With the SHRM Annual Conference less than 2 weeks away, I thought the timing was perfect to revisit this post from 2011 about the requests of vendors to meet.  There are only slight modifications to reflect that its 2016.  Note...Since I wrote this 5 years, not one vendor has taken me up on it.

In 12 days, I will be flying out to Washington, DC for the 2016 SHRM Annual Conference.  One of the rites of passage associated with registering and attending the conference is the bevy of mail you receive from vendors hoping to lure you to their booth to discuss the latest in HR technology, drug testing, relocation, etc.   Occasionally, they entice you with the promise of a certain geegaw that you can't find at any other booth.  It would not be uncommon to receive 13+ pieces of mail a day in the 3 weeks prior to the start of the conference.
However, the pitch has changed.......
...........................................................
In 2010, at the SHRM Annual Conference I had the opportunity to be part of the 1st "SHRM Blog Squad," where I had the opportunity to highlight many of the conference events.  You can read more details about it here.  Thanks to Curtis Midkiff (@shrmsocmedguy) and Jennifer Hughes (@SHRMPress), I will once again be able to share my feeble thoughts on the conference yet again.  However, because of my registration as a blogger for the conference, I have yet to receive a single piece of vendor mail.
However, I have been inundated with e-mails from vendors asking me to set up appointments to meet with their CEO or hear about their latest product, presumably as a pitch to feature him or her or the product in my blog.   In addition, I have receive numerous calls from these companies following up on their e-mails.
As a courtesy to these vendors, let me tell you about my credentials:
1.  I am an Associate Professor of Business Administration.
2.  In that role, I make approximately .1% of any decision affecting the human resources of our organization.,
3.  In the words of Lloyd Dobler, in "Say Anything:" "I don't want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don't want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, I don't want to do that"
So, I may be the wrong audience to target.
The one thing missing is a little WIIFM: What's In It For Me.  What do I get out of taking time out of my busy SHRM Conference schedule to hear your pitch and feature your product/service/CEO in my blog?  (One company who shall remain nameless did offer a "blogger gift bag;" if it anything like actors receive at the Oscars or college football players get when they attend a bowl game, count me in).

Which gives me an idea......
.......................................................................
In 2010, Morgan Spurlock released the movie "POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold:"
In the film, he sets out to finance the movie by getting advertisers to sponsor the film, which is essentially a movie about how advertising is polluting our lives and minds.




Given how many pitches I have received in the past couple weeks, I have decided to become a sell-out myself:
1. Sponsor my blog
If it worked for Morgan Spurlock, it can work for me.  I am more than willing to rename my blog, "(Your company name) presents: True Faith HR."  I'd be glad to include your company logo in every SHRM16 blog post I write.  I'd include your company name in every tweet I issue.  I'd even include pictures of myself in your company clothing line.  As my blog and tweets will likely reach thousands of eyes, what better way to get your name out there.
Just make me an offer.
2.  Draw my name at your booth for your "Grand Prize."
This will be my 16th SHRM Annual Conference in a row.  In my previous 15 years of attending the conference, I have yet to have my name drawn as the winner of a booth's grand prize.  You lure me in with the promise of an iPod, laptop, or GPS, yet each year I leave empty handed.  I remain firmly convinced it is due to the credentials listed above; if I am not likely to buy your product, why give me the prize. 
BUT.....now I have this blog.  Why give the prize to Donna in benefits from Boise, Idaho.  Draw my name instead.  You can be sure as all get out that I will be talking about my newApple Watch on this blog and I'll be giving your company all sorts of props here.   C'mon, what better way to make your company look magnanimous that giving this here blogger your prize?!?!?
So, vendors, what say you?   I'm not expensive....I'll take an Apple Watch, Amazon gift card, pound notes, loose change, bad checks, anything.   Do I have to come right flat out and tell you everything?




Serious inquiries only!

