Wallace Hardware’s First-Ever Online Pre-Show for “Hanging of the Green” Dealer Market is a Virtual Success

MORRISTOWN, Tenn.—The new and exciting virtual show preview offered attendees an innovative and convenient way to shop and place orders for products in advance of the Nov. 28-30, 2006, physical show. The online pre-show was a literal “foot saver” for buyers, who didn’t have to spend time on their feet shopping booth to booth. Instead they shopped online using their Internet-connected computers before the show began to view exhibitors’ products while sitting comfortably in their homes or offices.

By extending our physical event onto the Internet, attendees were allowed the opportunity to do the lion’s share of their work prior to the show. By finishing their research and purchasing before the event, attendees were able to spend more time networking, visiting other vendor booths and attending educational seminars.

When the pre-show participants arrived at Wallace’s physical “Hanging of the Green” Fall Dealer Market show in Gatlinburg, Tenn., the virtual trade show attendees were a step ahead of the game and simply confirmed their online orders and received double “show bucks” as a reward for using the Internet-based preview show.

“Our first online event was a huge success,” said Mark Huegel, Director of Retail Systems at Wallace Hardware. “We are leading the hardware industry into the future by taking the first steps to initiate the development of the electronic business segment, through tactics such as the virtual trade show.”

According to InXpo CEO Malcolm Lotzof, Wallace Hardware’s online pre-show continues to validate the benefits realized by the many distributors already using InXpo’s technology. “In Wallace Hardware’s case, the online order-entry technology implemented by InXpo offered real-time purchase tracking capabilities and eliminated the need for cumbersome printed catalogs,” said Lotzof.

In addition to the “Online Pre-Market Booking Program Show”, Wallace Hardware will be holding three additional online trade shows through producer InXpo in 2007.

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Wallace Hardware Company, Inc., based in Morristown, Tenn., is a wholesale distributor of hardware, lumber and building materials, and farm supplies. Wallace Hardware joined the PRO Group in 1964 and currently markets the PRO Hardware, FARM MART and GOLDEN-LINK programs to more than 2,000 retailers. Wallace Hardware Company serves retailers in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.

InXpo is the leader in producing online shows, including trade shows, selling events, educational seminars, networking conferences and conventions. InXpo is headquartered in Bannockburn, Ill., and has been producing online trade shows for more than five years. InXpo’s online shows improve the way organizations use events to do business by making it more affordable and convenient to participate. InXpo’s online show solution includes all the technology and services that are required to deliver a successful online show. To learn more about InXpo, please visit www.inxpo.com.