What exhibitors tell us
The demo is great when the product lead runs it, then falls apart on the second day when he is in meetings.
Chicago-based HIMSS booth staff and trade show models for the 2027 show: software demo hosts, theater presenters, meeting room hosts and lead capture reps who learn your workflow story and tell it the same way all week. One rate of $85 an hour, and no travel fees.
Sources: himssconference.com home and About the Conference pages (HIMSS27 on April 5–8, 2027 at McCormick Place Convention Center, Chicago; preconference Monday, April 5; conference and exhibition April 6–8; over 600 education sessions), About the Venue page (exhibition hall hours) and the organizer’s exhibitor blog post on choosing a healthcare conference (HIMSS26: 24k registrations, 10k professional attendees with 6k+ international, 900+ exhibitors, about 170 average leads per exhibiting company, 70% decision-makers or influencers, 31% C-suite). The $85 rate is Purple Exhibits’ own.
HIMSS buyers judge health IT by watching it work on a real-looking chart, so the person at your demo screen shapes the first impression. Purple Exhibits supplies HIMSS booth staff from the Chicago area for HIMSS27: software demo hosts, theater presenters, meeting room hosts, lead capture reps, greeters and trade show models. Pricing is one flat $85 per person per hour, and any shift runs at least four hours. Our crew lives near McCormick Place, so nothing for flights, hotels or travel lands on your invoice. HIMSS27 runs April 5–8, 2027, with the exhibition open Tuesday to Thursday, April 6–8. The conference is held every year and moves to Chicago for 2027. Booking five to six weeks ahead gives you the widest pick of people, and rush orders work with 72 hours’ notice.
| Show | HIMSS27 Global Health Conference & Exhibition |
|---|---|
| Dates | April 5–8, 2027 · preconference Mon, April 5 |
| Exhibition | Tue–Thu, April 6–8, 2027 |
| Hall hours | Tue 10:15 a.m.–5:30 p.m. · Wed 10 a.m.–5:30 p.m. · Thu 10 a.m.–2 p.m. |
| Venue | McCormick Place Convention Center, Chicago |
| Visitors | CIOs, CMIOs, nurses, informaticists, IT and security leads, payers |
| Rate | $85 per person per hour · 4-hour minimum |
| Lead time | 5–6 weeks ideal · 72 hours for rush |
The demo is great when the product lead runs it, then falls apart on the second day when he is in meetings.
Hundreds of screens, many visitors with only a few minutes, and buyers who want a closed room before they talk numbers.
Hosts who can repeat one short demo exactly, scan every badge and route deep questions to your experts.
A briefed Chicago crew at $85 an hour each, sized to your screens, talks and meeting room.
A HIMSS booth sells trust before it sells software. Calm, well-dressed people who look like one team tell a hospital buyer that the company behind the screen is organized too. Every photo here shows a real Purple Exhibits crew at work, and that same polish comes with you to HIMSS.
A booth rep in a crisp white blouse holds a tablet and talks one-to-one with a visitor beside a product display. It is the everyday HIMSS moment: a short, calm explanation that ends with a scan and a booked follow-up.
Back to the cover photo ↑Real Purple Exhibits events.
Health system buyers expect a professional, quiet look. Choose one style for the whole crew, or mix by zone: blazers in the theater, soft separates in the meeting room. You send any logo pieces; our coordinators collect sizes and check fit before day one.
A pressed white blouse, dark trousers or skirt and a branded lanyard, like the rep on our cover. Clean and calm under bright booth lights.
Best for: Demo pods, lead deskBlouses, knit tops, open-collar shirts and a light blazer in a shared color family, the look in Fig. 1.
Best for: Meeting rooms, hosted buyersA black or charcoal blazer over a plain top, with a headset mic clipped at the collar.
Best for: Booth theater, live demosA logo quarter-zip or polo, dark chinos and clean sneakers for long shifts on carpet.
Best for: Startups, busy inline boothsAt HIMSS the crew follows your demo screens, booth talks and meeting room, not your square footage. Set them below, pick your days and read the crew and the cost for each day.
Eight services for HIMSS exhibitors, from the demo screen at the aisle to the customer dinner that night. Whatever the job, the price stays $85 an hour for each person.
Our models catch hospital and health system buyers in the aisle and bring them in with one question about workflow, data or security.
Ambassadors scan badges, hand out your take-away after the scan and keep traffic flowing to each demo pod.
