267 I In Conversation with Dr.Corey Seemiller
Dr.Corey Seemiller in conversation with Subhanjan Sarkar in The Trade Show Podcast
{PitchLink Original} The Trade Show Podcast - In conversation with Dr.Corey Seemiller, Researcher, Author and Speaker
{Events - Conversion} The Post-Show Lead Follow-Up Problem No One Has Fixed. And the Paradigm Shift that Finally Does. by Richard Erschik
{Events - AI} The “Below the Waterline” Impact of AI
by Kai Hattendorf
{Search - GEO} Generative Engine Optimization (GEO): The Future Of Search Is Here by Adam Binder
{GTM} How to use Deep Research for GTM
by Torsten Walbaum
{PR} You Only Think They Work For You by Steve Blank
[PitchLink Original]
From - The Trade Show Podcast
The Trade Show Podcast #31: In Conversation with Dr.Corey Seemiller Researcher, Author & Speaker
Dr Corey Seemiller is a seasoned educator, researcher, and speaker on Generation Z. Her work has been featured on NPR and in The New York Times, Time Magazine, Newsweek, Popular Science, USA Today, Business Insider, and The Chronicle of Higher Education, as well as in several other news publications and cited in nearly 5,000 academic articles and books.
She has engaged in market research consulting for Fortune 10, 50, and 500 companies. With now more than a quarter of a million views, her TED Talk on Generation Z at TEDxDayton showcased how Generation Z plans to make a difference in the world. Corey led the Global Gen Z Study, where she worked with 91 researchers from around the globe to better understand cultural differences among Gen Z. More than 30,000 participants from 81 countries took part in the study, making it one of the largest Gen Z studies ever conducted.
She recently completed her fifth study, Generations in the World of Work, and her book by the same name was released by Routledge Publishing. She is also the author of the books – Generation Z Goes to College, Generation Z Leads, Generation Z: A Century in Making, Generation Z Learns, and Gen Z Around the World.
Dr Seemiller received her Bachelor’s degree in Communication, Master’s degree in Educational Leadership, and a PhD in Higher Education. She serves as a professor in the Department of Leadership Studies in Education and Organisations at Wright State University.
Dr Seemiller emphasises that Gen Z is profoundly values-driven and purpose-oriented, seeking meaning and connection in their education, work, and activities. She argues against the superficial stereotype that they are merely defined by technology use, noting instead that they are deeply motivated by passion, social change, and community involvement.
Her research identifies a significant gap in Gen Z’s confidence and competence in face-to-face interpersonal skills, a trend that predates COVID-19. While they strongly desire in-person connection and experiences, they often lack the practised ability to network or engage in small talk, largely due to societal and educational shifts that provided fewer opportunities to develop these skills.
Dr Seemiller advises that to engage Gen Z effectively, especially in contexts like trade shows and events, organisers must shift from offering purely informational content to creating unique, interactive, and connective experiences. The return on investment for this generation is not in accessing information they can find online, but in participating in transformative, communal experiences that foster genuine connections and cannot be replicated digitally.
Run time – 00:48:50 mins
Doing business at Events with Attonce:
Conversation Intelligence and instant follow up is missing from the Exhibitors Event Strategy.
Simply the inability or neglecting the gathering conversation intelligence at the booth.
While we can complicate the process as much as we want, the real traction has only 3 levers
Orchestrate Booth Visits : Ensure you warm up the attendees, book advance meetings and that you are creatively driving the maximum number of attendees to your booth.
Conversation Intelligence : Capturing every conversation at the booth (downstream analysis for real qualification and follow up strategy)
Instant On-Point Follow up : Responsive follow up on point, ideally the same day.
What do you think?
If you want to discuss this or anything else related to Event ROI - do reach out. We are waiting. And it is free and without any obligation.
Book a personal session with our Outcome Specialists.
Authors of 22 Blockbuster Sales and Marketing Books in 22 twenty-minute sessions.
{Content we are tracking this week?}
Note: All text with a green border to the left are quoted content from the respective curated pieces. Links from LinkedIn will not be visible unless you are logged into LinkedIn.
{Events - Conversion}
The Post-Show Lead Follow-Up Problem No One Has Fixed. And the Paradigm Shift that Finally Does.
by Richard Erschik
The Problem Isn’t the Show or Technology. It’s the Exhibitor’s Process.
Industry research has consistently shown that a large percentage of trade show leads are never properly followed up. Various exhibitor studies over the years report that 70%–80% of leads receive little or no meaningful follow-up.
The introduction of CRMs didn’t fix it. Lead scanners didn’t fix it. Marketing automation didn’t fix it. Because software doesn’t follow up. People do, or should. And people are predictable.
{Events - AI}
The “Below the Waterline” Impact of AI
by Kai Hattendorf
Why we should focus the AI conversation on customer value and organiser revenues
The bottom line: AI is altering the economics of exhibitions. And organisers need to prioritise which AI services they invest in to increase value for exhibitors and visitors, and revenues for themselves.
The legacy exhibition model was remarkably resilient. Revenue derived from space sales, sponsorship and sometimes ticketing. Operational discipline protected margins. Portfolio scale absorbed volatility. Data existed, but it remained secondary to the physical transaction. That balance is gradually shifting.
{Search - GEO}
Generative Engine Optimization (GEO): The Future Of Search Is Here
by Adam Binder
What Are Generative Engines?
Generative engines are an AI-driven evolution of search. At it’s core, GEs offer users more than just answers—they deliver insights.
For example, let’s say you searched for “How do I fix a leaky faucet?” A traditional search engine might list articles, videos and forums. A generative engine, on the other hand, could provide a step-by-step guide written in conversational language, complete with an illustration or even an embedded how-to video.
For businesses, this is a major shift. If you’ve spent years perfecting your SEO game, GEO is here to take things to the next level.
{GTM}
How to use Deep Research for GTM
by Torsten Walbaum
You could save 10+ hours per week with this underused AI function
It’s the first time that AI is able to solve complex non-engineering tasks end-to-end, from developing a plan to gathering relevant context and then producing a high-quality deliverable. I’m usually hesitant to make bold claims with regards to AI, but Deep Research has literally condensed tasks that took me 10+ hours into minutes (once I figured out how to use it correctly).
Despite this, there seem to be fewer Deep Research power users than I expected, and I think it has to do with the name. “Research” makes it sound like it’s mostly a tool for academics and investors, but that only scratches the surface; in reality, it’s a game changer for any task that involves reviewing lots of information and distilling practical insights from it.
{PR}
You Only Think They Work For You
by Steve Blank
And I Was Just Another Customer
Not only that, but I was just one of many of the customers for my PR agency’s services. And as I learned later, I was one of their smaller accounts. The agency served multiple companies and while they were happy to take my money and (mostly) liked working with us, if they thought I was too unreasonable or asked them to achieve the impossible, they could just replace my relationship with another client. So the world actually looked like this.
In actuality, my place in their universe was pretty small.
X|O Update No.267. Volume 06. Issue 08* 3rd March 2026