MT Magazine July/August 2025

IMTS

JULY/AUGUST 2025

21

Start With What’s Necessary A successful IMTS visit begins with a solid plan. With the show just over a year away, now is the time to prepare. Veteran attendees recommend the following strategies: • Target solutions for specific projects. • Assign team members to specific tasks and regroup daily. • Be a learn-it-all. Learn and listen to as many people as you can. • Use the Show Planner to schedule appointments, bookmark exhibitors, and organize collateral. • Ask about show specials. • Structure your time; be cognizant of walking time between locations. • Leave at least one unstructured day for unexpected discoveries; you don’t know what you don’t know, and you never know whom you will meet. • Actively network – answers often come from spontaneous conversations. • Seek intergenerational wisdom; if you’re 45 and want to find out what the next 20 years of your career could look like, talk to someone who is 65. • Treat the experience like a working vacation – join meetups, happy hours, and dinners. • Bring a large team – just one great solution can justify the trip.

Exhibitor Planning: Break Down the Impossible

For exhibitors, the scale of IMTS can seem daunting. To help, IMTS will host the Exhibitor Workshop on Jan. 27-29, 2026, at McCormick Place. The newly expanded three-day workshop includes tracks for marketing, operations, and executive leadership, a first-timers program, interactive sessions, roundtables, and expert-led discussions. Attendees gain insights from AMT staff, marketing professionals, and seasoned exhibitors eager to share their knowledge. Whether you’re attending or exhibiting, success at IMTS begins with taking that first step. Start planning today to achieve the impossible in 2026.

If you have any questions about this information, please contact Michelle at medmonson@IMTS.com.

START PLANNING TODAY

Jan. 27-29, 2026 | McCormick Place Convention Center