October 2020 - 23

GREAT LAKES EXPO
A virtual experience for the 2020 Great Lakes EXPO
" Our flexibility of options will be
Due to COVID-19, many trade shows
and businesses have been forced to
alter their plans and events for the 2020
calendar year. For the first time ever, the
Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable & Farm
Market EXPO will be transitioning to a
virtual EXPO for 2020, including virtual
booths, educational sessions and more.
Although there won't be any in-person
events, the virtual 2020 Great Lakes
EXPO, which will still take place on the
originally scheduled dates of Dec. 8-10,
will allow attendees and exhibitors alike
the unique opportunity of interacting
and engaging with speakers, vendors and
other growers - all from the comfort and
safety of their own home.
How it works
Attendees will be sent a link to the
virtual Great Lakes EXPO platform, which
will take them to a lobby. From there,
attendees will be able to choose between
entering educational sessions or the trade
show floor, among other options.
When attendees enter the virtual " trade
show floor, " they will be presented with a
categorized list of exhibitors. From there,
attendees will be able to navigate between
exhibitors and visit their individual
" booths. "
For exhibitors, virtual booths will have
a similar look and feel to those you see
when physically walking a trade show
floor. Despite the virtual elements, each
exhibitor will start with a " blank booth, "
which will allow the vendor to make the
space their own with custom signage and
company information. Attendees will be
able to connect with the exhibitors, ask
questions and digitally take copies of any
documentation the exhibitor provides.
Ben Smith, the executive secretary
of the Michigan State Horticultural
Society and EXPO board member, said
that the shift to virtual will not only
keep attendees and exhibitors safe and
healthy, but will also still provide valuable
networking opportunities.
" A few of the benefits of holding a virtual
EXPO this year are the ability to stay safe
and healthy while attending sessions or
'walking' the trade show floor, " Smith said.
" Vendors and attendees will be able to
network while not having to worry about
maintaining social distancing, wearing a
mask or regularly using hand sanitizer. "
Educational sessions
A signature of the Great Lakes EXPO,
the virtual EXPO will still feature plenty
of keynote and educational sessions.
Attendees will not only be able to still
attend educational sessions, but the
virtual options offer more flexibility with
the amount of sessions attendees can
attend at any given time.
VGN | OCTOBER 2020 | 11
the best ever this year because of (the
virtual capabilities), " Smith said. " Some
educational sessions will be live and
some will be pre-recorded, but all will
offer the ability to ask questions of the
presenter. The educational schedule will
be expanded to cover more time during
the day. This will allow attendees to
attend more sessions than they normally
would. Attendees will also be able to earn
pesticide recertification credits on the
sessions that offer them. "
Aside from the flexibility and health
and safety benefits, shifting the 2020
EXPO to a virtual platform also means
that the educational sessions will have a
wider variety of content and speakers. In
addition, the virtual platform allows
organizers to host individual Q&A sessions
separate from scheduled educational
sessions. This will offer significant one-onone
time or small group Q&A with our
speakers and researchers.
" One benefit of a virtual EXPO will be the
ability of Michigan State University (MSU)
to contribute presentations and interact with
the attendees in online educational sessions, "
Daniel Brainard of the MSU Horticulture
Department said. " Under present MSU
regulations, staff could not attend an inperson
event like the EXPO. "
" We are working to virtually bring
in other expert speakers from distant
locations who otherwise would be unable
to travel to Michigan in December, "
said Gregory Lang, also of the MSU
Horticulture Department.
For more information on the virtual
2020 Great Lakes EXPO, registration and
educational session details and more, visit
www.glexpo.com. VGN
http://www.glexpo.com
October 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of October 2020
