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Celebrate 'Freedom of the Press' Right Here and Enter to Win an iPod Nano |
May 31, 2006 |
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Posted by Don Dunnington at 09:06 AM | Comments (0) |
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The famous "New Yorker" Magazine journalist A. J. Liebling once wrote, "Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one." But you don't have own a press today to exercise your power to inform, to persuade or influence your peers in the powder and bulk industries. You can publish free, right here on the powderandbulk weblog, and every time you post an article between now and July 4th you'll be entered to win a free iPod Nano.
No Need to Start a Blog to Join this Information Revolution
Blogging is the fastest growing information medium the world has ever seen. It's easy to join in the fun and enjoy the rewards of becoming a blog author. There's no cost to become a contributor to this blog. You don't have to install software, or subscribe to a service, or post a new blog article very day. We provide a friendly environment where you can develop your blogging skills, at your own pace, with no cost and no long term commitment. And did we mention you could win a free iPod Nano, too?
The More you Contribute… the More Chances to Win an iPod Nano
Thanks to our fellow blogger, Joe Lewis, and Monitor Technologies, we're offering a chance to win a free iPod Nano for every article posted on this blog between now and July 4, 2006. Post more articles and receive more chances to win.
Start Blogging Now
It's easy to become a powerandbulk blogger. Just send an email with your contact information to don@powderandbulk.com with the subject line: sign me up for the powder blog. We'll create an account for you and help you get started. And don't forget, every article you post between now and June 30th gives you another chance to win that iPod Nano.
Contest Rules
1) Blog Articles - Your blog entry must be appropriate for an industrial audience. Acceptable topics would include (but are not limited to) discussion of processes and process equipment, process plant planning, development and operations, and technology issues that you or your customers currently face. Use your imagination: we even have a "gone fish'n" category for those who want to share how they balance work life and home life.
2) Eligible Entries - All entrants must be employed at a process facility, work as a consultant to process plants, or sell equipment or related products to process plants.
3) Adding Your Blog Article - You must register as a blog author by emailing don@powderandbulk.com and requesting a free account. Be sure to include in the subject line: sign me up for the powder blog.
4) Multiple Entries - You may enter multiple articles. Each article will count as a separate entry. The more articles you post, the more chances you have to win.
5) Winning - A random drawing of accepted articles/entries will occur July 5, 2006. If located in the US, the winner will have a choice of a black or white, 2GB iPod Nano or $200 gift certificate from Amazon.com. If from a non-US location, the winner will be awarded a $200 gift certificate from Amazon.com. The winner will be notified by email and an announcement will be made in our weekly newsletter.
6) Contact and Photo - Please register with a valid name and email address. Notification of the winner will take place via email. Also, the winner must supply their photo for announcement in our weekly newsletter.
7) Who cannot enter - Anyone can enter except employees and family members of Camber Southeast, Inc., Powder and Bulk Dot Com, their sponsors and affiliated companies are not allowed to enter.
About Powder and Bulk Dot Com
With over 110,000 visitors per month, Powder and Bulk Dot Com is the best web site for the materials handling professional. Started in 1998, the site features an Industry Directory and Buyers Guide, Help Forum, Job Fair, News Center, Case Histories, the Ask Joe! Column, Amazon.com Bookstore, Powder and Bulk Weblog and a weekly newsletter.
Sponsor supported, Powder and Bulk Dot Com is free and open for all to use. Contributions of articles, case histories and press releases are always welcome.
For more information, contact:
Don Dunnington, Blog Moderator
Email: don@powderandbulk.com
Shelf Ready Packaging Not Ready Yet |
May 30, 2006 |
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Posted by Don Dunnington at 05:40 PM | Comments (0) |
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In his opening remarks to members of the Australian Institute of Packaging in Victoria in early May 2006, Krathyn White, Editor of PKN magazine, declared, “A lot has been made of shelf ready packaging over the last couple of years, but despite the hoopla, one only has to walk down the aisles of any major Australian supermarket to see the impact of shelf ready to-date and for all it's worth, insignificant.”
White sees packaging as largely “shelf un-ready” with less than 5% of shelved product being shipped in a system that constitutes shelf-ready.
For a complete report on White’s presentation concerning the un-ready state of shelf ready packaging, you can view or download this article (PDF – 4 pages).
Don Dunnington
Moderator
PBS Show Leaves Many Exhibitors Wanting |
May 12, 2006 |
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Posted by Joe Lewis at 08:54 AM | Comments (0) |
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MORE LEADS! That's what we wanted.