Most people are familiar with stories about a performer making outrageous demands in their contract, such as having only certain kinds of food and/or drink back stage.  The most famous of these stories involve Van Halen and removal of brown M&M's from the candy bowl.

According to the latest issue of Mental Floss magazine, there was a more practical reason for this request:

Far from a diva demand, the candy clause was a brilliant safety feature.  Van Halen shows required tons of gear that required specific fixtures to run safely.  One look at the M&Ms told the band's manager whether the venue had read the whole contract: Brown candy meant potentially deadly working conditions.

So, what's the lesson?  Check your assumptions.  Could the person you are working with truly be a diva?  Sure.  But, there might be some method to his or her madness....or you could be like Nigel Tufnel:

With the SHRM Annual Conference less than 2 weeks away, and sparked by this tweet from Ben Eubanks, I thought the timing was perfect to revisit this post from last year about the requests of vendors to meet.  There are only slight modifications to reflect that its 2012.

1963

In 11 days, I will be flying out to Las Vegas for the 2012 SHRM Annual Conference.  One of the rites of passage associated with registering and attending the conference is the bevy of mail you receive from vendors hoping to lure you to their booth to discuss the latest in HR technology, drug testing, relocation, etc.   Occasionally, they entice you with the promise of a certain geegaw that you can't find at any other booth.  It would not be uncommon to receive 13+ pieces of mail a day in the 3 weeks prior to the start of the conference.

However, the pitch has changed.......
...........................................................

In 2010, at the SHRM Annual Conference I had the opportunity to be part of the 1st "SHRM Blog Squad," where I had the opportunity to highlight many of the conference events.  You can read more details about it here.  Thanks to Curtis Midkiff (@shrmsocmedguy) and Jennifer Hughes (@SHRMPress), I will once again be able to share my feeble thoughts on the conference yet again.  However, because of my registration as a blogger for the conference, I have yet to receive a single piece of vendor mail.

However, I have been inundated with e-mails from vendors asking me to set up appointments to meet with their CEO or hear about their latest product, presumably as a pitch to feature him or her or the product in my blog. 

As a courtesy to these vendors, let me tell you about my credentials:
1.  I am an Associate Professor of Business Administration.
2.  In that role, I make approximately .1% of any decision affecting the human resources of our organization.
 3.  In the words of Lloyd Dobler, in "Say Anything:" "I don't want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don't want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, I don't want to do that"

So, I may be the wrong audience to target.

The one thing missing is a little WIIFM: What's In It For Me.  What do I get out of taking time out of my busy SHRM Conference schedule to hear your pitch and feature your product/service/CEO in my blog?  (One company who shall remain nameless did offer a "blogger gift bag;" if it anything like actors receive at the Oscars or college football players get when they attend a bowl game, count me in).


Which gives me an idea......
.......................................................................

In 2010, Morgan Spurlock released the movie "POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold:"

In the film, he sets out to finance the movie by getting advertisers to sponsor the film, which is essentially a movie about how advertising is polluting our lives and minds.

Given how many pitches I have received in the past couple weeks, I have decided to become a sell-out myself:

1. Sponsor my blog

If it worked for Morgan Spurlock, it can work for me.  I am more than willing to rename my blog, "(Your company name) presents: True Faith HR."  I'd be glad to include your company logo in every SHRM11 blog post I write.  I'd include your company name in every tweet I issue.  I'd even include pictures of myself in your company clothing line.  As my blog and tweets will likely reach thousands of eyes, what better way to get your name out there.

Just make me an offer.

2.  Draw my name at your booth for your "Grand Prize."

This will be my 12th SHRM Annual Conference in a row.  In my previous 11 years of attending the conference, I have yet to have my name drawn as the winner of a booth's grand prize.  You lure me in with the promise of an iPod, laptop, Coach purse, or GPS, yet each year I leave empty handed.  I remain firmly convinced it is due to the credentials listed above; if I am not likely to buy your product, why give me the prize.

