Moving Forward:Exploration of the Business Transformation of 2020 Outbound Exhibition Industry

Naz Wen， Vice General Manager of Worldex-Singex Exhibitions （Guangzhou） Co.， Ltd， thinks that exhibition companies need to be prepared to operate both domestic and international business.

Robbin Hou， General Manager of Guangzhou Foreign Exhibition Technology Ltd thinks that a proper proportion of online business will still be maintained after the epidemic.

Dennis Yu， General Manager of Andinafairs Columbia， states that after the epidemic， clients would prefer to attend high-quality exhibitions.

Tori Jiang， Vice General Manager of Expo Linking （Xiamen） Service Co.， Ltd observes that outbound exhibition companies should take the initiative to innovate business models and increase revenues.

Renee Guo， General Manager， Beijing International Sales Office， Hyve Group Plc， stresses that organizers should improve exhibition quality to meet clients demands.

How was your outbound exhibition business this year？ What innovations have been made in the business model？

Naz Wen：On the whole， in 2020， in terms of overseas business， we mainly carried out some activities such as buyer docking， and the income of exhibition business was basically zero， or in other words， it was insignificant compared with the internal development business. From the early stage of the epidemic outbreak， we began to try online exhibition and vigorously develop internal exhibition business.

For the business in the next year or so， we will try our best to make two preparations： domestically， we will continue to cooperate with domestic organizers to launch new projects； in terms of overseas exhibitions， we will pay close attention to government subsidy policies and international epidemic situation， and plan to start from a relatively close distance from Southeast Asia.

Robbin Hou： So far， including the exhibition projects in 2021 and 2022， the number of exhibition projects we have recruited only accounts for about 10% of that in 2019. A significant difference in business this year was the transition from offline to online. Due to the serious obstruction of international business travel caused by the epidemic， our current business has changed from the previous group going abroad to participating in online docking meetings， online seminars， etc.， and we will also communicate with relevant industry associations or enterprises on the business development of each other.

In my opinion， over the years， online exhibitions have not really developed. This year， due to the epidemic situation， the "first year" of the online exhibition was opened. However， there hasnt been no clear concept of online exhibition， and the specific operation mode is still under exploration. At present， most of the online exhibitions that we organize customers to participate in are based on the original entity brand exhibitions.

Dennis Yu： Before the COVID-19 outbreak， we were mainly engaged in overseas self-organized exhibition and agency business. In 2020， due to the impact of the epidemic， the agency exhibition business was totally suspended. In December， were going to organize a show in Colombia that weve launched before.

At present， the situation in Latin America is quite complicated. Our upcoming self-organized exhibition project is positioned as a regional exhibition in Latin America. There will be no online version. It mainly invites European and American enterprises and Latin American enterprises. At present， with the outbreak of the another round of epidemic in Europe and the United States， there are still many challenges in the exhibitions investment promotion， buyer invitation， on-site epidemic prevention and policy stability. In the near future， we will carefully coordinate with the local team to arrange the on-site epidemic prevention and other work， so that the exhibition can run smoothly.

Tori Jiang： Affected by the epidemic situation this year， our outbound exhibition business has basically stagnated since the beginning of the year， and has shrunk by more than 90% compared with last year. Therefore， this year， we have vigorously developed domestic exhibition service projects.

This year， we focus on the development of business related to online exhibitions， and has reached cooperation with a number of online exhibition organizers to provide services such as digital exhibition hall construction. We have also developed a product suitable for enterprises to create independent VR cloud exhibition hall， to help enterprises obtain publicity effect and interactive experience like offline exhibition at low cost and high efficiency. In addition， based on the local advantages of Xiamen， in order to meet the needs of business talks， group building and family tourism， we have also launched customized tourism services in Xiamen to expand the business scope.

Renee Guo： Although the epidemic continues， our exhibition projects in Ukraine， Russia and some other countries have been restarted. From September 22 to 25 this year， we successfully restarted WorldFood Moscow in Russia， and the response from all aspects was good. At present， we are actively preparing for the exhibition projects of next year， such as MOSBUILD， our first exhibition in 2021， to be held from March 30 to April 2 next year. Although people still have some concerns about the epidemic situation and international business travel in the next year， after close communication with enterprises， we found that they are still looking forward to the brand exhibition. Some exhibitors that cant go to the exhibition in person plan to show their brands and products and develop business opportunities onsite through local dealers and other partners in Russia.

Renee Guo： Due to the limited travel under the epidemic situation， many exhibitors have participated in some exhibitions or business matching activities online. Affected by various factors such as product characteristics， online activity operation and content planning， exhibitors have different results. According to the feedback of most exhibitors， online mode provides a solution for exhibitors to expand business opportunities during the epidemic period， but it still can not replace the "face-to-face" opportunities provided by traditional exhibitions for exhibitors. Many products cannot be displayed intuitively and effectively online. Compared with the sellers and products online， international buyers hope to be able to touch， experience and understand the products in person and communicate with the exhibitors face-to-face. At the exhibitions that restarted after the epidemic， although the overall exhibition area and audience number decreased， but the density of exhibitors and buyers per unit area was higher.

