When we launched LBM Journal in 2003, those brave few who started the magazine with me understood there was no guarantee of ever getting paid. It all came down to advertising—revenues had to exceed expenses beginning from our very first issue. Fortunately, they did. That was our first test. The second test came in 2008, when the Great Recession slashed our revenues to less than half of what they were in 2007. Many media companies and lumberyards had to close their doors. We cut expenses to the bone, and survived that, too.
I share those details for context of where we started. I never thought we’d turn away revenues—but that’s exactly what we did this year, when we closed sponsorship sales for the upcoming LBM Strategies Conference. Why would a media company turn away revenues? It’s a great question. The answer goes back to why we created LBM Strategies in the first place. Here’s the story:
A decade or so ago, when LBM Journal was just a magazine, there were several national conferences serving our industry. The last one I attended felt off. A careful look at the attendee list showed the problem. Though promoted as an event for dealers and distributors, only about 1 in 5 attendees were dealers. The rest were sponsors. When the sponsors vastly outnumber attendees at an event, it’s a problem. Dealers attend to network with and learn from other dealers, and sponsors pay hefty fees to connect with potential customers. When the ratio of sponsors to dealers is that lopsided, nobody wins (except the company hosting the event—because sponsorships are where the money is).
When we launched the LBM Strategies Conference, we knew we’d succeed only to the extent that we helped attendees and sponsors succeed. So, we asked members of the LBM community what they wanted in a national event. Then we listened. And worked hard to deliver.
The results have been rewarding. Each year, the number of registrations climbs. The fact that a healthy number of attendees are CEOs or other decisionmakers shows that we’re on the right track. To stay there, we’re careful to maintain a healthy ratio of attendees to sponsors. That’s why, for the first time ever, we have a waitlist of sponsors for this year’s LBM Strategies Conference. But dealers and distributors are still welcome to register at LBMStrategies.com.
With tours of two Ganahl Lumber locations, ten Hot Topic Roundtable Sessions, and an unmatched agenda with proven LBM pros taking the stage, registrations have exceeded last year’s—which was our biggest event ever. Once again, dealers and distributors will far outnumber sponsors. Because that’s the only scenario where everybody wins.
Typically, this is the kind of info shared with investors or a board of directors. But as a privately-held company, we report only to you.
— Rick Schumacher
Executive Editor & Publisher