BUT.....now I have this blog.  Why give the prize to Donna in benefits from Boise, Idaho.  Draw my name instead.  You can be sure as all get out that I will be talking about my new iPad 3 on this blog and I'll be giving your company all sorts of props here.   C'mon, what better way to make your company look magnanimous that giving this here blogger your prize?!?!?

So, vendors, what say you?   I'm not expensive....I'll take an iPad 3, Amazon gift card, Tom Toms, pound notes, loose change, bad checks, anything.   Do I have to come right flat out and tell you everything?


Serious inquiries only!

In 8 days, I will be flying out to Las Vegas for the 2011 SHRM Annual Conference.  One of the rites of passage associated with registering and attending the conference is the bevy of mail you receive from vendors hoping to lure you to their booth to discuss the latest in HR technology, drug testing, relocation, etc.   Occasionally, they entice you with the promise of a certain geegaw that you can't find at any other booth.  It would not be uncommon to receive 13+ pieces of mail a day in the 3 weeks prior to the start of the conference.

However, the pitch has changed.......
...........................................................

Last year, at the SHRM Annual Conference I had the opportunity to be part of the 1st "SHRM Blog Squad," where I had the opportunity to highlight many of the conference events.  You can read more details about it here.  Thanks to Curtis Midkiff (@shrmsocmedguy) and Jennifer Hughes (@SHRMPress), I will once again be able to share my feeble thoughts on the conference yet again.  However, because of my registration as a blogger for the conference, I have yet to receive a single piece of vendor mail.

However, I have been inundated with e-mails from vendors asking me to set up appointments to meet with their CEO or hear about their latest product, presumably as a pitch to feature him or her or the product in my blog.   In addition, I have receive numerous calls from these companies following up on their e-mails.

As a courtesy to these vendors, let me tell you about my credentials:
1.  I am an Associate Professor of Business Administration.
2.  In that role, I make approximately .1% of any decision affecting the human resources of our organization.,
3.  In the words of Lloyd Dobler, in "Say Anything:" "I don't want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career. I don't want to sell anything bought or processed, or buy anything sold or processed, or process anything sold, bought, or processed, or repair anything sold, bought, or processed. You know, as a career, I don't want to do that"

So, I may be the wrong audience to target.

The one thing missing is a little WIIFM: What's In It For Me.  What do I get out of taking time out of my busy SHRM Conference schedule to hear your pitch and feature your product/service/CEO in my blog?  (One company who shall remain nameless did offer a "blogger gift bag;" if it anything like actors receive at the Oscars or college football players get when they attend a bowl game, count me in).


Which gives me an idea......
.......................................................................

In 2010, Morgan Spurlock released the movie "POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold:"
In the film, he sets out to finance the movie by getting advertisers to sponsor the film, which is essentially a movie about how advertising is polluting our lives and minds.

Given how many pitches I have received in the past couple weeks, I have decided to become a sell-out myself:

1. Sponsor my blog

If it worked for Morgan Spurlock, it can work for me.  I am more than willing to rename my blog, "(Your company name) presents: True Faith HR."  I'd be glad to include your company logo in every SHRM11 blog post I write.  I'd include your company name in every tweet I issue.  I'd even include pictures of myself in your company clothing line.  As my blog and tweets will likely reach thousands of eyes, what better way to get your name out there.

Just make me an offer.

2.  Draw my name at your booth for your "Grand Prize."

This will be my 11th SHRM Annual Conference in a row.  In my previous 10 years of attending the conference, I have yet to have my name drawn as the winner of a booth's grand prize.  You lure me in with the promise of an iPod, laptop, or GPS, yet each year I leave empty handed.  I remain firmly convinced it is due to the credentials listed above; if I am not likely to buy your product, why give me the prize. 

BUT.....now I have this blog.  Why give the prize to Donna in benefits from Boise, Idaho.  Draw my name instead.  You can be sure as all get out that I will be talking about my new iPad 2 on this blog and I'll be giving your company all sorts of props here.   C'mon, what better way to make your company look magnanimous that giving this here blogger your prize?!?!?

