International Exhibiting: Echelon at Mobile World Congress
Saturday I pack my bags and head for Barcelona for Mobile World Congress, where more than 50,000 key decision makers in mobile technology will be in attendance at the industry’s most influential show of the year. Echelon will be working in the App Planet located in hall 7 from 02/08 through then end of the show. I’ve been prepping for my trip for the past eight weeks but that has been largely inclusive of client work and it’s not until now that I’ve given serious consideration to what I need to do in order to be ready for my next experience in international exhibiting.
My last time out of the country was when I went to Essen, Germany for the international cutting and welding show and it’s that experience that I’ll draw on mostly as I gather my final thoughts for the trip to Spain. Five things to consider:
- No matter how confident you are it’s always more difficult than you think to get around in another country. Even your hotel can prove to be a challenge. The positive thing about Barcelona is that it’s located in Mediterranean country and the people are more than happy to help when greeted with courtesy. My goal. Be courteous.
- Don’t try to stay awake the first day I arrive. This time I tried to and it didn’t work out so well for me. I remember it was a beautiful day and I had found the best place to sit down and read but the exhaustion of my trip had caught up with me, and I kept re-reading the same lines over and over, and over again. Not this time. I’m going to sleep as soon and as much as I can when I checked into my room.
- Figure out the local train station as soon as possible. It’s just way too much money to hop a 5-10 min. cab ride when a $5 train ticket will do just fine.
- Research the local restaurant scene. It’s just too easy to fall into the bad habit of eating at the hotel. This would be especially true in Barcelona, a city that holds some of the most well reviewed restaurants in the world. Fine dining aside, there has to be a few gems there worth searching for.
- Skype whenever possible. No matter how hard you try to stay off your phone, those $2/min charges can add up quickly. Plus, Skype affords me the ability to see my wife and daughter in full color. Gotta love it.
These are just a few of the things running through my mind right now, but I’m more interested in hearing what you think. Let me know how you personally prep for international traveling and exhibiting. What am I missing?
Until the next time…
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1, 3, 4 and 5 are all valid…have to disagree with you on point 2 – not staying awake is the worst thing you can do! To get over jet-lag as fast as possible, you have to immediately start acting, thinking and eating in the local time zone! Use of an over-the-counter sleep aid for a few days also helps – Simply Sleep, Advil PM, etc.
I’ve travelled 6-10 times internationally each year for the past 14 years…jet-lag is one of those topics that I’ve had way too much experience with!
Have a wonderful trip!