Exhibitions - do they now need a website?

[Coombe Barton]

Following on from the two 'Exhibitions' threads, a further question. Do exhibitions now need a website to attract people? I realise that any exhibition I've been to, be it large or small, I've gone to the website to see if it's going to be worth going (with escalating fuel costs this is becoming more important). There's one on this weekend, about 40 miles away from me, that hasn't got a website. So I can't tell whether it would be worthwhile going or not. I have to balance the time and cost of an 80 mile round trip on the offchance that it's going to be worthwhile for me, with my criteria, to go.

 

So do other people look for websites that suppport exhibitions, or just go along anyway?

[Coombe Barton]

And looking at some exhibition descriptions, do exhibition layouts now need their own website to attract viewers? Or should it be left to the exhibition organisers. There's two approaches to this I've seen:

• Railex - links to external sites
• ExpoEM - details, plans and photographs produced by the organisers

[Kenton]

These days all you need is an active thread on RMWeb - with ALL the details posted and updated.

 

Some of the website pages giving show details are too deeply hidden in club/society details, are badly coded, badly coloured (my personal hatred for yellow or red on black background)

 

But without a website (RMWeb post) how are we supposed to know about what is on where? OK so there is RM back pages - but there they do not list trade support. Trade being a major deciding factor on if I attend or not. Certainly if significant travel is involved.

 

Also on the subject of websites - not just a list but a link to the website of the layout (everyone should have one - or at least - or as well as a topic on RMWeb)

 

 

Then on the subject of show brochures. I don't care if they are glossy or not, I don't think a photo is essential but I DO think a plan is essential. Too many are sold without the fundamental basic description and layout trackplan - they are a waste of money AFAIC.

[cromptonnut]

Simple answer, yes, without a doubt.

 

Additionally, a map and decent directions (including venue postcode and suggestions for parking) for those travelling from a distance who don't know where places are but rely on a sat nav is essential. I've actually not gone to exhibitions I'd planned to go to because I couldn't find out where they were. As I don't have access to a car all the time, directions by public transport are a bonus, and although I'm fairly "web proficient" and can usually find these things out eventually, surely it shouldn't be such a struggle to find out that I need to get the number 24 from outside Tesco's, and they run every 15 minutes?

 

My time and modelling budget is fairly limited, and I always tend to overspend whenever I go (partly why I now avoid Warley and the "Bachmann stand scrum") so if I'm going to go to a show, I want to know that I am going to enjoy myself because the layouts I am going to see will appeal to me.

 

As a 'modern image' modeller, I will tend to navigate more towards the modern layouts (any scale, DCC sound a bonus) and unless something particularly catches my eye, not cast much more than a cursory glance over the steam era layouts especially if the crowds are 3 deep (as you see at the larger shows).

 

I tend to find I enjoy smaller club shows rather than the bigger ones because there's less people there - and I'm sure the "rucksacks and cameras" arguments have already been done to death before on this site somewhere. Unfortunately, the smaller clubs are often the ones without the websites.

[Mr.S.corn78]

Hi,

 

I think they do for the reasons already mentioned.

I always try to check to see what is at a show before going and directions are a plus or even just a post code.

 

At Darlington we try to provide the layout name, scale, gauge, era and a picture or two.

If the layout has a website or a page on here we put a link in.

we have the collage map of the site

I must admit that I need to sort a page or two out for my layout.

 

Cheers

Simon

[ColinW]

Most exhibitions (or clubs hosting them) now have websites which will be updated at regular intervals. I will check them to see what maybe there, it will not necessarily make my mind up whether to attend or not. Surely there are people on here who will say there are exhibitions that they will definitely attend every year because of previous year's exhibits?

 

Colin

[KevinWalsh]

IMHO, yes exhibitions do need a website especially when there are more than one exhibition on in the same weekend, helps with deciding which one you go to if you know in advance what you are likely to see. Also I like websites that show pics from previous year's shows, that way you can see if the standard of layouts invited is consistently low/middling/high and wether or not the show is improving with age (like fine wine)

 

Kev

[298]

They don't need a website, they need a good, up to date website. I've seen some clubs on here who obviously have an all-out assault to keep their show at the top of the exhibitions forum, even when the important information such as invited layouts and opening times "will be announced shortly". Likewise, one that says it has 25 layouts but has the same photos three years running isn't selling the show to me, and it'll be pot luck what's there.

 

Suppose i'm thinking of going to a show, if it involves travelling i'd like to know what's going to be there over three months beforehand, so I can find cheap rail tickets if necessary, or book the time off work & cancel other plans. Then a month beforehand, I like to know the address so I can plan a route and check other local events such as preserved railway opening times to make a day of it.

 

Actually, i'm not asking to be patronised with information, just ask for it to be accurate and delivered in a timely fashion. A basic listing such as the ones on UK modelshops are all that is really needed.

[Edwin_m]

Wise words there 298. A personal view from me - please feel free to differ:

 

I use ukmodelshops to check for upcoming local events so for me a link there is essential. I don't mind if the exhibition website is part of some other site but I'd like to see a clear listing of layouts and trade and preferably some detail of the layouts (scale, area, era, general config and size eg medium end-to-end) and links to layout websites if they have them. However I'd say it's a bit OTT to expect exhibition managers to prepare detailed material on the layouts attending - the layout owner is best placed to do this and only has to do it once (and update when needed). Fancy graphics done badly are worse than no graphics at all, and even if done well won't make it more likely I will go (after that you probably don't want me to go anyway ).

 

Accessibility information will be important to some, and I personally would like to know if the barriers are child-climbable and/or stools are provided, as my son is too heavy to lift for any length of time but not tall enough for "eye level" layouts. I've never seen this sort of info on a layout website before.

