The enterprise that does not innovate ages and declines.
— Peter Drucker
Lulled by easy money, show organizers seem allergic to innovation; a condition that makes them ripe for disruption.
The best defense against disruption lies in product diversification—a sound strategy in good times, an essential one in hard.
That should be obvious.
And it should be obvious that, because they're selling audiences to advertisers, tradeshow organizers need look no farther for diversification tactics than to magazine publishers—the poster children for disruption.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the Internet eviscerated magazine publishers' century-old business model. In a painful "print apocalypse," more than 10,000 magazines disappeared from inboxes.
Savvy magazine publishers responded by diversifying their product lines, pushing their number from one, two, or three to more than a dozen.
Those include:
Content. Aiming at readers, the publisher sells subscriptions or raises revenue through crowdfunding.
Branded content. Aiming at advertisers, the publisher functions as a traditional creative agency.
Events. Aiming at both readers and advertisers, the publisher organizes live, virtual, and hybrid tradeshows and conferences, selling registrations, booths and sponsorships.
Ads. The publisher acts as a traditional one, selling ads and advertising programs that can be targeted to reader-segments.
Awards. The publisher operates an industry awards program, collecting entry fees and selling tickets to celebratory events.
Merchandise. The publisher acts as the operator of a "discount club," selling memberships to readers who want to avail themselves of a portfolio of discounted products and services.
Data. Aiming at advertisers, the publisher sells data that advertisers and third parties can use to target prospects and leverage adverting programs.
Leads. The publisher takes on the role of a lead-generation firm, using webinars and telemarketing to capture new leads for advertisers.
Consulting. The publisher acts as a marketing, sales or business consultant, providing advertisers and peers expertise.
Software. The publisher licenses proprietary software and sells IT consulting and support to its peers.
Brand licenses. The publisher equips other marketers to leverage its brand, selling them the rights to use its "seal of quality."
Capital. The publisher acts as an investor and broker, launching specialized private equity funds within its industry.
