Business Expo Prompts Goody-Bags Galore

The Springdale Chamber of Commerce’s sixth annual Northwest Arkansas Business Expo encourages friendly competition among trade booths. With more than 140 exhibits expected to display at the all-industry show Aug. 21-22, each proprietor becomes their own ringmaster, hawking their 10-by-10-foot attraction.

With 3,000-5,000 people filing by the booths for two days, the tradesmen don’t want to waste a minute with a dull array. At almost every booth, representatives give away some branded trinket, and others shell out tickets for prize drawings. The possibility of winning a color television set or a vacation package encourages the audience to stick around a few more minutes.

Jeremy Webb of IF World Inc. in Fayetteville knows how to attract an audience. In the past, his technology company’s booth has showcased a virtual reality game and robotic pets. It’s worked.

“We’ll have people all year tell us that they saw us at the expo,” Webb said. He doesn’t want to lose the crowd’s interest this time, either.

During this year’s gathering, an IF World Inc. blimp about the size of a small child will buzz through the air above the displays. From the booth’s personal computer, people will steer the blimp around the Northwest Arkansas Convention Center.

Webb plans to use an IF World Web site and a wireless camera mounted on the blimp to help each pilot guide the craft.

Now under construction, the blimp will offer bomb capability. Pingpong balls marked with prize-winners’ names will be dropped from the blimp. The winning names take home IF World-branded folding chairs.

Coleman Dairy in Little Rock uses the exposition to introduce new flavors of ice cream, said Bill Rogers, spokesman for the Springdale Chamber of Commerce.

Fun and games included, the expo is the biggest money maker of the year, Rogers said. The event brings in more revenue than the Chamber’s annual golf tournament or Featherfest, but Rogers wouldn’t disclose the profit.

Each 100-SF exposition booth costs $500 for the two-day affair.

This year, Roll Off Service of Springdale reserved the most spacious and expensive display of 300 SF. One of the props in the spread will be a racer built by Roll Off owner Tom Smith.

Some of the space also will be used as a reception area for interested prospects, said Cheryl Zotti, vice president of Roll Off Service. She said that 3-6 people will staff the booth throughout the show.

“Every business needs waste disposal options,” Zotti said. “We want to make people more aware of our company. We hope to have some fun, too.”

Most of the booths, like Roll Off, direct their displays toward other businesses rather than individual consumers.

“[The expo] gives a wide variety of businesses the chance to tell their story,” Rogers said.

Most industry trades are represented, including education, nonprofits, banking, package delivery and technology. Industrial ventures don’t respond well to the expo, though, Rogers said, because they don’t often need to attract other businesses.

Firms from as far away as Florida travel to Springdale for the expo, and five states will be represented.

However, Rogers said the Chamber wants to attract more Arkansas firms from “south of the mountain.” Only four Fort Smith-area companies have reserved booths. Little Rock will make a stronger showing with nine entries.