VIRTUAL TRADE SHOW we are eager to share with customers and the broader industry. Golf course management is a great industry to support and to be a part of, and GIS is the premiere show. It will be interesting to see it come to life in a whole new way in 2021.” Showstoppers The virtual trade show will offer attendees the opportunity to connect and interact with exhibitors much like they would at an in-person event. This photo was taken at the 2020 Golf Industry Show in Orlando. Photo by Montana Pritchard tendents and industry partners in person and will certainly miss that, we are excited about the fact that the virtual platform opens the show to a broader audience who otherwise may not have been able to experience it due to the associated travel costs. e online plat-form also allows people to enjoy the show — or at least many aspects of it — at their own pace based on a schedule that works for them, which is exceptionally convenient. “As a marketer, I’m also intrigued with the creative possibilities that a digital envi-ronment aff ords when it comes to sharing in-formation on new products and solutions in a fun and engaging way. And Bayer defi nitely has some exciting things in the works that And, yes, exhibitors will continue to pro-vide goodies — staples of in-person trade show experiences — that attendees will be able to get their hands on. Syngenta, for ex-ample, is asking superintendents to share their positive turf perspectives for a chance to win one of seven Solo Stoves. “We are com-mitted to making GIS more engaging than, ‘Hey, we have three new products that we launched.’ So, we’re doing some things diff er-ent,” LaFleur says. “One thing I remember as someone who grew up in the 1970s into the ’80s is, ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ (which, in LaFleur’s youth, featured game books that placed read-ers in a role that called for them to make choices that determined actions and out-comes). We’re creating an interactive Choose Your Own Adventure video where you can pick from one of fi ve diff erent diseases to learn how to best prevent them. You can then learn how you’d control diseases diff erently from preventive to curative. Superintendents will be able to select diff erent tools to learn more about them along the way.” A virtual GIS intrigues at least one of GCSAA’s past presidents. He cannot wait to dive right in — and he hopes others will join him. “I think it is absolutely wonderful GCSAA has come up with something for the show. I’ll try it,” says Gerald Faubel, CGCS Retired, a 55-year association member who served GCSAA as its president in 1990. “GCSAA has been very innovative. It makes you proud of the association.” Howard Richman (hrichman@gcsaa.org) is GCM ’s asso-ciate editor. 86 GCM • gcmonline.com 01.21
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