens Tuesday morning, take your first walk and note the tools and equipment you really want to see and learn more about. If the vendors are swamped with the initial blitz of contractors vying for their time, mark it on your map and stop back later.
Talk to manufacturers and find the tools that will help you grow and improve your business. That’s what the Expo is all about.
Take the time to plan out your Expo visit so you can get the most out of your stay in Indy. You and your business will see the benefits all year long.
