This week as we were brainstorming ideas for IAAPA Asian Attractions Expo 2011′s creative look and tagline, we were pleased to see CEO Charlie Bray and the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions receive some well-deserved recognition for having established a truly global presence.

As Charlie points out, many associations are "International" in name only. When it comes to branding their tradeshows, they haven’t really decided whether they will be a U.S. tradeshow with some international attendance, or an international tradeshow that happens to take place in the U.S.-and be able to back up the claim. A few years ago, IAAPA told us they wanted to be unequivocally the latter. It has been our challenge to help them strategize and enact a series of tactics to boost their international attendance without breaking the bank on international marketing.

The first step-as always!-has to be researching and targeting the right mailing lists. Another thing IAAPA gets right, and that’s tantamount to going global, is a good relationship with a good translation company. They use the same team of translators year after year so those folks are very familiar with the industry’s terminology and with the IAAPA Attractions Expo. A separate challenge is deciding what to translate. In recent years, focusing on digital initiatives (like targeted emails to unique international communities and a digital conference brochure that is web accessible) has really helped expand IAAPA’s reach. Last year’s show, in fact, saw record international attendance.

Congratulations, IAAPA!