 

Thread in RMWeb is less important to me but if it is there please show the date as well as the place in the thread title or subtitle as I'll ignore anything more than a month away. A bump or too about that time would not come amiss but repeated bumps over a long period are counterproductive. I'm also quite annoyed when an interesting thread about something else is interrupted by a plug for an exhibition in the text of someone's posting, or in over-large or multicoloured form in the signature.

[Pacific231G]

I also use ukmodelshops as my basic guide so if a show isn't listed there I'm quite likely to miss it.

 

There are exhibitions such as St. Albans, Tolworth or Ally Pally that I'll go to with confidence purely on past experience and others with a specialist theme such as Eurotrack, the GRS show or Expong that I'll go to even if I'm not manning a stand because there's bound to be enough to interest me. I might also go to a fairly local show on spec but for the rest I do need to know if there's going to be enough to justify the trip and these days that requires a fairly informative website- "fifteen quality layouts" just doesn't cut it I'm afraid and, unless it's a layout I know I want to see again such as Pempoul or Borchester then I need more than the layout's name. If the exhibition organisers have booked a layout then they must know enough to write a basic billing for it. I also agree that exhibition guides without plans are a waste of print. The same goes for layout articles in magazines and schematics alone don't really do the job.

 

David

[great central]

 

 

....... others with a specialist theme such as Eurotrack, the GRS show or Expong .......

 

David

 

 

Blimey, do they supply showers and clean clothes as well?

 

 

Taxi!

[David Bigcheeseplant]

I try and ensure all relevent information is on our club website and forums, so when a new layout. trader or demo is confirmed then the website is updated more or less straight away.

 

I am still amazed how some big shows lack decent info, If you are promoting a show you need to get information out there.

 

David

[Coombe Barton]

I try and ensure all relevent information is on our club website and forums, so when a new layout. trader or demo is confirmed then the website is updated more or less straight away.

One of the reasons I gave Railex as an example is that it is a one stop shop where I can get all the information succinctly and go into as much detail as I want from the liinks provided.

[Jonboy]

Personally if it is within 25 miles and entry is under a fiver I will often risk attending it "blind", as it likely to be an "amatuer" event in the calendar supporting some form of charity. Any more either way and I wont think about it without careful consideration.

[Huw Griffiths]

They don't need a website, they need a good, up to date website. I've seen some clubs on here who obviously have an all-out assault to keep their show at the top of the exhibitions forum, even when the important information such as invited layouts and opening times "will be announced shortly". Likewise, one that says it has 25 layouts but has the same photos three years running isn't selling the show to me, and it'll be pot luck what's there.

 

Suppose i'm thinking of going to a show, if it involves travelling i'd like to know what's going to be there over three months beforehand, so I can find cheap rail tickets if necessary, or book the time off work & cancel other plans. Then a month beforehand, I like to know the address so I can plan a route and check other local events such as preserved railway opening times to make a day of it.

 

Actually, i'm not asking to be patronised with information, just ask for it to be accurate and delivered in a timely fashion. A basic listing such as the ones on UK modelshops are all that is really needed.

These are very fair points, which exhibition organisers would do well to take on board. Some do ... .

 

I don't have money to burn, so I think very carefully before going to a show that I can't get to using a bus day out ticket. Even if I can, I tend to think about what last year's show was like. If it was good, then I'll go - if it was a sideshow, then I might have other ideas.

 

If a show is further away, I'll check whether I can get close enough using affordable public transport - Megabus and the like - or if it's one of those rare occasions when I'll actually be in the area.

 

If I've got to book travel tickets in advance, I'll need to know months in advance - with a number of operators, there's a very small quota of cheap tickets which sell out fast.

 

 

Certainly, if the exhibition is one I don't know - if last year's wasn't much good - or if I'm going to have to book travel tickets - I definitely want to know whether the show will be worth the cost in time and money. This is one of the reasons I like to see a website.

 

I wish to know what layouts to expect - and whether the trade support will be any good. One of the reasons I go to exhibitions is to get wheels, gearboxes, track components and other stuff I can't get from my (not so) local hobby store. Over the years, most of the major shows I've been to have had a good mix of traders - but a minority haven't. If a show's trade "support" consists only of secondhand stalls - comedians selling bland RTR at way over list price - and other jokers making advertising claims far in excess of what they actually offer - then I'm already starting to lose interest. Add in about 2 or 3 layouts - and nothing else apart from acres of empty space - and you'll probably turn me off for life.

 

 

Why am I saying this? Last year, some (previously excellent) exhibitions seemed to have turned into stripped-out sideshows - and I wasn't impressed.

 

I was even less impressed when I checked their websites for this year's shows. In one case, the show website mentioned a major crowd-pleaser. I thought: "OK, 2009 might have been a rogue year. I've wanted to see this layout for some time - so I'll be there." A month or two later, the person who owns this layout was discussing their show schedule for 2010 - and this show wasn't in it. It turned out this layout had been provisionally booked - and then cancelled. Just out of interest, I rechecked the show website - and saw the layout list had been replaced by a "watch this space" notice.

 

I've been watching so far. Please don't expect me to still be watching in six months' time. Also, please don't expect me to be there. What annoys me is that some people might buy advance tickets, based on website announcements of what to expect - only to find it's not there. Some people might call this a disappointment. I might be tempted to call it "bait and switch".

 

Quite obviously, these are personal views. Some people will agree with them - some will not. I've got no problem with this.

 

 

There's another reason why I'd like to see layout details - and websites - on show sites. Sometimes, I see layouts that I really like - and I'd like to find out a bit more about the layouts, or the stock running on them. This can be next to impossible if there are no websites (or other contact details) for the layouts in question.

 

Anyway, that's enough from me for now.

 

Regards,

 

Huw.