12 Hours on a NOLA Shuttle Bus

I want to be clear about something upfront: Blip is not an IBO member. Neither is SignDash. We’ve been denied. So when IBO holds its conference twice a year in whatever city they’ve picked, I don’t get a booth. I don’t get a sponsorship. I don’t get a seat at the table.

This time it was New Orleans. What I got was a shuttle bus, a cooler full of snacks, and 12 hours spent making sure media owners got where they needed to go.

And I’d do it again tomorrow.

Finding a Way In

Blip was built on thinking differently. From day one, we came into this industry looking at problems from a different angle, and that contrarian streak has served us well. We’ve built real partnerships with a lot of free-thinking media owners who were willing to try something new. That’s not an accident. It’s a philosophy.

But it also means we sometimes find ourselves on the outside looking in. When there’s a grouping of our customers and partners somewhere in this industry, I am going to find a way to be there. Full stop. IBO’s decision to deny our membership doesn’t change that math. It just changes my tactics.

The Idea

For the last few years, we’ve held a small event the Tuesday before the conference. It’s been good, but honestly it was starting to feel a little stale. I kept coming back to this idea I’d had for a while: what if we just shuttled people from the airport?

New Orleans was almost perfectly set up for it. One airport. One terminal. International, but manageable. Everybody comes in the same way, and it’s about a 30-minute drive to the hotel. Save someone an Uber fare, get 20 to 30 minutes of uninterrupted conversation, and do it over and over again all day. It’s not complicated. It’s just time.

So that’s what we did. The shuttle ran loops all day: airport to Sheraton, Sheraton to airport, repeat. Snacks in the back. Good conversations the whole way. I caught up with partners I hadn’t seen in months, had a few conversations that turned into real business discussions, and made some new connections I wouldn’t have made otherwise.

 What It’s Actually About

I’m not going to pretend this was purely altruistic. I wanted face time with people. I wanted to be present. But I also genuinely believe that showing up for people, literally getting them where they need to go, says something about how you do business.

That’s what Blip | Adkom and SignDash have always tried to be for independent media owners: actually useful. Not just a vendor with a logo on a conference banner, but a partner who shows up when it matters and finds creative ways to add value, even when the doors are closed.

Does it sting a little to be locked out of official participation while our customers are inside the conference? Sure. But resentment doesn’t build relationships. Showing up does.

See You Next Year

I’m already thinking about next year. Monday and Tuesday both? Maybe a wrapped shuttle. Maybe a few more coolers. Maybe something totally different.

IBO can decide who gets a booth. I’ll decide how I show up for the people in this industry.

And I’ll be the one on the shuttle.

Author Bio
Chad Smith is a seasoned advocate for innovation and media owner empowerment within the out-of-home advertising industry. As VP of Supply for Blip | Adkom, he brings extensive experience in programmatic OOH, independent operator strategy, and industry thought leadership. He also oversees SignDash, a billboard operations software platform built to help independent media owners modernize and scale. Chad focuses on driving growth through openness, collaboration, and forward-thinking solutions.

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