Inside GlassBuild - "Navigating the “What-Ifs”: Maintaining the People Connection, Online"

Jack Van Meerbeeck and John P. Lloyd

As the COVID-19 pandemic hit earlier this year, the Matodi team began planning for the “what-ifs.” What if GlassBuild was cancelled? What if GlassBuild was able to happen, but we could not bring the machinery we normally bring? These were just a few of the things we knew we may face in the coming months.

We began weighing the options of just how virtual we could be, if one of those “what-ifs” became true. While we had the content and the information that we would need to “virtually” present our machinery, the platform would be more difficult. 

How would we reach new potential customers? How would we be able to reconnect with current customers and colleagues? We have attended GlassBuild for many years both as attendees and as exhibitors and our favorite parts are always meeting new people in the industry and catching up with old friends. This would be nearly impossible without GlassBuild, as social media, email marketing, and our website can only go so far.

When Glassbuild Connect was announced, the Matodi team knew that it would solve our biggest issues. While we will miss the in-person connection that GlassBuild is known for, we are confident that potential and current customers will still find a wealth of information regarding our machinery and will be able to easily contact our team with any questions or with a desire to move forward with a quote. 

The easy connection is the most important part for a virtual show. We know that customers often plan their budgets around machinery purchases during September, so it is critical that we be able to reach them and help them find the right machines to fit their needs.

Matodi hopes to see you virtually at GlassBuild Connect this year, and in-person for GlassBuild America in Atlanta in 2021.

See Matodi at GlassBuild Connect and visit them at www.matodi.biz.