Primary Purpose: Pri-Med Finds Medical Niche

The Pri-Med Conference & Exhibition is a rarity: a medical tradeshow managed by a for-profit firm in an industry dominated by associations. How has owner and operator M|C Communications made inroads into the health care tradeshow business and become a prominent player there? Does the company's success signal a coming revolution in medical show management?

M|C show director Marlene Shea said for-profit management definitely distinguishes the show from others — but, then, so does the fact that it's for primary care practitioners, who are not served directly by any association. In fact, Pri-Med has forged strategic partnerships with some state associations, as well as with such providers as Blue Shield and Aetna. But more than 75 percent of Pri-Med attendees surveyed said they don't attend their associations' annual meeting. "And new exhibitors sometimes ask us, 'What are your association fees?'" said Shea.

She added that many doctors can't afford the time or expense of attending a national meeting, which makes Pri-Med's regional aspect ideal for them.

M|C CEO John Mooney noted that there are 688 accredited providers of Continuing Medical Education credits and an association for every imaginable physician group. Yet, he said, "There was no clear leader in the (primary care) space and that is why we entered it, and part of the reason why we feel we have done so well."

Shea pointed out that some small for-profit medical events do exist, mostly without exhibitions. But another thing that separates Pri-Med from them — as well as from the big association shows — is its model. First, it partners with distinguished institutions such as Harvard University in order to offer cutting-edge information that attendees can put into practice immediately. Second, it offers quality events at low cost; and third, it takes them to regions with a high concentration of primary care practitioners. There are Pri-Med Update Meetings, smaller events with exhibitions, in 45 minor cities; 2005 will see five more added to that roster, Mooney said.

Exhibitor Brenda Hurst, marketing specialist for Eli Lilly & Co. and team member for the Lilly ICOS joint venture that markets Cialis, said that Pri-Med far outdraws other industry events. She credits M|C and Mooney for learning the market and implementing a strategy based on their observations. The low cost of obtaining CMEs is a huge attraction for attendees — many of whom are also important Lilly customers, Hurst explained.

PriMed consists mainly of four-day events in the East, Midwest, South, West and Mid-Atlantic regions. The most recent events took place in Boston, Chicago, Anaheim, Washington, D.C., and Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Pri-Med Southwest will debut in Houston next January. Admission is an average of $40, a major incentive for primary care doctors, who generally earn less than specialists.

Pri-Med West was held in Anaheim for the first time this year, and will return in 2005. Anaheim Convention Center manager David Meek can't wait to have the show back again. "They had an excellent show here," Meek said. "I thought they were pleased with it, and I know our event coordinator was."

Meek found the professionalism and good organization of the Pri-Med team remarkable, and said dealing with a for-profit had distinct advantages. "It's a good show for the building revenue-wise. We always like medical groups, and this show is somewhat unique because it is put on by a for-profit and not an association." He feels M|C's success could have an impact on the way associations run their medical shows.

Back when Mooney worked on health care shows for Reed Exhibitions, he was struck by the fact that primary care physicians — the gatekeepers who refer to specialists — were overlooked in the tradeshow arena. So he created the first Pri-Med event in Boston in September 1995, offering free admission to attendees.

Partnering with Harvard put the icing on the cake. "We offered them a vehicle for educating large numbers of primary care physicians across the country and extending the Harvard brand, and they gave us an opportunity to be immediately credible," he said. Harvard got full autonomy in choosing speakers and sessions; Pri-Med got a huge selling point.

Meek compared Pri-Med's strategy to Reed's: Look for opportunities for exhibitors to get their names in front of attendees wherever possible. "Pri-Med's focus is on the educational aspect, but it's also on the business end," he said.

Growth has been strong. Between 2000 and 2003, said Mooney, Pri-Med events have increased exhibitors by 40 percent, net square feet by 62 percent to over 310,000, and more than doubled attendance to over 60,000. He credits that to a good health care exhibiting market as well as year-over-year increases in core Pri-Med Conferences & Exhibitions, plus the launch of Pri-Med Updates in new local markets.

The largest Pri-Med events are the oldest, held in the East and West with between 7,500 and 8,000 attendees each. The fastest-growing are the newer markets, particularly the Midwest and South, which attract 4,500 and 5,500 attendees, respectively.

Hurst said the shows have become so large in both size and scope that she considers them more national than regional. The only regional approach Lilly takes is to have local salespeople staff its booths.

And the events are expanding overseas. In 2004, Mooney said, M|C launched six successful Pri-Med Update programs in the United Kingdom. The company is now scheduled to expand to a new European Union country each year starting in 2006.

This year Pri-Med's Latin American partner, LiveMed, will run 22 programs across Mexico, including Foro Internacional Medico, LiveMed's first conference and exposition. That event attracted over 8,000 physicians eager to get their hands on content sponsored by Harvard Medical School.