Wow what a crowd! Thanks to the Obama Administration, the Palmer Lions Club Gun Show was a fantastic success! Thousands of Alaskans came to the show. We met lots of locals that where very interested in coming out to Prince William Sound and staying on the Cathy G. I’m glad we didn’t set up our booth at the Anchors Aweigh Boat Show which sounded like a total flop this year. Unlike the boat show, the Palmer Lions Club treated their vendors well. We had members of the 4H club delivering coffee and sandwiches to our table - coffee refills were just 25 cents! Parking was right next to the show hall - no parking garage hassle or hiking through traffic! Tables for vendors were only $50 a piece. This is very affordable for small businesses, unlike the $ 700 per booth at the boat show. The more affordable a show is for the vendors, the more vendors there are, the better it is for everyone who comes to the show. We also enjoyed talking with the other vendors - everyone was very friendly as you would expect in small town Alaska. Trade shows are very important for small businesses. It is a great way to connect with customers. But the wrong show not only wastes your time, it will also break your bank account. Many show promoters will claim their show will bring you lots of business but that’s not always true. It’s just like the travel magazine sales people who make big claims on how an expensive advert would bring in lots of customers. But when you look at their magazine, it’s mostly full of adverts with very little content which isn’t very attractive to magazine buyers. They make so much on the ads the magazine should be free! I have found that the low cost marketing actually brings in more customers unless you are trying to attract the tourist crowd. Here at Aquetec LLC we are all about catering to Alaskans, their friends and relatives as well as the Military. We are not involved in industrial tourism! We look forward to the 2014 Palmer Lions Gun show at the Alaska State Fair grounds - they know how to put on a show!
Matt
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