Las Vegas is feeling the scorching desert temperatures this summer.
Companies attending CES 2027 should be equally fired up about planning for the Jan. 6-9 event.
While there’s still more than half a year before the event, every day lost or a deadline missed becomes another obstacle to climb on the road to the world’s largest consumer trade show. If your goal is to drive media traffic to the booth, planning can be the difference between a booth full of reporters and just another stop for attendees to grab free swag or charge their phones.
If you haven’t begun planning for CES, then you’ve landed at the right place. If you have started working on plans, then let this serve as a checklist to ensure you’re on the right path, know when deadlines are, how to plan and how to make sure you’re ready for the media at CES.
Know key CES deadlines
As of the writing of this blog, CES has not published official deadlines yet, which will likely come later this summer. However, based on previous experiences, the dates for major milestones throughout the process are likely to land in this approximate range:
· ASAP – Book hotels and flights
· ASAP – Secure exhibitor space at CES
· Aug. 19 – Last day to submit CES Innovations Award application
· Early December – Submit floor plans
· Early December – CES media list goes live
Summer is a crucial time to prep in the lead up to CES. The most pressing task you can do now is securing your booth space. Exhibit space fills up fast, especially for high-traffic areas near the entryways, aisles and spots closest to the bigger exhibitors. Avoid ending up in a dead zone. Secure your spot early for greater visibility and accessibility. Reporters will thank you!
The CES Innovation Awards applications opened June 3. Submitting winning applications for this awards program is a great way to build momentum before the show. As one of the most recognized accolades in consumer technology, these awards can provide further credibility with reporters, who often seek out award winners when planning their meetings for the week. Including the CES Innovation awards in media outreach can help you stand out from the pack.
Pinpoint your CES plans
Securing your CES booth is just a sliver of what you need to do to position for optimal success. Your two other biggest priorities before CES should be to set your goals and plan your budget.
Exhibitors go to CES for many reasons; it’s important that you find yours. Whether it’s your first time attending, or you’re a seasoned CES veteran, setting up goals will be the foundation of your strategy and will set the tone for everything else you plan for and execute at the event.
Typical goals include lead generation, investor visibility, brand awareness and product launches.
One mistake that companies make is overstretching themselves and trying to do all the above. Focusing on one or two goals gives you a targeted plan of attack and can yield better results.
Have you ever looked at your credit card statement at the end of the month and wondered why it’s so high? The same thing can happen for CES. You will need to account for flights, hotels and exhibitor badges, and that’s just for staff members. You’ll also need to pay for wi-fi, building your booth, swag, signage, and shipping among other things. Make sure you set budget goals, stick to them and keep track of every expense so you don’t come away with sticker shock.
Reach out to media early
CES 2026 had over 4,000 exhibitors, and reporters have limited time to visit exhibitor booths and do interviews. This means you must create the right amount of noise before the show to get media attention, secure time on reporters’ calendars and attract journalists to your booth.
It’s never too early to start developing a well-thought-out PR strategy. To maximize your potential for media coverage, begin planning today. If you’re launching a new product and will be putting out a press release about it, your in-house PR team and/or PR agency needs to begin laying the groundwork for a PR timeline. That should include identifying when the right time is to distribute the press release, create and distribute PR kits and other media assets, identifying which reporters on the media list (which contains thousands of reporters) will be most important for you and developing stories that will resonate with the media at CES. Reporters calendars fill up fast, so the earlier you begin outreach the better the chances of securing meetings.
Bospar offers PR services to help you be strategic and prepared for CES so you’re best positioned to get the media coverage your deserve. We have deep experience in working with a range of companies attending CES and have secured countless pieces of CES media coverage.
