Every year about this time I go into a depression. No, I don’t have seasonal affective disorder. The source of my discontent is placing orders for the DMA Annual Conference. The prices for everything at the DMA show are through the roof. It’s agonizing to hit the submit button on these orders knowing full well it’s a complete rip-off. And there’s not much I can do about it because, in most cases, there is no viable alternative.
How much of a rip-off is the DMA show? Are all conferences like this?
As a hobby, I run a fishing reports web site called Hooked-in — which, by the way, is AWESOME!!! Anyway… in January, I rented a booth at the Yankee Sportsman’s Classic to show off the Hooked-in website. This experience gave me a good benchmark for comparison. Below is a chart comparing a modest setup at the DMA show to the Yankee Sportman’s Classic ("YSC"):
| DMA | YSC | diff % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Attendees | 12,000 | 15,000 | -20.0% |
| Number of Days | 3 | 3 | 0.0% |
| Number of Exhibit Hall Hours | 16.5 | 26 | -36.5% |
| Cost of 10′ x 10′ booth space | $3,995.00 | $475.00 | +741.1% |
| Space cost per exhibit hour | $242.12 | $18.27 | +1,225.3% |
| Electricity 120V/500 watt | $100.00 | $45.00 | +122.2% |
| Wifi Internet access | $595.00 | $19.95 | +2,882.5% |
| 8′ skirted table rental | $152.60 | $25.00 | +510.4% |
| Chair rental (each) | $143.85 | $1.00 | +14,285.0% |
$595 for 3 days of bad wifi access (256kbps – I did not know it came that slow)?! I can get worldwide wifi access for a whole year for less than that ($227.40 through Boingo). A "real" internet connection from the DMA show goes for $1,195 — clearly the economics of bandwidth have not reached the exhibit hall. $143.85 to borrow a soiled chair for 3 days? It’s cheaper to buy a new one. Compare that to $1 at the YSC. I’m sitting here shaking my head as I read this chart. Ridiculous isn’t it?
By the way, to be as fair as possible to the DMA, I used their "early-bird" rates in all cases. Otherwise, the comparison would have been worse.
Finally, I should mention that I continue to support the DMA, its initiatives, and am proud to be a member. I hope this criticism helps to bring about change that strengthens the organization and its membership.
Am I a curmudgeon by calling this out? I’ve been called a curmudgeon before. But it seems to me the DMA should make the show more affordable to vendors (and attendees). What’s your perspective on the cost to exhibit at the DMA conference?