2009 SIFMA TMC: Smaller Show . . . Bigger Buzz
Xand : LandonLong - 1st January 1970
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Everyone has been talking about how much smaller this year's SIFMA Technology Management Conference was when compared with previous years, fewer exhibitors and fewer attendees. But for Xignite, this year's show was the biggest ever. If you missed us at this year's SIFMA TMC, we hope to see you next year. Feel free to take a look at the 2009 Xignite SIFMA TMC Photo Gallery by Clicking Here.
Despite the fact that this year's SIFMA Show was scaled down quite a bit, we were positively overwhelmed with demand at the Xignite booth. Our staff of seven was slammed every minute they were on the floor, answering questions, giving product demos and handing out free Xignite goodies. Even after show hours were over, our booth stayed filled with people wanting to talk about on-demand web services. Even when walking the halls, I overheard many others talking about Xignite, our cool new products and exciting activities that we were sharing at the show. In retrospect, I wish we had brought a staff of twelve to handle all the demand.
Maybe it was just the Xignite shot machine
and free booze we passed out. For me, it was fun demonstrating
how it's a lot easier & cheaper to get data "by
the glass" (aka on-demand) rather than getting data "by the fire
hose" (aka bulk files and data feeds). If it was alcohol
that brought the hordes a-knocking at our booth, that would give
a whole new meaning to the phrase, "generating buzz."
Or maybe we saw so much demand because people just couldn't resist the power of our free t-shirts, pens, mouse pads and other freebies. Maybe it was the awesome VIP Event that we hosted at the Forbes Galleries. Or perhaps everyone heard about us from the recent publicity surrounding Xignite, like the amazing coverage in Inside Market Data or product announcements surrounding XigniteOnDemand and XigniteCorporateActions.
In truth, I don't think any amount of publicity, bribery or booze could have generated the amount of buzz we saw. Having talked to many at the show, I got a strong sense that people are more serious than ever about finding game-changing technology, like on-demand web services. Over and over again I heard people looking for way to simplify data projects, dramatically cut costs and reduce the time it takes to delivery new data initiatives to market. In these categories, Xignite is the only show in town.