Since we took ownership of Electrical Contracting News ( ECN ) in December 2015 , the publication has become a market leading title . We have not only improved and expanded ECN , already a very well established and respected title , but we have also introduced new publications into the industry in the shape of four supplements which cover in-depth key subjects that have gone down extremely well . We also completely re-built the ECN website and introduced a weekly industry newsletter , and there is more online activity to come , so watch this space . All of our websites are built in house and we also handle our own SEO . We don ’ t outsource any of this , keeping a daily check on effectiveness and continually improving their performance . However , when we were doing our due diligence in buying ECN , we were surprised that the market did not have a national exhibition given the size of the industry in the UK .
So , whilst we set about making ECN the magazine it is today and improving its online presence , we consulted the industry as to the need for a national show . Everybody I spoke to saw the need for a national exhibition to pull the whole industry together under one roof . Consequently , we approached the ECA who became the headline sponsor for the event .
This year ’ s exhibition was the very first ED & I . As a company , we are always very up-front and honest and clearly the show needs to improve in a few areas . Some exhibitors did have a good show , but clearly some did not . We felt all other aspects of the show performed well in terms of the show-floor , general organisation and logistics . However , we accept that the footfall was not what we and the exhibitors had planned for and wanted . We launched ED & I with a three-year plan and have already put in place measures to improve on this year ’ s expo .
We decided early on to launch a national show given the feedback from the industry , but not just to launch a national show , to invest in a three-year plan from a financial standpoint and to establish the show long term . So , for us this is a three-year journey .
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We aim to work very closely with the industry we serve , we listen to the industry and seek to improve the industry together . If the market grows , we all grow . |
If you know anything about exhibitions , making the first show successful is a challenge in any industry . If you ’ re serious about establishing an exhibition it must be a three or five-year plan , and we will continue with this plan .
If this industry is serious about supporting a national show to help drive development , knowledge and increase business , we do need to all pull together , join us on that journey and let ’ s grow the industry together .
Our mantra is basically this , if we as a company enter into any market , as we have in the electrical contracting market , we aim to work very closely with the industry we serve , we listen to the industry and seek to improve the industry together . If the market grows , we all grow .
I ’ m very passionate about what we do , and we will use the same approaches that have delivered success in the many other sectors that we work in to get ED & I where it needs to be .
I personally am available to meet with anybody in the industry to talk about any areas that we can improve on . Believe me , I don ’ t go into these things lightly , everything is thoroughly thought through and a plan put in place . We will continue with our investment and our three-year plan for the show , our experience in other industries , means we have seen these sorts of issues before and solved them .
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Our company also operates in the expanding home automation industry . We publish the leading magazine in that industry as well as awards evenings and the only national exhibition in the calendar in the shape if EI Live !
There is a slight sense of déjà vu here with the development curve EI Live ! has demonstrated . When we launched EI Live ! it was not the show it is today , it was smaller and had less footfall . These days however , it dominates the sector with a packed and exciting show floor , a seminar theatre populated by the best in the business , and a high-quality , high turn-out footfall profile . I see the same scenario playing out in the electrical industry . Rome was not built in a day as they say , but we are very confident we can make significant improvements for next year and the year after that . In particular we have specific plans to improve the footfall and we will be sharing these with you in the very near future . A very big thank you to everyone who supported the show . Rest assured , if we work together we can build the national show the industry needs and deserves .
ED & Headline Sponsor
IEXPO Electrical Design & Install Expo | NEC , Birmingham , 6 - 7 September 2017
Rest assured , if we work together we can build the national show the industry needs and deserves .
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40 | October 2017 |