It’s no secret that Expo looks a little different this year with its first-ever, fully virtual PPAI Expo Direct-2-You, being brought directly to attendees’ homes and offices. During the show’s 18 years in Las Vegas, distributors often spoke of developing action plans for tackling the expansive show floor, attending education sessions and awards ceremonies, networking with friends, both old and new, and developing relationships with prospective and current partners. With the virtual setting making it possible this year for more professionals to attend Expo who may have never been to the Las Vegas show, some distributors have revamped their show strategy accordingly—and for CEO Sara Webb, MAS, and her team at InTamden Promotions, a Kennesaw, Georgia-based distributor, it involves several pairs of cozy, branded pajamas, delicious food, camaraderie and a short trip north.
For the duration of the show, Webb and her sales team of six are renting a home in northern Georgia, so they can experience Expo Direct-2-You in its entirety together and collaborate with one another throughout the four-day event. The show’s virtual setting this year allowed for InTandem’s entire sales team to experience the show for the first time. “Our thought was, ‘This is a great opportunity to bring the sales team,’ especially because we don’t take this many salespeople to Las Vegas because of the expense,” Webb says. “[The house is] on the lake, so it’s kind of like a fun destination. It’s a large house, they’ve got a hot tub, a firepit and it’s near restaurants, so we can have food brought in.”
Throughout, the InTandem team is remaining safe and following precautions: they are sitting six feet apart from each other throughout the show and handwashing regularly, and they are each assigned their own bedroom. Webb adds that the InTandem team has remained together as an office throughout the recent pandemic, and none of the team members have had a fever or displayed any of the symptoms of COVID-19.
Webb, who arrived at the home yesterday in advance of the show, is looking to configure the large-screen TV in the living room to her computer, so they can navigate the show floor, available education and the rest of Expo’s offerings, together. “We’ll be able to enjoy a cup of coffee and go through the booths,” she says. “We’re going to be away, so we’re outside of the office distractions and we’ll budget and plan for 2021.” The team members, who are arriving today, are also bringing their own computers to allow for the possibility of working in pods, Webb says. Throughout, they’ll also be wearing matching pajamas from supplier Boxercraft—yes, all week long!—featuring InTamden branding. As a trial run, Webb had a Pajama Day at the InTandem office last week, during which the team wore branded, teal pajamas, and to support Porshia Karter, CAS, of InTandem, who was a featured speaker during in commonsku’s skucon.
Webb says she’s looking forward to the experience of PPAI Direct-2-You and how it will all come together, but says she’ll miss being able to handle the products suppliers will be exhibiting. “I am obsessed with the products in our industry, and seeing them and not being able to touch them is going to be a little bit difficult,” she says. “Part of this is seeing what samples we are going to order in, how we are going to bring them in and how we are going to share them with our clients.”