For a launch or a media slot, promotional models unveil the release on cue and hold the audience at your stage.
Hostesses run the meeting room and the client lounge, greet booked guests by name and bring water between sessions.
Demonstrators learn the short version of your software demo and give it the same way from Tuesday morning to Thursday afternoon.
Check-in staff run guest lists for hotel suites, customer dinners and receptions across Chicago during HIMSS week.
Reps ask your qualifying questions, tag each lead by role and book the next call before the visitor moves on.
HIMSS26 drew more than 6,000 international professionals. Ask early for Spanish, Polish, Arabic or another language and we look for Chicago staff who speak it.
For software booths we usually lead with our product demonstrators for live software demos and our lead capture staff who scan and qualify every visitor. Planning the booth build, freight and show forms as well? Read our HIMSS 2027 exhibitor guide.
A sample island with three demo pods, a small theater, a lead desk and a closed meeting room. Select a zone to read the job of the person posted there; the numbered dots match the legend.
Sample 30×40 island drawn for this page only. Send your HIMSS27 plan and we mark staff positions on it before move-in.
One workflow, start to finish, on a screen at counter height: an order, a chart update or a discharge. A demo host runs the short scripted version and calls your clinical specialist when a nurse or physician wants detail.
Visitors ask what the model does with their data. The host shows the dashboard story you approved and books a deeper session for anyone who asks about validation, pricing or integration.
Security and integration leads want standards, APIs and architecture. A host keeps the pod clear, scans the badge and brings your engineer in so the main demo keeps running.
Short talks on a schedule pull a crowd. A presenter or MC opens each session, a host fills seats from the aisle, and the lead desk scans everyone as they leave.
Badge scans happen here, with two or three questions you approve. Each lead is tagged by role: executive, clinician, IT and security, or partner.
One question at the aisle decides the route: are you here for clinical workflow, data or security? The greeter walks the visitor to the right pod.
Health system buyers rarely talk price in the open. The room host works from your calendar, ends each meeting on schedule and warns your account lead as soon as the next buyer turns up.
Brands that have booked Purple
The organizer reports that 31% of HIMSS26 attendees were in the C-suite and 18% worked in IT. Each group asks a different first question, so our hosts know where to send every one of them.
They askHow does this fit our current EHR and what does rollout take?
We hand them toAccount lead, in the meeting room
They askShow me the workflow from the clinician’s side.
We hand them toClinical specialist at the workflow pod
They askHow many clicks does this save on a normal shift?
We hand them toDemo host, then a clinical specialist
They askWhich standards and APIs do you support, and how is data protected?
We hand them toSolutions engineer at the security pod
They askWhat does this change for claims, coding or billing?
We hand them toPayer or revenue cycle lead
They askWhere is this deployed today, and with whom?
We hand them toExecutive or partnerships lead
The job behind each title at a software booth, a sensible headcount and the latest week to lock each one in.
| Role | What they do at HIMSS | How many | Book by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Software demo host | Runs your approved short demo on one screen and calls your specialist for clinical or technical depth | One per demo screen | 6 weeks out |
| Theater presenter or MC | Opens each booth talk, introduces your speaker and keeps the schedule on time | One per theater | 6 weeks out |
| Meeting room host | Checks booked buyers against your calendar and keeps each room on time | One per meeting room | 5 weeks out |
| Lead capture rep | Badge scanning plus your qualifying questions, with every lead marked by job role | One per two or three pods | 5 weeks out |
| Aisle greeter or trade show model | Stops passing visitors, finds out why they came and takes them to the matching pod | One per open side | 4 weeks out |
| Event hostess | Checks guests in at hotel suites, dinners and receptions during HIMSS week | Two per event | 3 weeks out |
People who can open a clinical software demo in plain words, scan a CIO's badge without slowing the conversation and keep a private meeting room on schedule. These are the five roles we send to HIMSS.
Presenters on a headset mic who walk health system buyers through one clear workflow on your demo screen.
Ambassadors who scan each visitor badge at the aisle and ask the one question that sends them to the right pod.
Hosts at your signature station, the screen where clinicians try the interface and see the result in seconds.
Hostesses who welcome booked guests into your client lounge or meeting suite and keep each meeting on time.
Reps with a tablet who qualify each buyer by role and book the follow-up call before the visitor walks on.
Send your demo listScreens, talks and meeting rooms.
