What's the point of a stunning trade show booth if nobody inside it knows why they're there? Casey Smalley, Director of Global Events at Avetta, joins Matt Kleinrock to make the case that the smartest line in your event budget isn't the build. It's the briefing. In this episode: ✅ Why treating booth staffing as a "scheduling exercise" quietly costs you pipeline, not just optics ✅ The one trait that separates a floor-ready team member from a liability (it has nothing to do with produ...
Jul 15
32 min
Too many events still rely on the same booths, the same activations, and the same “safe” playbook. The result: experiences people walk past, forget, or never meaningfully engage with in the first place. Ashley Nuske, Director of Field & Event Marketing at Goldcast (now Cvent), joins Matt Kleinrock for a candid conversation about what’s broken in event marketing today and why safe strategies rarely produce standout results. Ashley shares how she approaches audience-firs...
Jul 1
44 min
Are you heading into fall events the same way you did last year? Same booth, same playbook, same hope that something sticks? Most event marketers aren't lazy. They're just busy. And busy has a way of turning strategy into autopilot. That gap between teams who show up and teams who show up READY starts forming right now, in summer. As part of The Summer Circuit, we're dropping a special compilation episode where host Matt Kleinrock shares the unfiltered advice he'd give any event marketer pr...
Jun 24
10 min
Your booth traffic looked good. Badge scans were high. Leadership wants ROI numbers. But none of that fully explains whether your event actually moved deals forward. In this episode, Matt talks with Cynthia Montalvo (Regional Field Marketing Manager at Steno) about the growing gap between event metrics and actual event influence. Cynthia, an event strategist known for pushing teams beyond surface-level reporting, explains why signals like stakeholder expansion, deeper conversati...
Jun 17
26 min
Most event teams are still measuring trade shows by booth traffic, badge scans, and “good vibes.” But when budgets tighten and leadership wants answers, those metrics stop meaning much. Bethany Gustafson leads events at ACTIVE Network, where her team manages everything from small pop-up trade shows to large-scale flagship exhibits across multiple markets and products. In this episode, she joins Matt Kleinrock to break down what it actually takes to run a high-volume event progr...
Jun 3
46 min
Most trade show booths are still being designed for the render. Not the person walking a crowded aisle deciding in seconds whether your booth is worth their attention. Recorded live from EXHIBITORLIVE 2026, Matt Kleinrock and Coty Adams break down what they’re noticing on the show floor right now: bigger structures, tighter aisles, shorter attention spans, and event teams trying to balance nonstop execution with pressure to deliver better ROI. ✅ Why some of the “best-looking” booths still f...
May 20
14 min
Everyone wants better event ROI, but most event marketers are navigating a frustrating reality: they are expected to think strategically while being buried in execution. In this episode, Matt and Coty break down their EXHIBITORLIVE experience as a live case study in what it looks like when an event is planned more intentionally from end to end. From pre-show planning and alignment to on-site engagement and post-event momentum, they walk through how thinking about events as a full campaign—n...
May 6
45 min
A great dinner or VIP experience means nothing if it doesn’t lead to a meaningful conversation. In this episode, Stephanie Hunicke (Director of Global Marketing Events at Aderant) breaks down how to design bespoke events that prioritize relationships and real business outcomes from the start. You’ll learn: ✅ Why depth beats scale when it comes to executive events ✅ How to align purpose, people, and experience to drive real outcomes ✅ What most teams get wrong about VIP dinners, roa...
Apr 15
24 min
Most trade show booths fail for one simple reason: they’re built to be seen, not experienced. In this conversation, Matt breaks down why the old playbook no longer works and what actually drives pipeline today. Learn: ✅ Why “show up and pitch” is killing engagement and what to replace it with ✅ How pre-show and post-show strategy often matter more than the booth itself ✅ What it really takes to turn events from a cost center into a revenue driver In this guest appearance on the Behind th...
Apr 8
42 min
How do you know if the event agency you hired is actually a strategic partner? Or just a middleman? Choosing the right agency partner can shape the success of an entire event program, yet many teams still rely on RFP processes that miss what truly matters. In this episode, Matt Kleinrock sits down with event strategist and fractional Head of Events Gianna Gaudini to unpack how organizations should rethink agency selection from the start. Together, they explore how event leaders can ru...
Apr 1
45 min
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