ITB Berlin, one of the world’s leading travel trade shows, is just a few days away.
The event hosts 10,000 exhibitors from 180 nations. It is visited by over 20,000 people and has a turnover of EUR6 billion.
ITB Berlin is an exciting opportunity for revenue managers, general managers and hotel owners to stay in touch with the latest trends in the travel space and network. However, the sheer scale of the event can sometimes make it challenging to spend time in the most productive way.
That’s why, we came up with 6 steps for you to navigate ITB Berlin in a breeze…
1. Outline your objectives
What are your objectives for attending ITB Berlin?
To check out the latest trends, look at the upcoming technologies, find prospects, network? Perhaps a combination of all of these?
Although the event will last for 5 days, you don’t have enough time to ‘do it all’.
Defining your objectives will help you to prioritize on what’s really important to you.
2. Research the Exhibitors
The second step is to do a little bit of research about who’s going to be there. An easy way to do this would be to go through the exhibitor list. You can download it here.
For example, if you want to check out the latest in Revenue Management technology, you might want to visit RateGain (Hall 8.1, Stall 115) and talk to us about our new integrated optimization and distribution platform, ‘Unity’.
3. Make a List of Exhibitors
Based on your objectives, which exhibitors do you want to visit? Make a list. You might want to categorize the list according to different domains like revenue management software, new hotels, etc.
4. Allocate Time
Allocate the amount of time you wish to spend with each exhibitor on your list. However, make sure that you have sufficient buffer time to visit people who are not on your list.
In fact, around 25-30% of the time you plan to spend in ITB should not be blocked for appointments. That way, you always have time to spend time in booths that look really interesting.
5. Prioritize
You might get busy at work and might get to spend only one day rather than the intended 3. You might find an exhibitor that really interests you and you might spend a lot more time with them than you expected.
Despite the most meticulous planning, things might happen differently on the ground.
What do you do when you suddenly find yourself with too little time?
Rank your exhibitor list in terms of ‘1’, ‘2’ or 3 (‘1’ being those you absolutely have to meet.)
That way, when an unexpected time crunch appears, you will still get to meet those exhibitors who satisfy your objectives.
6. Take Care of Logistics
Planning for logistics is essential for making the most of your limited time. Little things that make the visit more comfortable are…
- Carry a map of the venue. You can download one here.
- Avoid carrying objects that will hold you up at security check.
- Be prepared for long queues at the entry gates in the morning.
While you are at ITB Berlin, do visit the RateGain booth (Hall 8.1, Stall 115) to join the exciting conversation about our upcoming disruptive product Unity. You can register here…