We learn the scriptEach host runs your demo before doors open.
Leads tagged by roleExecutive, clinician, IT, partner.
With more than 900 exhibitors on the HIMSS26 floor, most visitors give a booth about a minute before they decide to stay. We train every host on the same five steps, so the minute ends in a scan and a next step.
The same routine runs at other tech shows we staff. Our AWS re:Invent booth staff handle cloud software demos in Las Vegas, and our ProMat booth staff work McCormick Place later in April 2027.
HIMSS27 is held at McCormick Place Convention Center, the largest convention campus in North America. Your booth number decides which building your crew reports to, so we plan call times and entrances around it.
The North and South buildings are joined, so a staff swap between them is an indoor walk. Send the hall and booth number and we pick the nearest door.
The West Building joins the South building and opens onto the hotel side of the campus. It is a long walk from the far end of North.
Lakeside sits on the lake side of Lake Shore Drive and is linked to the rest of the campus by an enclosed walkway. Allow extra time from transit.
Transit: the CTA Green Line stops at Cermak–McCormick Place, and the Metra Electric line has a McCormick Place stop. Our Chicago crew uses both, so a morning traffic jam on Lake Shore Drive does not delay your opening.
Docks, parking and hall layouts are in our McCormick Place exhibitor guide. Exhibiting at other shows in the city this year? Our Chicago trade show staffing team covers every building on the campus and venues across the city.
Check items off while you plan; this browser remembers which ones are done.
HIMSS gives exhibitors three floor days in a packed Chicago week. Below is the official 2027 timetable, plus the jobs our Chicago people pick up before the hall opens and after it closes.
PreconferencePreconference forums need their own registration. Your crew walks the booth, learns the demos and runs each script once.
Hall opensExhibition 10:15 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Crew on site by 9:15 for a short huddle and scanner check.
Full dayExhibition 10 a.m.–5:30 p.m. A strong day for booked meetings in your room.
Short dayExhibition 10 a.m.–2 p.m. A smaller, shorter crew covers the last visitors and the close.
Typical HIMSS crews for common booth sizes, all at $85 an hour each. Use the Crew Rx builder for your exact screens, talks and days.
| Booth | Typical crew per shift | People | Per day | Whole show |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10×10 inline | One demo host who also scans, plus one aisle greeter | 2 | $1,360 | $4,080 |
| 10×20 with two demo screens | Two demo hosts and a lead rep | 3 | $2,040 | $6,120 |
| 20×20 island | Three demo hosts, a lead rep and a greeter | 5 | $3,400 | $10,200 |
| 20×30 with a meeting room | A host per demo screen (3), a scanner rep, an aisle greeter and a room host | 6 | $4,080 | $12,240 |
| 30×40 island with theater | Three demo hosts, a presenter, a seat host, two lead reps, a greeter, a meeting host and a relief host | 10 | $6,800 | $20,400 |
| Hotel suite or dinner only | One host at the door list and one inside the suite | 2 | $1,360 | $4,080 |
8-hour days × 3 show days × $85 per person per hour. No travel, hotel or agency markup.
Picture a 20×30 space with three demo screens and one meeting room. It needs six people a shift: a host per screen, one scanner rep, one aisle greeter and one person running the room. Here is that team booked locally in Chicago next to six people flown in from out of town.
| HIMSS27 20×30, three exhibition days | Cost |
|---|---|
| Purple local staff | |
| Travel, hotel, per-diem | $0 |
| Your HIMSS total |
| Typical fly-in agency, same team | Cost |
|---|---|
| Staff hours at $85 | |
| Round-trip flights ~$420 each | |
| Hotel South Loop and downtown, HIMSS week · ~$329/night | |
| Per-diem ~$79/day | |
| Fly-in total |
How the choices stack up for HIMSS27 exhibitors, row by row.
| Purple local crew | Fly-in staffing agency | General temp agency | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hourly rate | $85 per person, every role | Agency rate plus travel markup | Low hourly, untrained for booths |
| Getting staff here | They commute in | Flights (~$420) and hotel nights (~$329) | Local, but unscreened |
| HIMSS venue know-how | Works these halls all year | Learns the venue on show day | Hit or miss |
| The HIMSS edge | Each host runs your demo before doors open. | Not local | Not specialised |
| Product briefing | Included before day one | Varies by agency | Rarely |
| Scanner and follow-up | Notes in the scanner for sales | Depends on the team | Untrained |
| Exhibit and staff together | Design, build and staff | People only | People only |
Fly-in costs use the same typical HIMSS rates as the budget above. Other agencies’ pricing varies.
