What Keeps People in the Trade Show Industry for Life with Bobby Diehl
One in three people in the trade show industry is new to it in the last five years, so if you're just getting started, you're in good company. Bobby Diehl came up in it as a second-generation pro, and his advice for breaking in is refreshingly simple.
Come in eyes wide open. Ask questions, connect with as many people as you can, and never stop learning. The work rewards curiosity and soft skills more than hard ones, and mistakes are just learning opportunities. As Bobby tells his team, until you make a half-million-and-one-dollar mistake, he can't be mad.
Where else can you get in front of 20,000 to 40,000 buyers in three days? Chris Griffin lays out why trade shows are one of the highest-ROI moves a small company can make. It's the one place you can meet new prospects and reconnect with existing clients, demo your product, and make live sales all at once.
It doesn't happen by accident, though. Prior planning prevents poor performance. Trade shows are where the rubber meets the road, and the value comes down to the connections you make there.
Starting out in the trade show industry and not sure where to land? Bobby Diehl says look for an employer who's willing to listen and welcomes your questions. If it feels like a partnership rather than a do-this-because-I-said-so environment, that's a good sign.
Khalil adds a practical lens. Find people who share your values, understand how the role was shaped, and know that a smaller company will stretch you across more hats while a bigger one narrows the focus. Match the size to the experience you want.
Think trade shows are only for one type of person? Bobby Diehl's pen analogy says otherwise. One person made the cap, another brought the ink, another made the top, and together they make a pen. The industry runs on the sum total of graphics, hardware, flooring, labor, and shipping working as one. Whatever your strength, tech, organization, or people, there's a niche for you.
Want to get ahead in the trade show industry? Bobby Diehl says start with an employer who listens and treats you like a partner, not a boss who just hands down orders. From there, the people who go far aren't the doers waiting to be told what to do. They're the creative thinkers, the problem solvers, and the connection makers.
Ask very successful people what makes them happy and it's rarely the money. Bobby Diehl says the same is true of trade shows. The lasting value isn't the top-line dollar, it's the connections. Like compound interest, the relationships you build on the show floor keep paying forward, because you can only tell a great story with people.
There are over 10,000 trade shows a year in the US, and in 2025 alone they sparked $168 billion in business-to-business sales from encounters on the show floor. Yet one in three people working in the industry is new to it in the last five years, and most young people have never heard of it as a viable career. Chris talks with Bobby Diehl, Director of Operations at Genesis Exhibits and a second-generation industry pro who grew up setting up exhibit units at his own birthday parties. They get into how to break in, what the work actually rewards (curiosity and connections over hard skills), why there's never a dull moment, and the wow moments along the way, from an Andy Warhol at JP Morgan to the first-ever soccer match on the grounds of the United Nations. The headline Chris didn't expect is that the real value of trade shows is bigger than the numbers. It's the people. The industry supports families, builds lifelong friendships even among competitors, and rallies around its own when someone needs a hand. If you're weighing a career change or just curious what this world is really like, Bobby makes a compelling case for coming in eyes wide open.
- Why one in three industry pros is new, and how to break in with no experience
- What the work actually rewards: curiosity, soft skills, and connections over hard skills
- Why trade shows deliver unmatched ROI for small companies
- How to choose an employer that fits the way you work
- Why the real value of the industry is the people, not the numbers
“The beauty of it is there's something for everybody.”
— Bobby, on how the industry has a role for every kind of person“It's not what happens, it's when something happens, and how you handle it.”
— Bobby, on handling mistakes and problems on the show floor“We're not just product sellers. We're story creators.”
— Bobby“You realize what we do is we help the world trade.”
— Chris“Ask very successful people what makes them happy, it's not money. It's about connection.”
— Bobby- The industry has something for everybody. Whether your strength is tech, organization, or people, there's a lane, from AV to project management to sales. As Bobby puts it with his pen analogy, no one makes it alone. You're a puzzle solver working alongside graphics, hardware, flooring, labor, and shipping partners.
- Come in eyes wide open and never stop asking questions. Bobby prepared by listening, learning by osmosis from his father and industry peers, and connecting with as many people as he could. With one in three pros new in the last five years, curiosity and energy matter more than a perfect résumé.
- Mistakes are part of the job. What counts is how you respond. "Until you make a half-million-and-one-dollar mistake, I can't be mad." On the show floor in the 11th hour, the skill is solving the problem, not avoiding the position.
- Soft skills and connections beat hard skills. The people who go far are the creative thinkers, problem solvers, and connection makers. The bigger your Rolodex, the better off you are when you need a favor in a strange city.
- Trade shows deliver unmatched ROI. Where else can you get in front of 20,000 to 40,000 buyers in three days and fill a year of sales pipeline? It doesn't happen by accident, though. Prior planning prevents poor performance.
- There's never a dull moment. A typical week spans sales, service, project management, accounting, and client relationships. If your current job has gone stale, this is an industry where you're never going to be bored.
- The real value is people. Beyond the numbers, the industry supports families, builds lifelong friendships even among competitors, and comes together when someone is in need. As Bobby says, it's not about top-line dollars. It's about connection.
- Choose an employer who listens. Look for a boss who welcomes questions and treats you like a partner. Company size shapes the role, since smaller shops stretch you across more hats. Understand the culture, the values, and what success looks like before you say yes.