Serious Business, Playful People - Bringing Out the Inner Child Amongst Industry Professionals

brevisrefero
Nov 6
5 min read

By Ella Kubas

Market Analyst/BD Associate | BrevisRefero

In the Biotech industry, the BIO International Convention is the largest and most influential event of its kind in the world. A plethora of industry professionals gather each year to network, make deals, showcase innovations, and navigate packed schedules. What we have realized while exhibiting at BIO conferences is that beneath the suits and the high-stake meetings, we’re all still kids who just love to connect.

With over 20,000 delegates in attendance, it’s easy to get lost in the crowd if you don’t stand out. Then came the lightbulb moment to our team: engagement doesn’t have to be serious to be strategic. Considering this, the team at BrevisRefero began a journey to create captivating booth engagement opportunities to spark interaction through experience.

The process kicked off with reflecting on how we could foster an environment to build meaningful relationships, that could later blossom into quality business connections. Using this foundation, Media/Marketing Associate Noah Cochrane formulated the idea of creating the very first Biotech Custom Trading Card Event.

Event Blueprint

Delegates had headshot photos taken at the BrevisRefero booth and collected a pack of trading cards. Inside the pack included 5 unique trading cards that contained company information about BrevisRefero.
While waiting for their custom trading card to be assembled by our team, delegates began a scavenger hunt to collect trading cards from our two sponsors’ booths (Argonaut and Biodextris).
Upon returning from visiting our sponsors and collecting their unique company trading cards, delegates picked up their own headshot trading card.
After admiring their own card, they opened the packs they collected to find 5 unique cards that displayed our company values, projects, and tools. They then opened our sponsors' packs with their custom company values, projects, team and capabilities. If they found a golden ticket in any of those packs, they won a prize!

Following Noah’s design, it took a team to assemble the trading cards into packs — not only for BrevisRefero to hand out, but also for our sponsors: Argonaut and Biodextris. Each card was uniquely designed to be visually compelling, while still displaying key company information. The project was executed with significant attention to detail and multiple built-in opportunities for booth engagement.

The cards were themed to their respective company, and the overall booth experience was both captivating and inviting. Things really started gaining momentum when delegates saw others getting involved, and saw the headshot trading cards proudly hanging on their BIO lanyard, and began asking, “How do I get one of those?”

"Wait until my child gets a glimpse of this!"

"This is giving me flashbacks to my love for sports and Pokémon cards!"

Suddenly, we had an influx of individuals lining up to get their headshot taken, with many taking a moment to touch up their hair or makeup beforehand. Our team began to observe how global delegates were able to each take away something memorable about their experience at our booth. This multi-faceted approach catered to different cultures and personality types, establishing common ground among people from incredibly diverse backgrounds.

In addition to our trading card event our development team also created an artistic slider puzzle and presented it on tablets around our booth for delegates to solve. Some individuals would stop on their way to a meeting to give it a try, while others spent nearly an hour at our booth trying to perfect the algorithm to win our daily prize (from tablets, to Apple watches, to iPads.) The best time recorded was a mere 3 seconds to take the prize for the day!

This wasn’t just any slider puzzle - it was part of a larger, thoughtfully crafted mural created by Marketing Contractor Paul Bettings. Designed to be the visual centerpiece of our booth, the mural extended across the posters we handed out, the puzzle, and much of the booth backdrop. More than just decoration, it served as a statement piece. It was also a tribute to Boston, a city shaped by history, fueled by science and made whole by diverse people and communities. The memorable work of art captured the spirit of the event and left a lasting impression on many visitors (see the beautiful art piece above!)

"Engagement doesn't necessarily have to be serious to be strategic."

What We Have Learned

Very quickly, it became clear that play unlocks authenticity. Delegates are more relaxed and open when they are immersed in a low-stress environment. Allowing visitors to express their inner child and enjoy themselves did not inhibit the development of fruitful business conversations; rather, it facilitated them. You draw a crowd when you focus on personalization over promotion. Visitors are captivated and curious – they will remember you. The cards were kept and shared far more than any marketing flyer would have been. We also found that low-stakes competition at a booth effectively mirrors the high-stakes competition of business deals taking place across the industry and at BIO. This element of gamification appeals to delegates, as it closely reflects the dynamics of real-world business negotiations - where competition and reward are tightly linked.

Beyond Our Booth

How will we build from here?

The execution of our booth engagement was thrilling, and it has created greater momentum in creativity for the future of BrevisRefero marketing. Last year was captivating, this year was transformational, and next year will build on the foundation. The goal will again be to bring out the inner child in delegates and, once again, to be the talk of the conference.

How should biotech companies reimagine booth engagement?

To be memorable, you need to find a way to separate yourself. Even in a high-pressure and noisy environment, with packed schedules, whether they realize it or not, individuals are open to having some fun and engaging at a booth. How would your trading card represent your company and its values?

"The bottom line is that if you look around and everyone is doing the same thing as you, you aren't marketing" - Noah Cochrane, Media/Marketing Associate | BrevisRefero

BrevisRefero Corporation is a collection of biologics drug development CMC experts utilizing its collective 100+ years of experience in advancing our clients outsourcing objectives through its RFP>Navigator® portal to accelerate drug candidates efficiently into clinical trials.

If you would like a free, no-obligation consultation to talk about your biologic or CGT drug development outsourcing, planning, quality & compliance, budgeting, or execution then please reach out to us at:

contact@brevisrefero.com or call us at (905) 636 - 6559.

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