Hempstead, NY - March 1, 2016 - The Long Island Business Expo is set to make its auspicious debut on April 21 at Hofstra University in Hempstead, offering the competitive Long Island professional scene an event that’s sure to give them the tools and information to succeed like never before.
The Long Island Business Expo is an offshoot of the New York Business Expo, which is held annually at the Jacob Javits Center in Manhattan. What the two events have in common – besides their support of the local business community – is the expertise and know-how of Event Management LLC President Marc P. Sherer, who runs them both. Sherer, who founded the New York Business Expo in 2006, said that it’s high time that Long Island had an equivalent event to address its exciting professional landscape as well.
“We are very excited by the interest expressed to bring this type of education-driven event to Long Island,” he said. “The new Long Island Business Expo, working in partnership with the LIA, will present 30 individual sessions, including Keynotes, open-air discussion, and breakout meetings, customized by our national, regional and local educators specifically toward ways to build better, more dynamic and forward leaning businesses.”
Citing the unique qualities that the New York Business Expo has been offering attendees since 2006 that are looking to up their professional game, Sherer said that the sheer amount of resources offered at that event – and, as of April 21, at their new Long Island event at Hofstra University as well – are what set them apart from any and all other business Expos.
“What makes the New York Business Expo (and its newer sister event Market New York Expo) different is the nature and volume of content provided to our audience in one day,” he said. “Our events are built on delivering clear “take-away” value though our education. Our attendees are encouraged to attend one or as many of the scheduled learning opportunities and seek the best strategies that meet the challenges of running and growing their unique businesses.”
Event Management LLC President Marc P. Sherer.
Sherer has a long career in event production; he notes the day that he took his professional life in this direction, as that period was highlighted by an equal (or, perhaps more) significant event in his personal life as well.
“I began my work in event production in 1990…easy to remember as it was just a year before Sheila agreed to be my wife,” he said. “We started out working with the New Haven Chamber on a Southern CT Business Show…this was a great event until we lost its home, with the demolition of the old New Haven Coliseum in mid-2007. The success of this first b2b show brought an opportunity for growth and we began producing a new event, the Connecticut Business Expo in 2005. Within three years we were not only the largest b2b show in the northeast, we were selected to be the opening event for the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford.”
Sherer soon realized that the lessons he was leaning about the Connecticut business arena could easily be applied elsewhere; it was then that he began entertaining thoughts of expansion of the Expo concept into other markets.
“It was clear to us there was nothing geographically unique about the demographics of the small business market of Connecticut, that our model had the ability to travel and the most logical next event was set to be in New York City, surprisingly lacking at that time, this type of event,” he said. “Since 2006 we have been proud to produce the New York Business Expo & Conference at the Jacob Javits Center in Manhattan. The event has served over 100k attendees and hosted well over 300 educational sessions on its way.”
The New York Business Expo has attracked business owners from across the city for over a decade.
The Long Island Business Expo offers a variety of support and information for the professional community of Long Island; particularly with the nation’s current economic climate still being shaky, the Expo is something that just about anyone looking to run a successful company could use to take their efforts to the next level.
“We are proud to be working with LongIsland.com as well as federal, state and regional economic development agencies. We partner with associations, and chambers of commerce as well, tasked with finding and solving the needs of the region’s business community,” he said. “We know that the challenges that are faced are not usually solved in Washington and that true economic development happens on the local level. The show’s goal is to provide the most current proven strategies for success at this local level. Our speakers and Keynotes come from backgrounds of proven success and can translate that success to our audience.”
Sherer noted that the Long Island Business Expo targets business owners of all different industries who are passionate about growing their businesses, operating at peak efficiency, and staying current with best practices.
“We have found that most business owners either have trouble making the time or don’t know where to begin to make sense of the new opportunities presented by the many changes in how business gets done… new strategies in sales, marketing and overall business growth fundamentals,” he said. “This is what the Long Island Business Expo is built to do – show our attendees best practices for real business growth. The show offers world class education for the small business owners and key decision makers. We couple this content with world-renowned Keynotes, interactive show floor features, one-on-one counseling and really fun networking. Our 11-year New York Business Expo & Conference has become the largest b2b show on the East Coast using this formula and we are excited to bring it to Long Island!”
An educational seminar at the New York Business Expo.
Hofstra University is an ideal location for the Long Island Business Expo’s debut, Sherer said, and that the accommodations have more than met his needs and expectations.
“We like a lot about Hofstra University for this event, especially its location, facility flexibility, parking, and size,” he said. “We are going to be able to hold the many educational sessions and co-locate the 160 exhibitors all in one place. And, as our show is built on presenting the best SMB education, where better than on a campus of higher learning?”
Sherer said that he has learned many lessons from running the NY Business Expo all these years; lessons that he plans on applying them to the Long Island Business Expo while also taking into account Long Island’s unique business landscape.
“All businesses are similar in their needs to develop their unique offerings, ability to tell their story, to promote and generate interest from their most likely customers and to increase the sales that will fuel their growth,” he said. “Small businesses don’t have the luxury of large exploratory marketing budgets to test and re-retest marketing strategies. The good news is that there are new, less expensive ways to find and be found by new potential customers that can actually be way less expensive and certainly more effective than old school shotgun marketing efforts. Education is key.”
An educational seminar at the New York Business Expo.
With the Long Island Business Expo set to continue the success that started with its Manhattan-based parent event, Sherer is already making plans for next year’s edition, and hopes to incorporate new events and programming to make it an even more effective tool for Long Islanders to benefit from.
“We are looking to continue the offerings of the Long Island Business Expo beyond April 21,” he said. “This will be an incredible start, but the transformative nature of SMB strategy, especially in the digital age, demands an ongoing commitment, patience and consistent effort from businesses in order to stay current with best practices and emerging technology. Working with our partners, we hope to continue these discussions moving forward.”
Sherer said that it’s been an amazing ride to be such a vital part of the New York business community all these years, and is looking forward to expanding that influence and assistance into the Long Island business region starting this April 21 at Hofstra University.
“It feels like there is a need for real, non-commercial education for the SMB business that has largely gone untapped,” he said. “In our small way, we have been very proud to provide some of this needed content to those that can use it most, in informative, engaging, and fun ways.”
Anyone at all interested in the full extent of the Long Island Business Expo’s offerings should visit the official show website at BusinessExpoLI.com, where they will not only be able to view the schedule of events but a listing of the event partners.
