Paula Fauth, CEM - Show Director, Hall-Erickson

"The biggest obstacle was a lack of demand from exhibitors," said Paula Fauth, who headed up Expomark."They didn't see the value." The problem, said Fauth, now director of sales with Hall-Erickson, a trade show management company in Westmont, Ill., is that exhibitors believed they could judge for themselves, in increased sales and leads, if the show was worthwhile. But aside from providing information to those who do exhibit, trade show organizers also need effective ways to reach potential exhibitors, plus those who may be comparing expos with other forms of marketing.Audits are seen by some as the potential key to this goal."I hope they succeed," said Fauth of the new auditing services."The pressure is on industry leaders and show management companies to underscore the value of expositions."While Fauth is far from alone in her hope, it seems clear that any new expo audit service will have an uphill fight to convince exhibitors and trade show organizers that audits should be the wave of the future.

Paula Fauth, CEM, Hall-Erickson Inc