So, vendors, what say you?   I'm not expensive....I'll take an iPad 2, Amazon gift card, Tom Toms, pound notes, loose change, bad checks, anything.   Do I have to come right flat out and tell you everything?

Serious inquiries only!

Two weeks from today, I will head to San Diego, for the SHRM 2010 Annual Conference & Exposition. Beyond the usual conference fanfare, I have attended the conference for a variety of reasons (serving on SHRM volunteer committees, serving as a judge for as well as having teams compete and win the SHRM HRGames national championship in 2003, winning a national award). This year, I have the honor of serving as one of the inaugural members of the SHRM Blog Squad, or as I like to call it, the "Blog Force Five." To paraphrase Tarantino..."Blog...as in we're a bunch of bloggers. Force, as we're a force to be reckoned with. Five, as in there's one...two..three...four...five of us."

The 2010 Blog Squad is:

1) David Bowles, Ph.D., co-author of Employee Morale: Driving Performance in Challenging Times and blogger at Morale at Work.

2) Jessica Miller-Merrell, SPHR, HR professional, television host of “Job Search Secrets,” author of Tweet This! Twitter for Business, and blogger at Blogging4Jobs.

3) Rachel Salley, SPHR, an HR consultant and blogger with Musings From the Career Anarchist.

4) Matthew Stollak, Ph.D., SPHR, assistant professor of business administration at St. Norbert College and blogger at True Faith HR.

5) April Dowling, SPHR, HR Generalist, active member of the Birmingham SHRM Chapter and blogger at PseudoHR.

In the spirit of Spinal Tap's noted auteur, Marty DiBergi, we hope to capture...the sights, the sounds...the smells....of the 2010 Annual SHRM Conference. We hope to get that...and a lot more. But, hey, enough of my yakkin'....

So, what do you all want to read about from the conference? What stories do you want to hear about? Here are some of the initial blog ideas I hope to bring you (and secure before my fellow blog squad members take them):

1. Behind the scenes of the student conference - Every Saturday, SHRM Student Programs puts on a mini-conference for students and student chapter advisors. Guest speakers include Alan Collins and Laurie Ruettimann. What went on behind the scenes? What does the Future of HR look like?
   
2. Attending the SHRM Annual Conference as a student. What does a student expect to capture from his or her attendance? What did he or she think about the experience? What did he or she think about the exhibit hall? Was he or she treated well by fellow HR professionals? Exhibitors?
   
3. The Exhibit Hall - what were the best and worst displays? What were the best and worst freebies? Will Monster.com once again bring the biggest menace to the exhibit hall experience...the rollerbag!?!?
4. Does any one really win at the exhibit hall? By now, many are receiving conference pamphlets from vendors requesting that they stop by a vendor's booth for a chance to win an iPod, Garmin, TomTom, iPad, gift card, etc. This will be my 10th SHRM Annual Conference, and int he previous 9 years I've won bupkus. Do people really win the prizes advertised?
5. The Monday night party scene - Monday night at SHRM Annual is usually the big vendor party night. Monster, CareerBuilder, HotJobs, Jobing, and others throw a big bash for attendees. I will try to give you the behind the scenes scoop and gossip from at least two of the events - The SHRM10 TweetUp and the Badger Bash (sponsored by the WISHRM state council).

6. The San Diego scene. I hope to go to the San Diego Zoo for the Panda Watch as well as Tino's to drink three fingers of Glenlivet with a little bit of pepper and some cheese, and catch Ron Burgundy on the yazz flute.

7. Hall & Oates...Really? As the three readers of my blog know, I was not a fan of this option and blogged about it here. I hope to interview those perpetrators responsible and find out how SHRM actually chooses the Tuesday night entertainment, and what can be done to bring an artist that is actually relevant in the 21st century.

What do you want to read about?