Author: Janet Bismark, Director of Account Management, TDH Marketing, Inc.
August 2010
The fall trade show season is quickly approaching and it is an appropriate time to re-evaluate the resources you plan to invest in trade show marketing as well as the approach you will take to optimize the effectiveness of your trade show marketing efforts. With marketing budgets being tightened more and more, how do you get the most return from your trade show exhibitions? What are companies doing to increase results and stretch budgets while still having a recognizable presence at industry trade shows?
According to a study conducted by Skyline Exhibits and Tradeshow Week Magazine, respondents reported the top three methods that are being used to increase trade show results. They were ranked as:
Respondents also reported that the top three methods for stretching your exhibition budget were:
Elements for Success
A successful trade show experience begins with effective pre-planning and organization. Some of the key elements that should be addressed include:
- Establishing show selection criteria to determine which shows require an exhibit, which ones warrant attendance only and which ones should be dropped
- Identifying measurable show objectives and goals
- Planning pre-show publicity
- Evaluating the appearance of your exhibit
- Determining necessary booth staffing requirements
- Scheduling associated show activities
- Validating post-show sales lead follow up procedures
Which Shows to Choose?
Choosing the right shows to attend is the most important factor for improving results and lowering costs. Smaller regional shows are gaining the most attention of late since the cost for booth rental and booth staffing is lowest. Smaller, regional shows also often attract less competition than the larger, national and international shows and offer the chance to spend more time with each potential customer.
Large national and international shows are not to be overlooked however. They can also be valuable in maintaining company awareness of your services and products. They give you the broad-based presence needed to keep your brand in front of your customers and potential customers, and provide the opportunity to differentiate your company from competitive alternatives.
What criteria will you use in selecting the best trade shows this year? Will your decisions be based on historical experience, new product or service introduction needs, competitive presence? The most effective approach is to identify previous and projected show attendee demographics to determine if they align with your target customer profile in significant numbers to warrant exhibition.
What Do You Want to Accomplish at the Show?
Deciding what you want to accomplish at the show is one of the first things to consider after show selection has been completed. Having a clear picture of what you want to accomplish will make the exhibiting experience much more effective. Always make sure you establish the means for measurable statistical evaluation of your show objectives. Make this determination beforehand to determine what criteria you will use to honestly determine post-show success.
Promoting Your Attendance at Shows
Now that you have decided what trade shows you are going to attend and what your focus will be, the next question is how to promote your attendance. Booth traffic generation is an important element to ensure results. Pre-show promotion is shown to increase booth attendance. This in turn will increase your leads and ultimately your sales.
According to a study conducted by Skyline Exhibits and Tradeshow Week Magazine 40% of respondents are using direct mail and e-mail as the primary tactics for pre-show marketing. By promoting your attendance before the show you are giving your customers and potential customers time to make arrangements to visit your booth at the trade show.
Approximately 6% of the respondents also use pre-show drawings, giveaways and discounts to draw attendees to their booth. Some examples include pre-show coupons and e-mail blasts promoting show specials.
Exhibit Appearance
Having an eye catching, attractive exhibit space will help improve results by drawing people into your booth. The Skyline Exhibits and Tradeshow Week Magazine study indicated that 29% of the respondents who changed their graphics and signage, in turn improved their trade show results.
Graphics should be clean, bright and to the point. Avoid excessive content and concentrate on one major point of a product or service. Be sure that all booth graphics are consistent in messaging and include similar design elements. Your booth layout should include lots of open space, several entry points and minimal clutter. Focus on the most important products and limit the number of products being highlighted. This allows attendees to quickly grasp what you are trying to sell.
Adding video presentations and other technology to your booth will add even more excitement and another opportunity for discussion of a new product or service.
If your booth or graphics are outdated you should give serious thought to a redesign. An attractive booth and the right message on your graphics will make your selling job easier and more appealing. With the newest, lightweight, pop-up exhibits you can easily achieve an update without using up your entire trade show budget and the flexibility in booth design makes it simple to change graphics and booth configurations.
Who Should Staff Your Booth?
Having a great looking booth is only half of what it takes to have a successful exhibit. The staff will be responsible for engaging potential customers, educating them on what you are offering and obtaining leads or sales.
Skyline Exhibits and Tradeshow Week Magazine report in their study that approximately 55% of companies use sales people to staff their exhibit booths. Top management makes up another 14%. Using sales people and top management increases the odds for effective lead generation and sales. They are knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the products being offered, know how to present them in a favorable light and are able to answer questions effectively.
Regardless of who staffs the booth, make sure that objectives and goals are communicated to and understood by all booth workers prior to the show. Providing training on appearance and demeanor is also important. Consider purchasing company logo shirts so that the staff has a consistent look. This also helps potential customers quickly identify who is working the booth.
Show Activities
Once your booth and staff are in top shape and prepped for selling, the next step is to make sure that every effort is used to engage potential customers when they come up to the booth. Try to pre-qualify a prospect by asking for their name, position and the company they represent. Offer to send prospects additional information after the show. Not many people want to lug around your literature and it gives you the opportunity to follow up with them. Always ask for business cards or scan their attendee badge to capture contact names.
At-show promotions will also increase traffic through your booth. Giveaways and drawings are used by 37% of the respondents to the Skyline Exhibits and Tradeshow Week Magazine study. These will draw people into the booth so that you can engage them in conversation about your company and products. Live demonstrations and informational presentations are also a key component since most show attendees are seeking knowledge about products and/or services they might need.
Be enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the product. Make your sales pitch but make sure you let the sales prospect talk. Talk about the benefits of the product as they relate to the prospect.
Wrap-Up
Once the show is over and you are back in the office there are several things that need to be done to wrap-up the show.
Sending out a post-show news release and posting photos of the event on your website will also provide more coverage after the show is over.
Gather all staff and have a review meeting. The discussion should include:
Once the booth and materials are shipped back to you, make sure that everything is in working order before it is stored for the next show. This will help make the next show run smoothly.
The last thing to do is to measure the show results against the objectives and goals that were set prior to the show. Was the show a success? If not, determine what can be done differently next time so that goals are met. Trade show marketing can be highly effective and need not be oppressively expensive to be successful. Are you ready for the fall trade show season?
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