Introducing a New Loyalty System for WAA Exhibitors
As we gear up towards launching conference registration on May 1, we are excited to announce a change in the way members who wish to exhibit at the conference will register, effective this year.
WAA 2022; image credit: Julie Vincent Photography
In years past, WAA used a seniority-based exhibitor “rank” system, whereby those who maintained their membership consistently and had the longest exhibitor history were prioritized in the registration process and registered first, in one of four exhibitor ranks. In 2021, we introduced a temporary COVID-era exhibiting policy, placing the rank system on hold; participation in the 2021 and 2022 conferences did not impact exhibitor standings for anyone, either way. Following the 2022 conference and in collaboration with our Conference Committee, Membership & Communications Committee, and Board of Directors, we really dug into the exhibitor rank concept, contemplating the following questions:
WAA 2022; image credit: Julie Vincent Photography
WAA 2022; image credit: Julie Vincent Photography
What are the benefits of exhibiting and who should have access to them?
To what extent does booth location in the exhibit hall matter to our members?
How much do the most established exhibitors benefit from receiving first access to the exhibit hall?
Who is being left behind in the current system?
We also looked carefully at the total number of “WAA regulars” and how many years they have been attending.
While some members participating in these conversations felt that booth location did not matter and that it was more important to simplify the registration process for everyone, others felt nearly opposite: exhibitors should be rewarded for their ongoing investment in WAA, and the only benefit that truly mattered was the ability to choose exhibit location preferences. However, everyone agreed that new members should have a positive registration and “onboarding” experience – and it was apparent that our rank system, which forced new members to register last (potentially after the exhibit hall was sold out) was not always conducive to that goal.
WAA 2022; image credit: Julie Vincent Photography
Working together, we found a way forward and developed some changes to our ranked exhibitor registration system — one that continues to honor our most loyal exhibitors while ensuring the conference registration process is fairer and more welcoming for everyone. Here’s what we came up with:
The New Exhibitor Loyalty Policy
The most notable change is that all exhibitors will now be eligible to register for the conference at the same time. None of our members will need to wait for an assigned registration window.
Exhibitors who have been with us for 15 years or more will, in effect, experience no change to the registration process; the 15+ group will be invited to select their exhibit type and location preference and will be placed in the exhibit hall first, by lottery.
All other exhibitors (0-14 years) will be placed in the exhibit hall after the 15+ group.
The 0-14 group will not choose their preferred exhibit location. Rather, they will select and purchase their preferred exhibit type (e.g., 8x8, café tabletop, bistro space) and will be placed in the hall via a single lottery. This system will be familiar to those who exhibited in Calgary last year.
The final change we are adopting is that we will no longer use the term “rank” to refer to exhibitors’ statuses. We appreciate and value every single one of our exhibitors and classifying attendees in terms that suggest importance no longer feels right to us. Not to mention, the word itself, “rank,” was regularly confused with “tier” (a word which correlates to our membership dues structure), so we will be glad to eliminate it from our WAA vocabulary!
Past exhibitors can expect an email with their exhibitor loyalty group in the coming weeks. Questions in the meantime? Please don’t hesitate to reach out.