9 Tips for your next Exhibition or Tradeshow

We know that standing out from the crowd at a trade show or exhibition can be a real challenge.

You have or will invest a lot of time and money to be at this event, so it is important that you have the best chance to get a fantastic return on your investment generating leads and possibly sales on the day.

Here are 9 tips to help you stand out from your competitors.

Have your business cards ready!
You’d be surprised how many trade show attendees forget to bring their business cards. Don’t be one of them.
Wear Customised Apparel.
Wear personalised clothing, such as customised t-shirts, hats, jackets, shoes or if your really game a costume or morph suit to promote your company and your products; you will find many trade show attendees will enjoy the relaxed, friendly and fun atmosphere.
Take Risks and Have Fun.
The business with the biggest booth doesn’t necessarily win at the end of the day – the business and team that generates the most buzz does. Work on ways to have some fun, to be interactive and overall be memorable.
Pass out Freebies.
Everyone likes something free, while sweet treats are always great, think about something that has a bit more longevity that your prospects are more likely to hold onto. People tend to keep useful and interesting promotional items, so choose your giveaway items carefully as it will help ensure you have a great ROI.
Train your team.
Not only to ensure that they have the necessary product knowledge, but also to be upstanding, friendly, personable, open, and honest. You will likely have a number of competitors at trade shows and your prospects will be more likely to spend time with those in the know. Ensure your team is also trained to move about the stand – I know it should go without saying, but how many times have you gone to an event and seen people at a booth that are sitting down seeming disinterested, annoyed or cranky. Make sure you and your team always have a smile and that you take the time to interact with potential clients and answer any questions they may have.
Have quality hand-outs at the ready.
This does not necessarily mean print 10’s of thousands of flyers, brochures and or catalogues. Our advice is that if the demand is there, hand-out to all those genuinely interested, otherwise don’t just pass it to everyone as they walk past. We love print, but not when it is unnecessarily dumped. You can even have different levels of hand-outs for different levels of interest i.e. hand a flyer to someone passing by who says “do you have something I can read later as I’m in a rush”, through to someone you have just spent 20 minutes with and they want to go away to consider – maybe you have a catalogue or brochure with a lot more content and substance for this client.
Have a no brainer offer.
Everyone goes to trade shows expecting to see great offers – so don’t disappoint them, be sure to have a no-brainer trade show offer too. Here’s a awesome tip that I know can help generate some great leads by embracing the power of digital printing and working with companies and teams like us at Same Day Printing. If you’re displaying at a multi-day event and/or get the opportunity to set-up the day before – Check out what your competitors are offering at the start of the show, and use Same Day Printing to see if you can offer something different or more enticing.
Have a Competition.
Yes it should go without saying, but it is amazing how many expo’s and events I still go too and there is no lead capturing tool. You have just spent thousands on most occasions to be at the event, so don’t lose the opportunity to follow up on general leads and sales afterwards. Sure, not everyone enters, or want’s to enter, but it is a great opportunity to grab potential prospects’ details. Have a competition to win something of reasonable value to your prospects and collect details to include in a follow-up marketing campaign after the trade show. – Be sure to inform them on the competition form that you will be touching base.
Have a Follow-up Campaign.
This is paramount – a non-negotiable! You have spent the time and the money in speaking with people and collecting names, don’t let it go to waste. While there is no silver bullet in marketing, there is also no need to have a full blown cross media campaign, but you should have a basic 3 touch point campaign, this can be made up using a combination of a number of communication tools such as phone call, email, or direct mail.

For example, you could:

1
Send an email, followed by a phone call and then followed by another email
2
Send an email, followed by a postcard and then followed by a phone call
3
Try A&B Testing and try both and see which gets the better response and results.

As you can appreciate that this is by no means the full list of activities, however it should help to ensure your next trade show, event or conference exhibition is even more successful.

Remember, even when time is short, don’t miss out on an opportunity to promote your business.

Wishing you all the best for creating and actioning effective and efficient marketing at your next Trade Show, Exhibition or Event.

Cheers

Tom Dickson

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9 Tips for your next Exhibition or Tradeshow

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