Under the new normal， what important trends have emerged or will appear in the outbound exhibition industry？ What are the core values of the exhibition industry？

Naz Wen： I estimate that the exhibition industry will continue to be in the cold winter for a year or two， while the prospect of online exhibition is still uncertain. Therefore， I suggest that all outbound exhibition companies put down competitive relationship and try to keep warm together， for example， to jointly hold internal exhibition projects. Since the outbreak of the epidemic， we have cooperated with Shanghai Council for the Promotion of international Trade and other well-known domestic exhibition organizers to host a series of anti-epidemic materials exhibitions and other domestic exhibition projects， and achieved good results. And， I think that the good industry reputation accumulated by our company before is an important factor for us to obtain cooperation opportunities.

Robbin Hou： This year， as an outbound exhibition enterprise， our workload is much smaller on the whole. During this gap period， we have been able to systematically review and plan for the future in all aspects of our work， including establishing deeper ties with international organizers. In addition， after experiencing the test of the epidemic situation， the organizers have also made more efforts in the quality of the exhibition. For example， before the outbreak， the exhibition was mainly developed on a large scale. However， after the epidemic， the remaining exhibitions that continues to develop will pay more attention to brand building and resource integration， and the operation will be more standardized and perfect. These exhibitions will be the preferred exhibitions for post epidemic exhibitors， while the development of new projects will still be difficult.

Dennis Yu： As far as the Latin American market I am familiar with， the acceptance of online exhibitions in the local market is not high as local people prefer face-to-face contact. With the Internet speed， work and rest time， living habits and other factors， online exhibitions are not very popular. Moreover， we are also worried that once the online exhibition is developed， the development of offline parent exhibition will be impacted in the future. Our self-organized exhibition has accumulated a certain popularity after several times of holding， and the offline development prospect is still considerable. Our company will not develop online exhibitions business.

Tori Jiang： The core value of exhibition industry is the trust established through face-to-face communication. The core purpose of any trade behavior is to establish mutual trust， and the value of the exhibition for people is to establish mutual trust and promote trade through exhibition under different systems， ways of thinking， language and habits. After the outbreak of the epidemic， due to the long-term physical isolation between domestic and foreign personnel， foreign trade enterprises original demand for the exhibition has gradually changed to online or other non-contact forms. In the early years， due to the small economic scale， the exhibition industry was not impacted by the Internet. However， under the new normal， if the epidemic lasts too long， the most fundamental core value of the exhibition may also change slowly. The exhibition industry will not die out， but the forms may be affected by technology， which can be seen from the increasing phenomenon of "cloud exhibition".

Renee Guo： Under the new normal， the outbound exhibition industry focuses more on the acquisition and transmission of value. That is： the exhibition organizers should provide exhibition services with high rate of return to exhibitors and visitors； exhibitors should accurately understand the needs of visitors and buyers， and strive to improve product quality； visitors and buyers are more inclined to buy products with high cost performance.

In addition， the industry needs to pay more attention to the application of big data and accurate data. For example， visitors and buyers can use the big data and accurate data of the exhibition platform to quickly and successfully locate a large number of intended products and suppliers.

Whether it is the old normal or the new normal， the core value of the exhibition industry is to help more exhibitors and visitors to establish effective business contacts， develop business opportunities and promote trade transactions by accurately understanding the needs of exhibitors and visitors.

What do you think is the most important mentality or measure for the exhibition professionals to move forward after the outbreak？

Naz Wen： I believe there will be an end to the epidemic， which mainly depends on the vaccine development process. In this period of time， the exhibition enterprises should cooperate with each other， keep warm， stabilize their mentality and jointly deal with the future.

Robbin Hou： After recent discussions with people in e-commerce and other related industries， we agree that the core mission of the exhibition is to coordinate buyers and sellers， rather than other related services such as negotiation， logistics and payment. As far as our company is concerned， it is a major move to try to transform from offline to online， and I expect the online trend will not fade away as soon as before， but will become the norm. Therefore， after the epidemic， we will also maintain a certain proportion of online business and closely integrate online and offline services.

Dennis Yu： The epidemic has affected many exhibitors. During this period of time， I believe the thinking of foreign trade enterprises is the same as ours： the top priority is to survive and closely observe the development of the global economic situation. After all， if the overall economic and trade environment is not ideal， the effect of the exhibition will not be very good.

In the past ten years， Chinas exhibition industry has undergone a nearly crazy development. Now it has been impacted by the epidemic and has been precipitated and adjusted. However， I think a new development model is still under exploration. Of course， international economic and trade exchanges are the inevitable mainstream， and enterprises will still participate in overseas exhibitions. The difference is that they are more inclined to choose professional exhibitions with high quality and good effect.

Tori Jiang： The operation cycle of going abroad to participate in the exhibition is generally long， with at least half a year to one year ahead of schedule. At present， with the global rebound of the epidemic in November， the hope of returning to normal in 2021 is very slim. Under the current situation， what we exhibition people need most is to recognize the reality， give up fantasy， seek change quickly and expand new channels. In the new normal market， we should find our own driving force and use the advantages accumulated over the years to develop new markets and new businesses.

Renee Guo： I think the most important thing is to be optimistic. The epidemic will eventually be over， but before that， we should continue deepening the needs of exhibitors and visitors， and innovate our products and services to meet their needs. Only in this way can we truly deliver our confidence and value to our customers. On the contrary， if you shall stop at this time or give up， you will miss many opportunities when the market warms up.