Summary
Well, it's finally over. The 2006 International Powder & Bulk Solids conference and exhibition is history. I, for one, am very happy, that it's over. Once again we have apparently seen a continued decline in attendance and display at the show. Most exhibitors I spoke with were disappointed and some claim they will NOT be back. However, to be fair, there are some that were happy with the results.
Foot traffic, or attendance, seemed very light throughout the exhibition except for those areas where the aisles were small. Some attendees were seeking out solutions and we are thankful for those because they will likely give us the return on our investment that we need to justify returning to the show in 2008.
Will New Ownership Make a Difference?
In the morning on Wednesday, the second day of the show, it was announced that this trade show and PBS magazine were sold by Reed to Cannon Communications. Perhaps the new owner will make some changes, refocus and emphasize the show, reduce the cost of exhibiting and make this a successful event once again. I am hopeful.
Parting Comments
To everyone that attended the show.... thank you! I hope you found everything you were looking for.
To the new owners, Cannon Communications, please consider the following:
- The show is too expensive for exhibitors
- The show is poorly attended
- Attendees can see what's new by using their computers, anytime, quickly, without taking time from their daily work routines
- Who wants to fight the Chicago traffic again? O'Hare traffic? Consider a change in venue.
- Lower the cost of exhibiting. Oh, I said that already? I hope they get the message.
To my fellow exhibitors - it was a pleasure to see you all there again. Let's hope for improvements in 2008. Please make your comments and feelings known to the new owners.
Joe Lewis
jlewis@monitortech.com
We're Talking about Blogs, RSS and Web 2.0 at the Powder Show |
May 09, 2006 |
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Posted by Don Dunnington at 11:18 PM | Comments (0) |
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Wednesday I'm delivering a talk on the new web at the very venue where, exactly 10 years ago, K-Tron introduced our first website. It's hard to believe crowds gathered in our booth to see the Powder Show's first-ever demonstration of a website. It wasn't even live. I ran the demo from a CD because there was no broadband available then.
We've come a long way on the Internet in ten years; farther and faster than I think anyone imagined. I'll be joined by two of the early adopters the web: Joe Taylor, the founder of Powder and Bulk Dot Com and Joe Marinelli of "Ask Joe!" fame. We will be sharing our experiences on how to make effective business use of Internet media, whether it's called Web 1.0 or 2.0.
I just returned from dinner with Joe Taylor and his daughter, Diana. Though I've known Joe for years, and we've traded many emails and phone calls, this was our first chance to meet. Meeting people, of course, is one of the main reasons we still go to trade shows and attend presentations at conferences. This in part answers the question posed by Joe Lewis in his post, "Are Trade Shows Really Necessary?" An amazing amount of good work gets done today through online communication, but I don't think we will ever lose the desire, or the need, to meet in the flesh. If you're at the Powder Show, I'd like to meet you at our seminar. We'll be in the conference center on Wednesday, May 10, from 9 to 10:15am.
Don Dunnington
Moderator
Are Trade Shows Really Necessary? |
May 03, 2006 |
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Posted by Joe Lewis at 02:06 PM | Comments (0) |
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Most companies invest yearly expeditures into marketing efforts at a variety of trade shows. The company I work for exihibits at a few key shows each year. Expense associated with trade shows seems to continue to rise year-to-year, attendance at some shows continues to drop year-to-year and most customers (no matter what busines your company is in) increasingly use the Internet and websites to do research, gather data and place orders.
Are physical trade shows soon to become extinct in our industry?
Continuing to invest in trade shows is something I evaluate each year. We have evolved our display strategies and tactics and have managed to keep expenses down, leads up and (as a result) keep our cost per lead as low as possible. Many manufacturers, 450 according to the trade show PR, will be exhibiting at the Powder Bulk Solids show next week.
We are making our final adjustments to our display and plan to introduce and demonstrate no less than three new product offerings along with a new exhibit. This trade show has evolved over the years and several years ago was changed to an every-other-year schedule. I think all exhibitors applauded this change and most attendees probably did too.
So, here we are on the eve of the 2006 PBS exhibit and conference. Do you plan to attend? Have you utilized some of the new tools that the exhibit management offer at their website to help plan your visit? I'd love to hear your opinion about how useful trade shows are to you in your day-to-day work.
HERE'S YOUR PERSONAL INVITE: Stop by booth # 2039 and look me up and I'll give you or arrange for a personal review of our new products! I hope to see everyone there.
Joe Lewis
Vice President - Marketing & Sales
Monitor Technologies LLC
jlewis@monitortech.com
www.monitortech.com
www.flexar.info