Takes a few minutes. Asking is free.
We’ll email your quote within 24 hours, usually much sooner. Need it now? Call (800) 994-8030.
When your product lead is pulled into a meeting, the screen goes dark. Give each screen its own host who knows the short version.
Use demo logins with sample records only. Our hosts never ask for or open live systems.
Talks need someone in the aisle filling chairs five minutes before each start time. Put it on the schedule.
A CIO and a nurse need different follow-ups. Tag every scan before the visitor walks off.
The hall closes at 2 p.m. on the last day. Book a smaller, shorter Thursday crew and spend the budget on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Prefer the phone? Dial (800) 994-8030 and mention HIMSS.
One price covers them all: $85 an hour per person, four hours minimum each shift. A demo host costs the same as a meeting host, a scanner rep or a model. Since the crew is based around Chicago, you never see a travel charge.
HIMSS27 runs April 5–8, 2027, at McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago. Monday, April 5 is the preconference day, and the conference and exhibition run Tuesday to Thursday, April 6–8. The organizer lists hall hours of 10:15 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Wednesday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday.
Yes. The HIMSS Global Health Conference & Exhibition takes place every year, and the host city changes. HIMSS26 was held in Las Vegas in March 2026, and HIMSS27 moves to Chicago in April 2027.
Our hosts run the short, scripted version of your demo on sample data and answer first questions. Your own clinical and technical experts handle deep product questions, pricing and anything that needs a live system.
Count your demo screens first. Plan one host per screen, a lead rep for every two or three screens, a greeter per open side and a host for each meeting room or theater. The Crew Rx builder on this page does the math per day.
After the scan, the rep asks the few questions your team wrote and marks the visitor as an executive, clinician, IT or security lead, payer or partner. Sales then sees at a glance which follow-ups come first.
Five to six weeks before April 6 gives you the widest choice of people. April is busy at McCormick Place, so earlier is better. Rush orders still work with 72 hours’ notice.
Your booth number and the floor plan tell you. McCormick Place has the North, South and West buildings plus the Lakeside Center. Send us your booth number and we plan call times and the best entrance.
Purple Exhibits books Chicago locals who reach the campus by the Green Line, Metra Electric or car. That keeps airfare and hotel nights off your invoice; the only charge is $85 per person per hour, four hours minimum.
Yes. Some exhibitors take a single Tuesday shift, cover only a launch block or staff just the short Thursday. Four hours is the minimum per person, and extra days can be added later as long as we can brief the new people.
Usually. Thousands of HIMSS visitors come from outside the US, and Chicago has large Spanish- and Polish-speaking communities. Name the languages on your request; a bilingual host costs the regular $85 an hour.
No. Ask your team to set up demo logins with sample records only. Our hosts work the guest side of the demo and never log into live clinical systems.
During HIMSS week we hold backup people in Chicago who already know your brief. One of them is at your booth within two hours; if not, that shift costs you nothing.
No. Exhibitors hire Purple Exhibits on their own; we have no tie to HIMSS or to Informa Markets, the company that runs the HIMSS Global Health Conference & Exhibition.
Yes. Our exhibit team designs and installs HIMSS booths at McCormick Place, from demo pods to booth theaters and closed meeting rooms, and the same project manager plans the crew.
Many health IT deals move forward at dinners and suites, not on the floor. Our Chicago crew covers those events too.
Arrival, seating plans and gift handoff for health system guests.
We send: Hostesses, greetersInvite-only product previews and partner talks with a checked guest list.
We send: Suite hosts, check-in staffName badges, seating and timekeeping for invited CIO groups.
We send: Registration staff, meeting hostsRSVP lists, seat plans and the hand-off of the product at the big moment.
We send: Door hosts, product presentersCoats, photo backdrops and the VIP door for customer evenings.
We send: Brand ambassadors, hostsStaffing by show
Chicago and this show
Staffing by role
Purple Exhibits is an independent exhibit and staffing company. We staff exhibitors at HIMSS27; we are not affiliated with HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) or Informa Markets, which produce the HIMSS Global Health Conference & Exhibition. Show names belong to their owners.
Send your demo list and booth number. A HIMSS27 price within one business day.
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