A couple of weeks ago we headed down to San Diego for a busy week full of events during the Internet Retailers Convention at the San Diego Convention Center.  We stayed at the Hotel Solamar which was just a few blocks away from the convention center.  The front desk staff is so friendly and the rooms were very spacious and comfortable.  (An added BONUS: You can request to have a gold fish in your room…I named him Jimmy.)

This is Jimmy!

Monday we oversaw the set-up of the Yahoo! Booth, making sure everything was going smoothly.

The Booth

Once the booth was set up, it was time to add the fun elements…which included all the Yahoo! freebies: mints, frisbees, pens, and candy.

Pens and mints

F R I S B E E S ! ! !

You might wonder why we chose Frisbees…we’re in San Diego…it’s the beach…it’s fun!  Have you ever chosen a giveaway for a tradeshow based on a destination?  Or do you stick with the basics?

The booth was bustling with merchants and Yahoo’s.

Booth placement is key when it comes to tradeshows and being close to the entrance ensured great traffic.

Thursday night we had a party at Float at the Hard Rock Hotel.  Float is the outdoor pool bar at the Hard Rock.  Great venue, lots of seating, and a nice view.  One thing missing…the famous purple touches.  We had to make it look Yahoo!ish.

Float with Purple Touches

The last event after a whirlwind week was the Yahoo! recovery brunch.  Early Friday morning Yahoo! merchants came together to discuss we had a recovery brunch at the Hilton San Diego with breakfast and networking time.

Overall it was a great week at IRCE.