This is part 1 of the last series of Trade Shows - Exhibiting at a Trade Show - Part 1, Preparation. I will discuss some tips I have found in Exhibiting at a Trade show. I have had experience exhibiting trade shows in Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlantic City, San Diego, Las Vegas, Toronto, Orlando, Taipei, and Hong Kong. I have exhibited Educational Services, Pet Products, Computer Products, Housewares, Vision Care, and Kitchen & Bathroom Products.
Prior to the show you might want to go through this short list to see if this show is right for you.
A. Evaluation of the Trade Show
Take a look at the trade show's website and figure out if this trade show is right for you. This large ticket expenditure may or may not be the right one for you. You might find that regional trade shows might not have the target audience that you are looking for. In addition, talk to some of your customers that attended the trade show prior, they might have good or bad things about the show. Perhaps there is a competing trade show that is better that everyone one goes to.
B. Reasons to Exhibit - Branding
If you find that you did not hit your sales goals last year from a particular trade show. You might be hesitate to invest your time and make that large purchase for that trade show booth. But at the end of the day, the trade show booth helps keep your company and your name in the industry place. Maintains your brand awareness for your potential clients, current customers, and even your competitors.
C. Maintain Relationships
Networking at these events helps you and your company stay abreast of trends, practices, and ideas. You'll get a chance to meet new people in the industry that might be able to help you in the future. You might be able to hire them, or seek them for ideas or a future opportunity.
D. Speaking Engagement Opportunity
If you get the chance to present or talk at a seminar, as an expert, you'll find people seeking you out. This will help you and your business grow. If the trade show organizers inquire about you speaking on a panel or if you can create a seminar related to the trade show - these are opportunities that you should strongly consider.
Prior to the show you might want to go through this short list to see if this show is right for you.
A. Evaluation of the Trade Show
Take a look at the trade show's website and figure out if this trade show is right for you. This large ticket expenditure may or may not be the right one for you. You might find that regional trade shows might not have the target audience that you are looking for. In addition, talk to some of your customers that attended the trade show prior, they might have good or bad things about the show. Perhaps there is a competing trade show that is better that everyone one goes to.
B. Reasons to Exhibit - Branding
If you find that you did not hit your sales goals last year from a particular trade show. You might be hesitate to invest your time and make that large purchase for that trade show booth. But at the end of the day, the trade show booth helps keep your company and your name in the industry place. Maintains your brand awareness for your potential clients, current customers, and even your competitors.
C. Maintain Relationships
Networking at these events helps you and your company stay abreast of trends, practices, and ideas. You'll get a chance to meet new people in the industry that might be able to help you in the future. You might be able to hire them, or seek them for ideas or a future opportunity.
D. Speaking Engagement Opportunity
If you get the chance to present or talk at a seminar, as an expert, you'll find people seeking you out. This will help you and your business grow. If the trade show organizers inquire about you speaking on a panel or if you can create a seminar related to the trade show - these are opportunities that you should strongly consider.
I've heard of people strictly doing seminars instead of having a booth. They've done more business and gotten more contact in this manner. I'll talk about this idea of becoming a speaker, later.
Once you made your evaluation on exhibiting at the trade show, here are some tips on preparing for the show.
A. Booth Selection
If you are new to the Trade show, you probably won't be able to get the best booth location. But if you plan for it a year in advance, you might be able to get a better selection. When selecting a booth location, look for high traffic areas, near the front entrance, near restrooms, near food courts, and near larger exhibitors. In addition, about a week or so before the trade show, contact the organizers, ask them if there is an exhibitor or two that has dropped out. Ask if there is better placement for your location.
In addition, if you are working with a partner, perhaps a distributor or a regional distributor - maybe you could share the booth with them. You could help alleviate some of the costs. You might be able get a better location with a longstanding distributor who has been there a long time.
Another idea for preparation, is to consider getting a nice Hotel Suite with or without your booth. The Hotel Suite will be location where you can comfortably showcase your products to big customers. This controlled environment allows you to provide VIP service.
B, Marketing Opportunities
Prior to the Trade show, the organizers will often provide opportunities to place ads. Ads will be at the trade show as signage, in the media materials - like trade show program, and mailers. All these opportunities should be considered, at the very least. I believe the mailers are probably the most important and least considered. If you can target attendees, with a mailer, it provides them something physical to hold, lots of media space, and contact information with a call to action, that they can hold on to, even after the trade show.
C. Traveling and Logistics
If you have a booth with lots or little amounts of set ups, you may have no choice but to use the staff and workers at the trade show. Often times, their union workers that give you no choice. But you can save money if you think about what you are setting up. You can find good deals on used trade show display pieces. All you have to do is purchase and produce the artwork on the used sized trade show display pieces.
And rather than traveling with your trade show display pieces, use your discount Fedex or UPS ground accounts. If you plan accordingly, you can save money on logistics. Having them fly with you can cost substantially more.
D. Meetings
Set meeting at the trade show to see current clients. Set meetings with potential clients. And if need be, set up happy hours or lunches with new clients that you met at the trade show. Let your potential clients know that you will be there with your staff showcasing your services and products.
E. Samples and Giveaways
Make sure you have samples of your product that you can give away. You can mark this expense up as marketing expense, rather than potential sales revenue. But, you may want to considering selling them toward the last day of the show, just so you have samples to show throughout the event. This way, you can get your clients to come back to your booth.
Often times, you need a hook to get new clients to talk to you at your booth. I used to giveaway free pens (with our logo and contact info) to everyone who walked by our booth. This way, it gave you an opportunity to interact with someone, rather than wait for someone to walk in your booth. All you need is a couple people and a few thousand pens. Offer a pen or a small inexpensive logo'd item to everyone - EVERYONE, and they will most like offer the opportunity to have eye contact. Once you establish this, you can start your 5 second pitch.
Another incentive to get people to your booth that you need to prepare for - is a giveaway contest. If you scan attendee's badges and/or get their business cards, you can indicate to them that there is a giveaway contest at the end of the trade show. This provides more opportunities for you to build your new contact list. The giveaway can be anything of value - it doesn't matter.
E. Samples and Giveaways
Make sure you have samples of your product that you can give away. You can mark this expense up as marketing expense, rather than potential sales revenue. But, you may want to considering selling them toward the last day of the show, just so you have samples to show throughout the event. This way, you can get your clients to come back to your booth.
Often times, you need a hook to get new clients to talk to you at your booth. I used to giveaway free pens (with our logo and contact info) to everyone who walked by our booth. This way, it gave you an opportunity to interact with someone, rather than wait for someone to walk in your booth. All you need is a couple people and a few thousand pens. Offer a pen or a small inexpensive logo'd item to everyone - EVERYONE, and they will most like offer the opportunity to have eye contact. Once you establish this, you can start your 5 second pitch.
Another incentive to get people to your booth that you need to prepare for - is a giveaway contest. If you scan attendee's badges and/or get their business cards, you can indicate to them that there is a giveaway contest at the end of the trade show. This provides more opportunities for you to build your new contact list. The giveaway can be anything of value - it doesn't matter.
Exhibiting at a Trade Show - Part 1, Preparation
Exhibiting at a Trade Show - Part 2, The Event
Exhibiting at a Trade Show - Part 3, Follow Up
0 comments:
Post a Comment