Leaving Vegas, Baby!
by Nick Coston, OOH, DOOH, pDOOH Professional; Industry Writer
Spending six nights in Las Vegas and weaving my way in and out of the Consumer Electronics Show is a feat in itself.
Did I gamble? No.
Did I drink much? Not really.
Did I eat well? Heck yeah.
Did I walk a lot? Yep. I even bought a new pair of shoes to keep me going.
Did I talk a lot? Of course, I always do.
Was it fun? Without a doubt.
It was a no-brainer for me to attend this year's CES show when you have the opportunity to spend this much time with a great OOH media crowd. The show had over 100,000 attend. While only 5 percent of the convention was related to our industry, those are still good odds when there are over 1,300 exhibits. With around 65 industry booths and individual rooms within arm’s reach—plus a lot of “walk-ons”—most of our group accomplished the reason for being there: mingling among our peers, asking questions, talking shop, and selling our wares.
Traditional OOH Lamar and Outfront were there. Place-based digital companies GSTV, Volta, and Loop TV were there. Agencies ODN, Stagwell, and Novus were there. Programmatic platforms firms Place Exchange, Vistar and Broadsign were there. Cinema media mainstay Cineplex from Toronto was there.
We also saw in-store media giant Catalina and digital screen tech giant BSV Digital Displays from Australia, which just opened a Las Vegas office. Of course, more came and went, but our core industry group was pretty tight.
OOH media, meet the ultimate in digital signage.
Digital signage, meet CES.
CES, meet the incredible Hyperloop tunnels.
Tunnels, meet the porn industry.
I loved all this synergy in Las Vegas. It was so massive that I joined DPAA’s curated tour, which provided some direction on where and when to post up while also being with good friends from all corners of our industry. Here are a few highlights:
Worst Move: On convention tour day, I was lollygagging my way back to our bus when I saw it start to pull away. In super slo-mo, I yelled nooooo like a kid who dropped a triple scoop of ice cream. It was raining, the line at the taxi stand was over an hour long, and the ride-share area looked like a mosh pit. I was doomed.
I texted my family in Maryland about what had happened. They responded with clips from “Home Alone” when Kevin’s mother discovers he wasn’t on the plane. I get no respect.
Top MAGA Moment: Fortunately, Donald Trump saved me. A white commuter van taking attendees between the convention center to the Trump Hotel took pity on me as I jumped inside and shamefully squatted. I gave the driver $10, and after dropping off two nice gents at the assigned stop, he kindly took me to the Venetian Resort, where my next event was being held. I also received a free red MAGA hat while riding in the van.
Best Recovery: Ever navigate a casino the size of The Louvre? That was me at the Venetian Resort. I didn’t know there were so many shops in that place. They have everything there. Finally, I found my group just as the event was starting. As the ESPN guy says, I was bumblin’, stumblin’, fumblin’ into the bar. All was good again when someone shoved a cold draft beer into my hand. As it turns out, I didn’t miss a thing.
Best Buffet Breakfast: Thursday morning’s DPAA speaker panel presentation. I ate more bacon and warm, buttery croissants than the entire audience combined. I’m surprised they didn’t hand me an extra bill. People got up and moved away from me at one point.
Best CES Exhibit: The health sector inside The Venetian. I never knew there were so many different types of massage chairs. I tried them all. By the end of Saturday, I walked like Gumby.
Most Famous Person of the Trip: I ran into Cowboys Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith on back-to-back nights. He’s opening a restaurant up the street appropriately named Emmitt’s. Earlier that day, I had walked by the place and wondered who “Emmitt” was. Now I know. I did not ask if I could race him down the hall.
Biggest Putz: I was thisclose to being kicked out of the non-smoking hotel I booked for the first few nights when I went to light a cigar. Apprehended, I pivoted quickly, “Oh, yes, I’m aware this is a no-smoking hotel, officer. I’m just heading outside now,” I nervously muttered while wearing a fat, red face.
Biggest Dupe: I became fixated on a film our hotel cigar bar was showing on their digital screens. I thought it was the greatest black-and-white movie I had seen—except it was a heavily edited version of “Sin City,” the very dark, neo-noir film spliced with scenes from classic black-and-white films. I didn’t realize this was the bar’s edited version of “Sin City” until the film repeated after two hours. It was being shown on a continuous loop. Gah.
Hyperloop Rocks: Riding in a Tesla through the Las Vegas Convention Center Loop, 1.7 miles of tunnels below the complex, saved us 45 minutes of walking (slogging) to just 2 minutes of futuristic high-speed tunnel blasting. Holy moly, that was cool. You have to love the name, too. Hyperloop. I wanted to stay in the car and go for a few more rounds but got the boot.
Worst Predating: Whooping it up with colleagues at the CES opening party at XS Nightclub in the Encore Hotel. I hadn’t been in a nightclub since Bill Clinton was president. What a blast.
As if Las Vegas doesn’t supply you with enough people watching, my hotel for the last two nights, which did allow smoking, was host to the AVN Adult Entertainment Expo. That’s right, hundreds of past and present porn stars and adult industry high-rollers were strolling around my hotel. Very nice people, smiling, posing for pictures, and I loved the outrageous outfits.
We had some star players as speakers in our group, as well. One of them was Jennifer Prince, chief commercial officer for the Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams. She was at a breakfast forum and showed us her behemoth Super Bowl ring, which has 20 carats of white diamonds set in yellow and gold. I swear, that ring weighed more than my suitcase, and for those who know how heavy I travel, it weighs more than most humans.
But wow, that was a true bucket-list moment. I almost encountered my worst fear by dropping the ring and again, in slo-mo, watching it roll under the table. But before it got that far, it was saved by the quick hand of fellow scribe Adrian Cotterill. Good catch, AC. My klutzy ways continued.
This year’s CES was 40 percent larger than last year’s show. There was so much ground and so many fascinating things to see and do. As an old-school billboard guy, transportation and mobility were my favorite themes.
Would I go again? Absolutely, it’s adult Kiddyland for us visual geeks, proving once again… Vegas, baby!
Nick Coston has been in the advertising industry for over 35 years. He’s worked at newspapers, magazines, OOH/DOOH companies, programmatic platforms, and ground-breaking ad tech companies, including Washingtonian, Washington Times, New Republic, USA Today Weekend, Clear Channel Outdoor, and The Neuron and Hypercell. He’s also spent 10 years buying OOH for a top 10 national advertiser. Nick resides with his family in Dayton, Maryland. He has been musing about the Outdoor Media industry for over five years.