The Exhibit Source Blog

Trade shows are your company’s chance to debut a new product, find better vendors and suppliers, reach out to potential clients and find new talent to bring in to your company. But if you want to grab people’s attention at a trade show, then you will need to make and follow a plan and use some good trade show techniques. The company that is prepared to maximize the opportunities at a trade show is the company that will walk away feeling like the investment in the event was worth it.

Marketing Materials

One of the biggest mistakes companies make when they prepare for a trade show is a mediocre trade show display and deciding to use the existing marketing materials they have on hand. In order to make a big impact at a trade show, you need to give people something that will make your products stand out. You need to have new marketing materials and pop up trade show displays made up for the products and services you will be featuring at the show.

Make and Follow a Plan

Your company is investing a lot of money into being on a trade show floor. Do not go into the show without having a plan. Your trade show booth may look impressive, but if you do not have a message for attendees that they can understand, then you will not draw traffic.

If you want to release new products at this trade show, then develop your approach around those products. If you are going to use this trade show to try and attract new distributors for your products, then you will need a presentation more geared towards the benefits of doing business with your company as opposed to just product benefits.

Have the Right Team

If you are focusing on product sales at the show, then you will need sales people and you will need product engineers to answer detailed questions. If your presence at the show is designed to attract vendors or distributors, then you will want members of the logistics team, marketing department and executive team on hand to make a good impression.

The Giveaway

Too many companies underestimate the power of the free giveaway at trade shows. Giving away toys or notepads with your company logo on them is nice, but if you give people something they can use word will travel fast among the crowds.

When you have a good plan for a trade show, then you can maximize your investment in show resources. Take the time to plan your presence in advance so that you can attract more visitors and collect more useful information.

LuxeLounge

Trade shows allow businesses a setting in to find new business leads, new clients and to attend to existing customers. In theory, trade shows provide one-stop-shopping with hundreds of potential clients under one roof. Seems like the perfect opportunity right?
   
Face to face contact with companies is a more efficient approach than calling or emailing prospective clients.   

The reality is very different.  The scale of many events and exhibitions can quickly overwhelm those very clients you are trying to attract. The right trade show exhibit can help. Exhibitors attend shows to reach sales targets, your trade show display needs to attract people to your booth so you don’t have to go looking for them.

Trade shows are great opportunities to network, build relationships with customers, and invite prospects to explore your goods or services. Try to plan your space and use your location to your advantage. But most importantly, promote yourself before the trade show. Let  your potential and existing customers know where you are going to be and offer them a show special.

For assistance in creating the perfect trade show booth, contact The Exhibit Source.

Trade shows take a lot of hard work, logistical planning and budgeting. From securing the space, figuring out what to display and outfitting the booth, there are many details that have to be managed.

But trade shows can generously pay off in quality leads, credibility, awareness and insight if they are well planned and executed.

Make your trade show investment a wise investment. Start by setting objectives. Identify what you want to accomplish by being there. Do you want to generate sales leads, increase brand awareness, promote a new product or service?

When exhibiting at a trade show, you'll need to consider the costs of registration, travel, lodging, meals and transportation, and the cost of your booth space, which will vary by size and location. Research what booths will be around you and identify whether the site is a high-traffic or low-traffic area. The budget also will need to include booth fixtures such as signage, additional lighting, extra-thick carpeting, giveaways for booth visitors, etc.

Your trade show display should represent your company's overall image, so keep it tidy and organized, display products in a way that will draw customers into your booth, and place marketing materials in easy-to-find areas. And if your booth space allows, have seating available.

Hold a short training session for booth staffers to explain the objectives and what is expected of them at the show. Be sure supplies are on hand to conduct business: product literature, pens, paper, business cards, media kits and order forms. Check to make sure any slideshow presentation or internet connections are working properly.

Attracting attendees should be one of your key objectives. In addition to friendly customer service and an appealing trade show exhibit, branded giveaways should be something attendees can take away from the show and use.

Once you get show participants into your booth, staffers should provide friendly and timely greetings, and be prepared to answer questions, offer demonstrations, and be able to create interest in your products or services.

Post-show follow-up is crucial. Send an email, letter or make a phone call shortly after the show wraps up to thank those you met with, answer any further questions and provide additional information.

With adequate preparation, the right trade show exhibit, the right booth staff and timely follow-up, trade shows give businesses the opportunity to build strong relationships and ultimately turn those relationships into valued customers.

Original article – Post Crescent

Trade shows. For a small to medium sized company, preparing for them can be time consuming and overwhelming. What are some of the DO’s and DON’Ts of  trade show exhibits? Deciding what to include in your exhibit and how to set it up is one of the first decisions you’ll have to make. But even prior to that: how big is your booth and do you have electricity?

Once you have the answers to these questions, you can begin to think about the actual trade show displays, what you want and what you can do.

Don’t Jam Pack it. Often simple is better. Overcrowding a booth with products, logos, displays and information turn people away and don’t send a clear message of why attendees should stop there.

Make your message simple. What is the main objective? Is there one main product you want to push or introduce? Having fewer, but larger visual elements in your exhibit will reduce clutter and get more attention from attendee’s while creating a lasting impression.

Just a few products. Don’t bring your entire product line to the trade show. Just show the products you want to showcase or the products that make you the highest profit margin.

Moving trade show displays are better than static ones. Have something rotating or moving. At the least, have a tv showing a looping video.
 
If you have a large trade show booth, be sure to have an area set aside, with table and chairs to bring prospective customers to sit and chat.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss your trade show display, contact the Exhibit Source. 

A business needs great planning to master the deadline-driven world of trade shows.

Too often, important marketing planning gets overshadowed by urgent logistics planning. Because of the flood of deadlines, businesses get more distracted by the “what to do” rather than the “why to do” it.

But, it’s just as essential to plan your marketing. Things such as your goals for the show, your marketing messages for your graphics and staffers and creating a promotional trade show booth that will get more of the right people to your space.

In regards to your trade show booth –
Four months out:

• Pick Booth Staffers: Review last year’s qualified lead counts by booth staffer to identify the staffers you want. Be sure they can attend. Ask your best booth staffers who else they would recommend.
• Research Technology: Consider how you can integrate technology into your trade show exhibit to help get more attention, tell your story, and facilitate better conversations between attendees and booth staffers.
• Invite Exhibit Builders: If building a new trade show booth, set appointments to meet with exhibit builders and give them access to your key marketing decision-makers.

• Choose Staffers: Finalize your booth staff choices.
• Order Services: Order any show services you need according to your list from the show book.
• Choose Your Exhibit Builder: Award the new build and then continue to quickly and thoughtfully respond to their questions and requests for graphics art to ensure timely completion of your new trade show exhibit.
• Order Promotions: Select and order any promotional items you will be mailing pre-show. Some can take only a few days, some can take over a month, depending where they are made and imprinted.