Tag: reservations

SHOT Show Hotel Rooms Going, Going …

Las VegasAt the Exhibitor Academy we held last month in Las Vegas, our partners at ConvExx tipped us off to the status of hotel rooms available for the 2016 SHOT Show. That tip came down to one fine point: hotel rooms are filling up at an unprecedented rate.

Now, I know many of you will read this and say, “Sure this is what they told us last year, but I got my hotel room booked just fine.” Indeed, that was true for all 65,000 attendees of last year’s show. What you didn’t hear about was the number of people who didn’t get rooms or ended up booking far away from the show because they failed to heed our alerts and tried to book too late.

According to Jeff Pressman, President at ConvExx, the days spanning Jan. 18-22, which cover Industry Day at the Range (held the day before the show) and the entirety of SHOT Show, at least two other trade shows of significant size are also taking place in Las Vegas. This means that, just like last year, literally every hotel room available in the Las Vegas metro area will be spoken for during this time.

Learning this bit of information when we did, we took a quick look at the block of rooms NSSF reserves at various hotels in the area and found that two were already completely booked—in June. Even our headquarter hotels, the Venetian and Palazzo, are more than 50 percent booked, double the booking rate for the same time last year. And we still have more than six months to go before the show. Anyone want to take bets on how many of those reservations were made by those who couldn’t get a room last year?

Bottom line here is that we are strongly encouraging everyone planning on attending the 2016 SHOT Show in Las Vegas to book their rooms now. As we do every year, NSSF has reserved blocks of rooms across various hotels near the Sands Expo Center, including rooms at NSSF’s headquarters hotel, the Venetian and Palazzo. The available hotels represent a wide variety of price points so that everyone’s budget and preferences can be accommodated. A full listing of hotels is available at SHOTShow.org, along with links to the Venetian and Palazzo booking page and those to all other currently available hotels NSSF has negotiated discounted prices with via its housing partner onPeak. You’ll also find a link to Frequently Asked Questions, an online contact form for onPeak and travel discount codes for Delta Airlines and Dollar Rent A Car.

If you have any questions, call Venetian/Palazzo at 866-580-1198 (U.S.) or 702-414-4100 and onPeak at 800-388-8104.

Chris Dolnack is Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Follow him on Twitter at @ChrisDolnack.

Less Than 30 Days Until the 2015 SHOT Show! Are You Prepared?

The real countdown has begun—there are less than 30 days remaining until the doors open on the 2015 SHOT Show. Are you prepared? Take a look at the tips we have for exhibitors, buyers and retailers and media, as well as some important items that will help everyone attending SHOT Show (be sure to read through to the end!).

Exhibitors

  • Check the list of December 26 deadlines for catering, sign hanging, electrical, Internet and much, much more.
  • Do you have all your exhibitor badges (based on your allocation) finalized for your booth personnel?
  • Did you schedule a press conference? Now’s the time to get your press materials in order, send out invites to the media members and buyers you want to attend, and get working on your PowerPoint presentations.
  • There are still a handful of slots available for the all-new SHOT Showcase Theater. This is a unique opportunity to have your newest products and lines in front of media members and buyers in a high-intensity, multi-media forum. Contact Chris Tatulli, NSSF Director, Exhibit and Sponsorship Sales, ctatulli@nssf.org.
  • Get your press kits in order—jump drives, CDs, catalogs and press contact business cards. There will be more than 2,500 members of the media in attendance, and they need these materials. Also, remember to take advantage of the press bins in the Pressroom that are made available to members of the media; exhibitors may reserve up to two bins here. Media members tell us this is one of the first places they turn to for press kits, especially when the floor is busy and finding someone to talk to in a booth gets more difficult.
  • Are you holding a press conference in your booth? Let us know so that we can add your conference to our calendar of events. The press conference application provides an option for you to tell us that your booth will be the conference location, so please utilize that function.

Buyers/Retailers

  • Make the SHOT Show Planner your new home page and use the floor plan tab to set meetings and see all you need to see without zig-zagging the entire show floor and wasting time.
  • While you’re planning appointments, make sure to utilize the Show Special tab under the SHOT Show Planner. There are nearly 100 brands offering show-only specials, with more added every week.
  • SHOT Show University—This year’s lineup of topics and speakers is better than ever. Literally something for everyone from new store owner to veteran entrepreneur, this year’s University will also be open to exhibitors to encourage better communication and understanding of the manufacturer-to-consumer production chain. See the full course and speaker listing here and apply today—seating is limited!
  • The 2015 New Product Center should be on every buyer’s must-see list. Greatly expanded in size this year, you’ll find booth and company contact information for each product so that you may go directly to the floor for additional information.
  • This year NSSF will host more than a dozen Retail Seminars throughout the week with topics ranging from understanding key profit centers to compliance, as well as a special session on straw purchase prevention. Sessions are just $20 each, but worth their weight in gold. See the full schedule here.

Media

  • Press Room—As always, this is the place to be. Remember that the press room has a number of amenities press members need, such as free Wi-fi, electronic device charging stations, multiple PC and Mac work stations with printers, coat check and more. You can also find hot coffee and bottled water there throughout the day.
  • Press conferences will be held in Room 3401, Level 3, San Polo Ballroom of the Venetian, near the press room. A finalized list of available conferences will be posted here before the show begins.
  • NSSF Media Members have access to the Member’s Lounge during the show. The Member’s Lounge provides a quiet place to have a meeting, catch up on emails or just take a breather in between booth visits. A free lunch is also provided each day of the show.
  • Keep up with NSSF’s Twitter board during the show. Follow @NSSFSHOTShow now for announcements and of course search for and use #SHOTshow to follow the excitement of the show.
  • A full list of room numbers, phone numbers and websites important to our media members is available here.

EVERYONE!

  • The SHOT Show Mobile App is available now for Apple, Android and Blackberry smartphones and tablets. Simply go to shotmobile.com to link directly to the appropriate stores from your mobile device, or click here if opening from a web browser for more information or visit the app store for your mobile device and search for “2015 SHOT Show.”
  • Business cards—double what you think you need. It’s not worth running out mid-show.
  • Need to know where to go after show hours? Visit SHOT on a Dime to find dozens of restaurants on and near the strip that offer dining below $50, plus a list of local attractions.
  • Did you know SHOT Show has a concierge service? Traveler can help you with show tickets, tours, restaurant reservations and more.

This will be the last SHOT Blog post before the Christmas celebration. On behalf of everyone at NSSF, may all of you and yours have a safe and wonderful holiday. We look forward to seeing everyone in Las Vegas.

 

Diedra Cauley is the Director of Exhibitions and Conferences for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Follow her on Twitter at @dcauley.