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CES planning: 5 ideas that help you stand out from the crowd
Conferences & Events | Consumer Tech | Event Strategy

CES planning: 5 ideas that help you stand out from the crowd

September 17, 2019 | By: Cassie Olszewski

CES is approaching. You’ve made the investment to attend, choosing to take advantage of the huge potential for exposure to media, investors, partners, and buyers. But as you’re planning your appearance, the doubt creeps in: How can you make sure you deliver the splash your boss expects?

Of course launching a great new product is one way to secure interest from media and buyers, but brands must contend with more than 4,400 exhibitors spread across 2.9 million square feet of show floor space.

To stand out, you have to get creative.

Here are five ideas to consider in your CES planning that have helped consumer tech brands stand out from the crowd.

1. Go beyond ordinary in your booth.

Put the tabletop set-ups and pull up banners aside and go big. If you have the budget, take advantage of FOMO and today’s visual-first social platforms to capture eyes and lenses. What can you bring to your booth that is camera ready and begs for engagement?

Last year LG had a beautiful TV-display wall, and Arity, a mobility data and analytics company, featured an interactive flip-dot wall whose size and old-school train station flipboard noise grabbed attention.

But don’t stop there. Get creative with how the brand is presented through your booth. If you’re launching the latest in smart home tech, why not build a tiny house to let media and attendees get a real feel for what’s possible in their own home?  

Does your brand make incredibly durable phone accessories? Build a lab to demonstrate the lengths to which phone cases and cables are tested. Seeing firsthand how your products stand up to the stresses of extreme scenarios will underscore your brand promise.

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2. Skip a booth altogether.

If you’re looking for media, and budget is tight, maybe you don’t need a booth. Media-specific events like CES Unveiled, Pepcom Digital Experience, and Showstoppers can get you in front of reporters.

Depending on your goals, you might attract more attention if you skip the traditional booth on the floor and create an experience instead.

For example, if you offer gear to power up smartphones, you could set up a respite for relaxation and recharging near the North Hall’s food trucks so you’re front and center to all the people waiting for lunch.

If you’re in the health and wellness space, how could you set up a station to help people refresh and rejuvenate?

Find a way to deliver value in a highly trafficked area, especially one where people are waiting.

3. Partner with influencers.

An influencer can help tell your brand’s CES story before, during, and after the show. You get the benefit of expanding your reach on social media and get access to great content.

Kit them out with your gear to capitalize on “what’s in my bag” videos

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Let them loose to report from the show on your brand’s behalf

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Have the influencer interview your experts

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Schedule a meet and greet in your booth to draw fans  

Matt Barkley at CES

These are just a few ideas — an influencer’s ability to engage an audience, not to mention the following they’ve built, open a number of opportunities for your brand.

4. On-the-ground testing.

Would your product help a reporter during CES, or is CES the ideal environment to test your product in? We’ve provided reporters with power survival kits ahead of CES to test clients’ gear during the week’s grueling hours. Reporters loved having the extra power and posted about the gear on social. It even led to media coverage. What can you send or schedule with the media before the show even starts to be top of mind and ensure exclusive, hands-on access?  

5. Go to the dogs.

People can’t resist dogs. If you’re a pet tech brand, have a pooch around to demonstrate your latest connected collar, for example. Nothing draws a crowd better than the goodest boi.

Are you prepping for CES and struggling to come up with creative ideas for how to stand out and get media attention? Get in touch and let’s talk through your strategy.