Booth Babe -- We Are Not Worthy

update Dec 8, 2019. Name of model removed -- at her request. She has a much better job now.

LAS VEGAS, Nevada (Autodesk University) - In a trade show, vendors use many gimmicks to attract attention. One method is giving away freebies. Autodesk University 2007 was no exception as attendees filled swag bags with pens, yo-yos that lit up, penknives, even binoculars. Vendors also pay top dollar for premium locations such as up front-and-center booths.

That wasn't enough for CADzation, though. They upped the ante by hiring a professional model.

In the male dominated CAD and engineering world awash with the plain and practical, the stunning blonde in a little black dress shone like a bright light. Her presence created a  sensation and a crowd was always in presence. Attendees sought excuses to mill about or linger at the CADzation booth.

I can't blame companies for trying to draw attention to themselves but the hiring of professional models harkens back to Las Vegas' wilder days. CAD insiders may remember Comdex, now defunct, which at its height was the largest computer event in the US. With as many as 100,000 visitors, it made Autodesk University (7,500 visitors this year) pale by comparison. As you might imagine, competition for attention was intense amidst a carnival atmosphere complete with hawkers and entertainers. Pretty young things from the sales and marketing departments were propped up at booths as companies chose looks and charm over knowledge and experience. Many companies would hire professional models and actresses. We called them booth bunnies -- and you could tell where they were by sighting down the isle for the telltale crowds.

But I wondered how and if CADzation was benefiting from the attention their model was getting. Within the crowd, men nudged each other like little boys. They feigned interest in CADzation, fingered brochures, lingered -- all the time stealing glances in her direction. No direct eye contact. They stayed close -- but not too close.

Where had I seen this behaviour? Oh, yes...in my past. We CAD guys have never been able to escape the nervous, awkward geeks we once were. We are comfortable behind our computers and calculators. Like everyone else, we see beauty in movies and magazines, but God help us if such a being descends into our midst. We dare not look her in the eye. We are not worthy.

To tell you the truth, with all that going on, I forgot to ask if CADzation was introducing anything new at the show.

Comments

[Web MDr]

There's the nonverbal, as well as the speech communication aspect...which seems to be the way [name withheld] is going.

[Jmaes Maeding]

Hey Dana, there's only so many of you to go around, they had to choose someone!
You didn't see me spending much time with James W at your booth did you? (when you were there...)

[Dairobi Paul]

H-m-m-m, maybe this explains no reply to two emails I've sent to them for technical support.

[Dana Breig Probert]

Too bad they didn't have a good looking woman who could actually talk about the product.

[Will Munson [CADzation]]

Thank you for the comments. The first rule of marketing is "the only bad press is no press", at least that's what we've been told. So, we feel that our decision must have been correct to be mentioned in your blog out of the hundreds of other exhibitors at AU.

We needed some additional help scanning badges at AU this year and the temp. staff we hired was a big help since CADzation has been one of the top producer in leads for this event over the last four years. In past years, both I and our President, Rodney McManamy, had to spend a large percentage of our time scanning badges and stamping the AUGI game pieces. This year [name withheld] and Rochelle were able to handle that plus answer some basic questions about the software and our free offer for AU.

We did announce the release of AcroPlot Pro 2007. It has lot of cool features including 64-bit support on XP and Vista. Here is a link to the press release:
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/061129/clw503.html?.v=66

CADzation prides itself in being innovative in both our software and our marketing. When Mr. McManamy started the company he had no experience in either of these fields, just an idea to use what he knew to make other architect's and engineer's jobs easier. Even to this day much of our marketing and sales materials are created by the same team that writes and supports the software. Our new exhibit booth was also designed in house.

For the record, [model name] has completed four quarters of calculus thru differential equations and also won many science fairs for "mathematics" while in high school. So you don't want to judge a book by its cover. If you don't believe us you can see for yourself that she took 1st Place in the [competition name withheld].

We did have some AU attendees challenge her level of intelligence which of whom she very quickly and eloquently put in their place. She did enjoy working at the event.

At CADzation we are always working to achieve the complete solution for our clients--including booth staff!

[R.K. McSwain]

250,000? Wow.

That's roughly 33X the reported 7,500 last week. Where did these people stay and more importantly, where did they gather?

The entire "metropolitan" population of Vegas in 1980 was only a bit over 500,000 - adding another 250,000 for a week or so must have been quite of an economic boost....

[Tony in SV]

At least she's attractive. I've seen enough booth bimbos that weren't appealing.

I'll take competance over looks anyday, however, when it comes to considering what to buy.

BTW, there are still shows such as Computex in Taiwan and the Tokyo Auto Show that are famous for their booth bimbos. The more technical shows I've been to such as Semicon don't have very many.

--Tony

[Ralph Grabowski]

Comdex at its peak had closer to 250,000 attendees. A reason for its failure: too many attendees.