Government-mandated shutdowns and stay-at-home orders brought the event industry – the lifeblood of many distributors – to a grinding halt. While some clients canceled promotional products orders altogether, others put their purchases on hold until further notice.

The good news? After months of merchandise collecting dust while sitting in abandoned factories and offices, there appears to be light at the end of the tunnel. As some states reopen and restrictions are loosened, distributors are hopeful that the event business will slowly come back. “Sports will be the first live events to come back,” says Javier Melendez, account executive at Fiskdale, MA-based All Star Incentive Marketing (asi/117110). “NASCAR already has some fans back in seats, although it’s a tiny crowd compared to what they’re used to.”

There will be limited capacity at any event for the foreseeable future, according to Chance Castellucio, EVP of sales at Park City, UT-based PromoLeaf (asi/300534). “I have customers who are carrying out wedding ceremonies in smaller, close family gatherings and then having a larger reception where at-risk individuals have the choice to not attend if they don’t feel comfortable,” Castellucio says.

As for widespread trade shows and conferences, Melendez expects them to return in 2021, under new guidelines. “Venues are going to require limited capacity or for you to rent more of the venue than you usually need to,” he says. “Also, forget the touch and feel of samples like apparel, which is a huge reason people go to shows. Unless each booth is giving out sanitizer, and the reps are sanitizing the items every time someone grabs it, I don’t see sampling happening.” However, he adds, there will be new opportunities at events with items like signage and floor markers, sneeze guards for registration booths, PPE swag bags and stylus pens. “Even a selfie stick, because you can’t get that group photo easily when you’re all six feet apart,” offers Melendez.

Trending Down: Dwindling attendance and canceled events initiated a sharp reversal in trade show revenue during the first quarter of the year. Since shutdowns occurred in the U.S. at the end of Q1, the damage to the trade show industry is expected to be far greater for Q2 and Q3.

For organizers uninterested in “socially distanced” events, there’s an alternative: going digital. Instead of dealing with the hassle of a COVID-19 world, organizers are transforming their physical events in the virtual space. Some distributors are taking a proactive approach in helping clients create and market these virtual events through strategic use of promotional products. “If you’re having a digital conference, you still need to have a physical presence with your brand,” Melendez says. He recommends personalized mugs, tumblers or other drinkware that attendees can use while participating online.

“If you’re having a digital conference, you still need to have a physical presence with your brand.” Javier Melendez, All Star Incentive Marketing

PromoLeaf has shied away from targeting virtual events after commissioning a survey of over 1,000 conference participants throughout the United States and across a wide variety of industries and age groups. According to the survey, 72% of participants prefer to attend conferences in-person rather than online. Surprisingly, 85% of respondents aged 16-24 – those who’ve grown up in the digital age – preferred physical conferences over virtual ones.

“Large clients have expressed interest, but I’m not sure how successful taking their events online would be,” says Larry Shapiro, owner of New York City-based Captiv8 Promotions, a member of Facilisgroup. “As a business owner, I have to be a realist. I’m skittish because companies are going to be very careful in terms of spending money on promotional products. Virtual events don’t have a proven track record yet, and it’s our job to make sure our clients get the most ROI possible.”

Virtual Reality: A quarter of event marketers weren’t planning virtual events before the pandemic, but it’s a dramatically different story now. And the most important thing at these events? Attendee satisfaction – a perfect reason to offer swag.

Instead of immediately pivoting to digital events, distributors like Captiv8 Promotions and PromoLeaf are helping clients redirect efforts to generate revenue in the wake of lost event-related orders. After all, clients had a budget for their event and were ultimately organizing it to build their business. That purpose hasn’t vanished, and the budget can still be used for promoting the company. Instead of spending money on a trade show booth, these distributors have pitched direct-mail campaigns to clients. “We’ve sold notebooks and office supplies as part of work-from-home kits,” Castellucio says. “We’ve also been pushing webcam covers for cybersecurity in case Russian spies are looking at you through the computer. People laugh, but they still buy them.”