RE: Did someone forget that the Northeast exists?

["Mike Cunningham" <MCUNNING@xxxxxxx>]

So, it sounds like the Northeast/MidAtlantic region is prime for a new
"conference city" that is affordable. Maybe I will talk to our
Mayor....
 
Yes, COMMON at Toronto was nice and I did attend that one and drove.
Same for when COMMON was in Baltimore. For me it's a 3 hour drive to any
major airport (usually to one of the cities I mentioned in my first
posting), if that was also the final destination it would be a lot
easier to arrange and justify to my employer.
 
I understand the economics for the conference organizers but it would
be nice if all three of the ones I referenced would spread themselves
out.  It may be that we pick the Boston conference as our yearly
destination.

> > > Jon.Paris@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx 10/24/2006 12:09 AM >>>

> > Seems like all the major iSeries conferences have forgotten about us
in
the Northeast ...

Well COMMON was in Toronto only a year ago ... Minneapolis after that.
Those are both in driving distance from most of the locations you
mention.
Chicago wasn't that long ago either.

NY, NJ, Boston have all pretty much priced themselves out of the market
and
travel is too horrific for anyone locally to want to go.  Same problem
in
some respects with conferences in LA - can't get the locals.

When I was working with RPG World we ran one conference in Chicago (did
OK)
and more recently in Cleveland (a total bust).  Whether one likes it or
not,
a fair percentage of likely attendees prefer to pick destination
cities.
That means Miami, San Diego, San Francisco, Orlando, and Vegas.  There
are a
few others but those are where you can guarantee an audience.  So if I
run a
conference in the Northeast and one in one of those cities - guess
which one
everyone will save their pennies for?

Couple of other points:

Vegas hotel rooms are typically cheaper than elsewhere - subsequently
any
difference in air fare is moot.  Frankly distance is not a huge
differentiator in air fares - I can quite often go from Toronto to LA
for
less than I can get to Chicago for example.  So unless you are in
driving
distance, location makes very little difference to the fares.

When we run the first of our new conferences next spring it will
almost
certainly be on the west coast, we may run one in the east in the fall
- but
even then there's no way NJ, NY or Boston will be on the list. 

Jon Paris
Partner400

www.Partner400.com 
www.SystemiDeveloper.com