UK Games Expo starts for most people as an in-person event on the 30th. That’s this Friday. It runs to the 1st of August and is now operating under strict COVID precautions. Many tabletop gamers will gather at the NEC Birmingham for demos, shopping and more shopping.
While the main event kicks off on Friday, the pre-event (such as for press) begins today.
Geek Native, I understand and recognise that some small businesses are dependant on a successful event. At the same time, we can hope for a safe event that does not become a super-spreader. While it’s right to be cautious of guerrilla marketing or hijacking an event, it is also the case that many small businesses cannot attend UKGE this year. Hype and interest for one of Europe’s largest gaming conventions is a beneficial outcome.
#SelfPromoTradeHall and Never Mind the Dice Rolls
A new tabletop roleplaying magazine Never Mind The Dice Rolls has proposed and will use the hashtag #SelfPromoTradeHall to help gamers discover geeky retailers.
They say;
Over the UKGE weekend, we will be using #selfpromotradehall to boost the online shops or products for creators and small traders who couldn’t or can’t attend conventions this year.
There’s some action on the hashtag already, on Twitter, which is where the initiative was announced. As you would expect, it’s @NMtDR_Magazine leading the way.
We will be kicking it off this Mon to build up to the UKGE weekend to get as much excitement as poss
UKGE is using several hashtags of their own;
- #PlayWithConfidence – relates to bio-security and other matters at the event.
- #UKGE2021 – for tweets specifically relevant to this year.
- #UKGamesExpo – for UKGE topics in general
You can also buy UKGE tickets online from the shop if circumstances allow you now to attend from Friday.
Virtual cons have boomed, Gen Con tested a hybrid event during the lockdown. One such interesting development are virtual trade halls like Game and Geek Virtual Marketplace on Facebook.
The group has over 300 members and, in a similar way to #selfpromotradehall is designed to let SMEs promote their ware. For UKGE, confirmed and booked traders at the expo will be allowed to post their products and special offers to Game and Geek Virtual Marketplace every day. This is more often than usual and is both a way to support the expo and for these companies to get customers’ attention.
Never Mind the Dice Rolls submissions
On the note of submissions, if you have a podcast or twitch stream to support? A new game? Well, Geek Native might be interested in the latter but Never the Mind the Dice Rolls certainly are.
Submissions are open, with a catch. You guessed it, the magazine will launch in September, can’t yet pay. It would be a case of writing for exposure.
At Never Mind the Dice Rolls magazine we welcome articles, reviews, and adventures from everyone. You do not need to have any formal writing experience, or have been published elsewhere to write for the magazine, just a love of TTRPGs.
Please note that whilst we cannot pay at the moment for writing or art, Never Mind the Dice Rolls wants to be able to pay a fair rate in the future once it can pay for itself.
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