IMEX America is a uniquely invigorating, professionally enriching experience. More than 17,000 event professionals from 80+ countries around the world will convene in Las Vegas from Oct. 13-15. At its core, it’s about connections: between people, solutions and event innovations. This happens with unmatched scale, abundance and energy you won’t find anywhere else.
Whether you’re attending IMEX America for the first or fifteenth time, a little planning can help you balance education, networking, inspiration and exploration without getting overwhelmed. Here are our Top 5 things to do and see while on-site, plus a guide to making the most of your IMEX experience.
#1: Scheduled vendor and hosted buyer meetings
More than 3,700 companies exhibit at IMEX. Veteran event organizers use these meetings to renew established partnerships and interview, research and book new vendors for the year(s) ahead. If you’re prepared and organized, you can do the same. Check our IMEX Survival Guide below for tips.
Plan international events? Apply to be a hosted buyer. Hosted buyers must schedule at least six to eight 30-minute meetings each day of IMEX in exchange for receiving free flights and accommodations.
#2: On-site education
IMEX’s value extends beyond the show floor. Leave time to sample its top-tier professional development offerings. In addition to providing relevant event-centric education, IMEX sessions often provide clock hours toward achieving or maintaining professional accreditations, like the CMP, HMCC, CICS, CICE and CSEP.
This year’s theme is Design Matters. Industry-leading associations MPI, ASAE and PCMA offer a full slate of executive, association and corporate event professional-specific education on Smart Monday, the day before IMEX opens.
Tuesday through Thursday, start your days with inspirational MPI-produced morning keynotes. Leave space in your schedule to catch in-booth sessions and IMEX-programmed education.
#3: Encore Education Hub
If you want education you can apply to your next event, check out the Encore Education Hub. Content focuses on practical takeaways, emerging industry trends and new perspectives on experience design, technology, sustainability and attendee engagement.
Sessions include:
- AI meets the show floor: How internet + AI are transforming events
- Before the first word: The creative strategy behind events that connect
- Connection is the goal. Here’s how you can get there.
- Design smarter, stress less: Three decisions that protect time, money and team energy
- Designing for connection: How breakouts create more meaningful event experiences
- Designing sustainable events that planners can actually deliver
- Unlock your design DNA: Behind the build with Encore
- What attendees really want: Three event strategies that increase connection, engagement and ROI
#4: Event Inspiration on the Show Floor
Leave time in your schedule to wander the show floor, where you’ll experience innovative experience design in action. Some of the industry’s best ideas come to life here through immersive activations and inventive booth design.
Fun fact: Several of the IMEX exhibits you’ll see were designed and built by Hargrove from Encore, including the ability to Unlock Your Design DNA in the Encore Design Lab. This immersive activation demonstrates how personalized experiences, event technology and data-driven insights improve both participant experiences and business outcomes. Be sure to add this experience to your IMEX agenda before your schedule fills up.
Another experience to add is the Hargrove Booth Crawl, where you’ll grab your roadie and a special swag surprise before we kick off the Hargrove Booth Crawl across the IMEX show floor.
Along the way, you’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into creating memorable exhibit experiences — from smart design choices and creative problem-solving to fabrication details you might otherwise walk right past. Places we’ll visit include:
- Destination DC #C4025
- Margaritaville #F952
- Omni Hotels #F616
- Peregrine #F840
- Visit Atlantic City #C3852
- Visit Oklahoma City #D3425
- Visit Pittsburgh #C4059
- Visit Seattle #D3653
#5: Parties!
Pack comfortable shoes and a couple of outfits that easily transition from day to night because after the meetings end, the fun begins. It isn’t unusual for event professionals to leave their hotel rooms at 7 a.m. and return well after midnight.
Invitations will start arriving well before your suitcase is packed, and you’ll probably gather two to three a day as you move from appointment to appointment. There are in-booth receptions during the exhibit hours, off-site networking dinners and fundraising events. Remember: You’re in Vegas! World-class entertainment, all-night buffets and roulette wheels could be part of your experience, too.
Don’t Forget to Pace Yourself!
If you’re not intentional about where you spend your time, the show will decide for you. That’s why we partnered with the founder of Amera Travel Consulting, Meg Sytnick, HMCC, MMP, to create the IMEX Survival Guide.
Sytnick’s first IMEX experience was in Frankfurt in 2012. She felt like a deer in headlights until new-found friends helped her navigate the experience. Over a decade of attending IMEX America and its European sibling, she’s developed a method of navigating the show with ease. This guide is her gift to anyone who wants to do the same.
