REALTORS® Expo Makes TSNN Top 250 List

Did you know that about 6,000 trade shows took place in the US last year? And that the REALTORS® Expo was ranked #205 on the Trade Show News Network's (TSNN) 2012 Top 250 Trade Show list?

The annual Top 250 list is based on data from trade show managers and ranks shows in terms of the portion of exhibit hall space actually occupied by exhibitors. The 2012 REALTORS® Expo had 356 exhibitors in 89,056 square feet, placing the event in the top 4% of trade shows by size.

Will this year’s expo surpass its 2012 ranking? Survey says: yes! The 2013 REALTORS® Conference & Expo is expected to exceed last year's event in terms of attendance; NAR is expecting to attract 22,000 attendees from more than 50 countries.

Click here to view the 2012 Top 250 Trade Show list.

San Francisco on My Mind!

I am a gadget geek and a lover of most things tech. Preparing for a conference usually includes a new purchase to make my travels easier. As I reflect on what worked in DC during the Midyear Meetings and look forward to what I will be packing to take to the REALTORS® Conference & Expo in San Francisco, I thought I would share my mobile office contents with you.

For the Midyear Meetings, the new addition to my iPile (that’s the name my 9-year-old has given my growing stash of Apple products) was an iPad mini. The mini was perfect in every way. It was much lighter and smaller than my iPad 2, and it fit right in my purse and was easy to pull out at meetings for notes.

I had hoped to do more blogging for Midyear Live while I was in DC, but time got away from me, as I was invited to meetings and other events that were not on my agenda when I left home. (Met the Michigan senators!) But on the flight home, I whipped out my Logitech Bluetooth® Keyboard, and paired it with the iPad mini to whip out a couple of posts about my wonderful trip to DC. Even though I bought the keyboard to go with my iPad 2, it works fine with the mini, it just doesn’t act as a case like it would otherwise. I bought the keyboard for the REALTORS® Conference & Expo in Orlando, and it was my first conference without lugging along a laptop. I will never carry a laptop anywhere again.

And as every REALTOR® knows, running out of charge for your cell phone can cause convulsions. In Orlando, none of the charging stations were ready for the lightning adapter I had on my brand new iPhone 5. Yes, that was my Orlando conference preparedness acquisition. Like many of you, my phone logs some serious battery usage, and I can drain it down before lunch. Before I left for my last vacation, I bought the Photive Portable Battery Charger. It’s another winner and will be with me in San Francisco. It was great to know that I didn’t need to be near a wall outlet during sessions, and I didn’t have to trust that my phone would be safe somewhere during the day while I left it behind to get a charge.

Last but not least, every iPad needs a case. The one I chose for my new mini was this i-Blason. Dig the colors, like the leather, the auto shut off magnet and the stylus holder. Not totally in love with the level of protection it provides or the angles it offers as a stand. but for the money, it’s quite good.

Tech changes rapidly, so I am sure I will come up with something new I need for the REALTORS® Conference & Expo, but everything I packed for the Midyear Meetings has a very good chance of making the next trip. See you in November!

Why book your hotel through us?

We know you have a lot of options for where to stay during your trip to the REALTORS® Conference & Expo. This year NAR has reserved room blocks at 22 area hotels just for our attendees – with options ranging from trendy boutiques to historic properties to modern big-name hotels. All official NAR hotels are located within eight blocks or less from the Moscone Center.

Here are five good reasons to book your hotel room through us when you register for the event:

• We make it easy – just reserve your hotel room during the online registration process. Deposits will be taken from your credit card closer to the event date. If you don’t see your desired hotel available, you can request to be placed on a waiting list for that location.
• NAR’s room rates are guaranteed by the hotels to be the lowest rates offered during the conference dates.
• Booking within the NAR room block offers certain protections and guarantees should the hotel become overbooked during the conference.
• Free shuttle bus transportation is provided to the Moscone Center from most hotels. That means door-to-door drop off service for free. (This year’s exceptions to the shuttle bus schedule are the InterContinental San Francisco and the W San Francisco hotels, which are both just half a block from the convention center).
• Staying at an NAR hotel gives you the ability to network with fellow REALTORS®. You never know who you’ll meet in the hotel lounge or lobby!