One interesting thing you will notice when attending industry specific exhibitions is that they usually assume that you are from the same industry. Otherwise, why the hell are you there if it's not relevant to your business?
For different events, you will also notice that the people within the industry look very much alike in many aspects.
I was at a maritime exhibition and almost mistaken a person for an acquaintance I know.
Not only is the dressing alike, his behavior, gesture, size are also similar.
My ex-colleague who is now working for a satellite company was one of the exhibitor at the show. When we bumped into each other, we were both surprised why we were there.
I told her that I was there to learn and she asked what have I learned.
After walking the two halls spanning two levels, I discovered there were a lot of exhibitors giving out beers. And the Japanese were the most hardworking standing throughout the exhibition demonstrating and explaining their products and services.
Some other exhibitions attract people from diverse industries and you won't be surprised to find someone from a totally different industry visiting (think coffee, baby products, etc).
At the human resource exhibition, one thing that I noticed is that there are a few spaces all over the exhibition hall that serve coffee/tea, desserts and finger food during the break time.
Yes.
You guessed correctly.
There's FREE food.
And do you think the majority of visitors to the exhibition would be female or male?
Do women all like desserts?
It's kind of a good gesture as it saves visitors the need to go eat lunch halfway through the exhibition. While it may not be filling, at least visitors won't be hungry. They can get a quick bite and continue with the show without leaving the premise.
And who doesn't like to have something for FREE?
Those who were too busy? Those who can afford better quality? Those who are on diet? Those who do not want to be seen as "cheapo"?
Incidentally, I met my classmate from my secondary school days.
As usual, she asked me, "What are you doing here?"
To which I replied, "I'm here for the free food."
She rolled her eyes and gave me the five cents look.
That kind of sets me thinking.
Did she think that I'm joking because of her perception of me (a joker)? What if what I said was true? Is it so difficult to accept the truth because it's totally different from your perception?