Home Stretch to HIMSS17! Show Tips for Success

With HIMSS17 less than a week away, show attendees are putting the final touches on their schedules. Both clients and our own Brittany Boyer are getting ready to board a plane to Orlando to live and breath interoperability, patient engagement, cybersecurity and other healthcare trends for a jam-packed four days. Our healthcare practice at InkHouse has been non-stop in preparation - speaking with top reporters and show organizers for the inside scoop, finalizing client press releases and securing booth-side briefings.

Overwhelmingly, respondents agreed on comfortable shoes! Xtelligent Media Editor and former Healthcare IT News Reporter Eric Wicklund shared:

"Running shoes. I've been to a decade's worth of HIMSS conferences and find that being able to move around quickly and easily is a necessity. Dress shoes don't work, either in the massive exhibit hall or in running from a first-floor education session to a third-floor keynote to a second-floor interview.

I used to think I'd look funny walking around HIMSS with running shoes, but I think the so-called dress code is waning (at least for footwear). Jeans and sweats might not be accepted just yet, but there is a certain amount of stylishness in looking comfortable and walking normally."

In addition to comfy footwear, Kathy Sucich, Senior Content and Communications Manager at Dimensional Insight said:

“I am going to HIMSS17 for 24 hours this year, with a jam-packed day of meetings. I am bringing with me my brand-new travel pillow, which I’ll need on the plane ride home after such a busy day!”

While comfort is key, here are a few more tips to keep in mind for a successful conference:

• Do your homework: If you haven’t checked out the conference agenda of speakers, education sessions and special sessions beforehand, be sure to do so. Put together a general schedule so you don’t miss an important keynote or scheduled meeting.
• Network: It’s easy to blow off networking events after being on your feet all day, but these are invaluable in making new connections and sharing experiences when not competing over the din of the trade show floor. 
• Listen: From a jam-packed schedule filled with back-to-back meetings to trying to capture the perfect quote to tweet during the keynote, we know it can be hard to stay focused and engaged. However, what you hear and learn at the show will shape what we can expect for the next year in the industry, so it’s important to take the time to really listen. In last year’s HIMSS blog series, Health IT Outcomes’ Editor John Oncea said that listening and asking questions was the best piece of advice he could give to first-time attendees.