During EXHIBITOR2014, the founder of Exhibit Surveys was named Legends Hall-of-Fame Honoree, according to Exhibitor Media Group, a provider of tradeshow and corporate event marketing education.
Accepting this achievement during EXHIBITOR Magazine’s inaugural Awards Night on Mar. 18, Richard “Dick” Swandby founded Exhibit Surveys in 1963 and pioneered exhibition research.
“Those first few years were a real struggle because many show managers didn’t want me around, nor did they want data about attendees,” said Swandby. “Of course, I’m very honored to receive this award, but if I’m a legend, it’s because of the small handful of show managers who took a risk and let me sample their registration cards to get the names and addresses needed so we could mail out questionnaires.”
“I was one of the lucky ones who had the privilege to befriend Dick during his grueling journey toward industry acceptance of research and measurement,” said Lee Knight, founder and owner, Exhibitor Media Group, and chief instigator, GRAVITY FREE: Multidisciplinary Design Conference. “His perseverance and significant contributions continue to benefit the industry to this day.”
“Exhibit performance standards didn’t exist until Dick Swandby invented the measurement criteria that event marketers still use today,” commented Randal Acker, president and chief operating officer, Exhibitor Media Group. “He alone led the validation of the entire industry by developing metrics like Net Buying Influences, Audience Interest Factors, Traffic Density, Exhibit Efficiency, and Cost-Per-Visitor Reached. Dick was the original thought-leader in our industry, and we are all profoundly grateful for his remarkable contributions.”
To view Swandby’s acceptance speech, visit http://vimeo.com/89572153.
