In the news ...

The first news snippet to come out of the show was a numbers story focused on the show's attendance. Both Big Builder's sister pub Builder magazine and the online San Francisco Chronicle noted that at 14,000 attendees, the show's attendee count not only was off 27% from last year but also was down significantly from roughly 35,000 attendees at a peak in 2006.

Housing Chronicles blogger Patrick Duffy labeled the mood "decidedly somber" because of the lower turnout, but I have to say I couldn't disagree more--and I was actually at the event. The Oakland Tribune's "silver linings" description is much more accurate. I mean, who expected there not to be a drop in attendance? Don't you think it's pretty much a given considering the state of the market. So, why is that newsworthy?

But I digress ... without a doubt the biggest news buzz was about the California new-home buyer tax credit. The week before the show, I had written about how the credit was almost fully subscribed. Boyce Thompson, editorial director of Builder magazine, caught up with Bob Rivinius, president of the CBIA, to talk about plans for extending the credit. Industry stakeholders are lobbying like mad, but California politics are at work, so there's likely to be another week or two of politicking before lawmakers get serious about making a decision on whether to support an extension or not, said one industry insider.

From the convention center...

Before heading out to San Francisco, I made a Top 3 "must-see" list. So, here's the post-mortem on those sessions:

1. Building an Effective Home Builder Brand Using Social Media. This seminar was by far the best, most interactive session I attended during the show. There were amazing takeaways, many of which I shared in a recent blog post. I just thought it was great--liberating in some ways--to be encouraged to turn on our cell phones and/or laptops and share points of the discussion with others via Twitter or Facebook. As an added bonus, the conversation continues. Check out the new blog http://www.buildersocialblog.com/ to view the PowerPoint and engage in real-time conversation.
   
   
2. Transforming Self, Transforming Home by Design Psychology. I have to admit that I was a little worried when in Dr. Toby Israel's introduction to the session, she made references to being in the womb. I'm just not that ... ummm ... maybe spiritual is the word I'm looking for. But I hung in there, and I'm glad I did because it was definitely thought provoking. Basically design psychology is the idea that you can use design elements to help alter your state of mind, helping you heal or move on from life-altering experiences such as cancer, the death of a spouse, or a divorce. She offered up three examples of how redesigning a home using light, textures, colors, and space helped people get to a better place in their lives.
   
   It was interesting, but, because her examples were of custom projects, the question I left with is how is this scalable? How can production builders think about this and use it to create more valuable and better-selling communities? I got a glimpse of what could be an answer when she took the group through a little exercise where we were asked to come up with a handful of words to describe our ideal oasis. What we found is that many people used the same words to describe what I would call their "happy home." And I'm guessing that some of the words they used are more reflective of what their personal lives are like rather than what age demographic (think life stages). So, it got me thinking that maybe what home builders should do is really think on a micro level about who they want to target, get a group of them together to brainstorm words that they would use to describe their ideal community, and then build exactly that. Sounds simple, I know.
   
   
3. Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures. This was a two-part session with business consultant Dan Roam that aimed to get people to think more graphically. (Yes, that meant drawing stick figures.) He had a very interesting presentation--it was fun, full of funny stories, and visually great--but unfortunately, I felt like the two sessions weren't distinct enough; there was a lot of repeating some of the same info from the first session to get people up to speed in the second session. But what I really loved--and what I would've liked to have seen more of--was the practical exercise. We were all given mini white boards and dry erase markers and asked to draw a picture of what we do. I wish I had done the drawing on paper, so I could share it with you. (It's really pretty hard. Try it, you'll see.) But the reality was that I was just getting into, just starting to think, "I can do this," when the session ended.

While I was busy checking out these sessions, my colleague Teresa Burney was also sitting in on some programs. I wished I could've sat in on the session titled, "The Future of Home and Community." (Unfortunately, I was stuck in my hotel room, trying to finish up a blog.) Teresa's main takeaway from the session: "The current economic situation has triggered a sea change in people's values from an era of indulgence to one of responsibility." Read the article here.

Teresa also covered the session "The State (and Real Estate) of the Union: What's the Home Buyer Thinking? Talk about willing buyers: 70% of consumers think now is a good time to buy a home. Read the article here.

And for those who missed the "Best of the West" during the Golden Nugget Awards luncheon ceremony, you can sneak a peek at this year's award-winning communities from my compatriots at Builder.

But for all of our scribbling, I have to say the best reporting on one of the educational sessions was from Mike Lyon of http://www.doyouconvert.com/. I was already on a flight back to D.C. when Mike covered the session with best-selling author and marketing guru Seth Godin. (I actually think Mike might have camped out for the session the night before.) You've got to check out the video--yes, he actually got candid footage of Godin.  

In the hallways...

But for all the keynote addresses, educational programming, and signature events, some of the best stuff from PCBC inevitably comes from hallway chatter, held anywhere from the exhibit floor to the lobbies of any number of hotels skirting the convention center.

For example, my colleague Teresa met an interesting small California builder during one of the educational sessions who talked to her about his passion for the industry, the realities of life as a home builder today, and how he's preparing for tomorrow. You can read the interview here.

I also catalogued some of my conversations:

• Top of Mind: Builders vent about appraisals, mortgage financing, interest rates, and inflation
• New Co Mania: The skinny on two new start-ups, including one with former John Laing Homes' CEO Larry Webb
• Three Takeaways: The latest on housing starts, bank orphans, and the fate of the private builder

And I also enjoyed The Real Story's Colleen Edwards' post from the exhibit floor, if not only for the title of the post. How often can you get away with this headline: "An Oven That Shows You the Beef"? But all humor aside, Colleen served up a quick look at a new Jenn Air product and an interview with Ed Lindner, director of the Whirlpool's North Pacific division.

Craig Webb, editor of Big Builder's sister pub ProSales, also posted a good word from Ainsworth CEO Richard Huff. The lumber company's chief executive said the market's begun its slow turn.

However, it wasn't just us professional journalists who were sharing snippets of their conversations:

• Mike Lyon offered up a video glimpse as to what goes on during business lunches at the show.
• Steve Doyle, president of Brookfield Homes' San Diego/Riverside division, also noted some of the show's highlights, including Fareed Zacharia's keynote speech and the induction of six new members in the California Homebuilding Foundation's Hall of Fame, of which Steve is also an inductee.
• Rogue Tweeters... these guys really were the best of the West as they did most of the heavy lifting in terms of real time reporting. They were sending out tweets left and right about what they were listening to, what they were seeing on the show floor, and what their thoughts on the show at large. Want the scoop? Log on to http://www.twitter.com/ and search #pcbc09 and see what everyone was buzzing about. All star tweeters included @PCBC_The Show, @rbiv, @Jim_Adams, @buildaroo, @James_Hardie, @juliesenter, @summerhillhomes, @CBamePR, @bensmithinc, and @jonjonbailey, among others.

But before I sign off--this blog post is droning on and on--I want to extend two special thank yous...

To @rbiv: Thank you for hosting the first annual PCBC tweet up. You and the rest of the Golden State Lumber team really kick-started what I think will become an important part of the show experience.

To @Jim_Adams and @mikelyon: Thank you for getting the technology together to have been able to stream live from the W Hotel lobby. You did a fantastic job of bringing together a number of wonderful industry people to share with people at home (or at work) their thoughts on the show, and it was awesome. Can't wait to see the archived version!