The Exhibitor's Resource – Trade Show Marketing Blog

Just after the fall busy season is a great time to look back at your 2009 Exhibiting successes and to consider your 2010 schedule. What shows were your best performers? Where could you expand your company’s presence to get more out of your event marketing effort? One strategy employed by some of our clients is to seek out shows in vertical markets outside of their primary industry in order to access to new business.

Take a look at your top 5-10 clients. What trade shows are they exhibiting at? Would it make sense for your company to have a presence at their industry shows? Would this give you an opportunity to get in front of similar companies who have similar needs for your products and services? Often, exhibitors become so focused on their own industry that they miss opportunities in other vertical markets. But having a presence at shows in industries that your company supports or works with gives you the opportunity to stand out in a less saturated field. It may even be worth investigating exhibiting at a show that your competitors’ top clients exhibit at.

Have you already been applying this strategy with success? Great! Perhaps there are still some niche vertical markets that are still untapped. Seek out regional shows or new shows that shift the focus slightly towards your best target audience. Test out these additional shows with a portable inline trade show display with graphics tailored to the attendees at that show.

Popularity: 13% [?]

If you are rolling out a new product or are re-launching your brand, you are probably anxious to get out on the road and in front of new customers, prospects and the industry media. But no matter what the focus of your trade show effort is, you should put thoughtful consideration into which trade shows you exhibit at.  Research has shown that picking trade shows or events that are a good fit is a major factor in the number of qualified trade show leads acquired at the show. Below are some tips to help narrow the list of trade shows you plan to exhibit at:

1. Get Answers to Your Questions
Basic trade show questions include “What audience do I want to reach at this trade show?” and “What outcome will make this trade show a success?”

2. Do Some Legwork
To determine whether a trade show might be a good fit, find as much as possible about the show demographics. Check the list of previous exhibitors and cross reference the information provided by the trade show management company. Try to connect with past exhibitors and attendees to get a feel for how successful previous shows have been. Read news articles about past shows and try to learn if the show is growing or not.

3. Consider the Venue’s Geographic Location
Typically 40-60% of trade show attendees are from within a 200-mile radius of the trade show site. Think about your distribution area and target customer and determine whether the attendees match that target audience.

4. Large or Small Trade Show?
Try to think about what type of trade show traffic you would ideally like and then compare large shows with smaller, vertical market shows. It’s possible that your business model would benefit from a trade show with smaller attendance numbers, but with more relevant attendee traffic. Niche trade show audiences may include key decision makers looking for your particular offering.

Popularity: 5% [?]

The creative, technical and project management expertise that Exhibit Resources has become known for is frequently tapped for projects other than just trade show displays and exhibits. We regularly design custom corporate interiors, retail spaces, showrooms, and welcome centers as well.

But we have a great idea for exhibitors who might want to bring the impact of large format graphics to the office right now: Why not set up your trade show display in the lobby of your corporate headquarters? After all, even though our custom modular displays are engineered to be light weight and compact for shipping, they are also designed to reflect a high-end and refined aesthetic. Displays like the Lumiture based one shown below can help with interior space definition while vibrantly welcoming your guests and introducing your brand. If your trade show display features integrated AV presentations or shows off product samples in display cases, even better.

Just keep in mind that as your trade show calendar fills up, perhaps with more vertical market or niche trade shows, you may decide to have a second display produced specifically for your lobby. And although it’s true that for more permanent lobby displays you have even more flexibility in how elements are integrated with the existing interior architecture, there is still good reason to keep lobby display structure at least somewhat mobile. With all of the strategic trade show marketing you’ve been doing, along with the positive impression you’ve made on visitors to your facility, you’ll be moving to a larger office space soon, and you’ll be able to bring your lobby display with you.

Popularity: 30% [?]

While aspects of the face-to-face marketing industry – which includes trade shows, special events, meetings, conventions, and the related travel & hospitality - have all felt the effects of budget cuts in the past year, there is plenty of justification to continue this type of highly effective marketing.

According to a recent survey of Fortune 1,000 Chief Marketing Officers, meetings and events provide the highest return on investment of any marketing channel. According to a recent study by CEIR, the Center for Exhibit Industry Research, exhibitions and events remained at the top of MarCom spending, accounting for 20% of the budget despite reductions in overall marketing spending.

Still, as a result of the downturn, exhibition budgets for 2009 are down by 17% and an equal 17% of exhibitors have reported that they will participate in fewer shows in 2009. The US Travel Association estimates that 200,000 travel related jobs were lost in 2008 and expect another 247,000 to be lost in 2009 According to the results of a Meetings and Conventions magazine, 52% of respondents claim that the economic downturn has influenced their company’s decision to hold events.

So why should companies still exhibit during an economic downturn?

To Close Deals & Sell More Product – Why would you want to shut off a stream of revenue when every bit counts?  Studies have shown that sustained marketing during a recession yields higher sales in the short term. And market share increases accomplished in while weathering a recession are often maintained or expanded during the recovery and subsequent boom years.

To Remain “Top of Mind” for Prospects and Existing Customers – Let them know that your company is still strong, or maybe even take this opportunity to kick it up a notch and stake your claim to the top player position in your niche.

To Take Advantage of Less a Crowded Space – Perhaps your company can secure more prominent booth space that may have been vacated by the competition. And with fewer exhibitors, there will be less noise, allowing your message get through and resonate longer with attendees and the media.

To Make High Quality Connections – Although the industry has seen a drop in the number of total show attendees and the sizes of booth spaces have been reduced, the QUALITY of the visitor now is much better. Companies may no longer be sending 25 reps to a conference or industry expo, now it’s maybe 10 or 12 – but those that they are being sent are the key decision makers and top representatives of companies you are looking to connect with. While companies are watching travel and entertainment expenses, they still feel that it’s important for their staff to stay connected, stay current on emerging trends in their industry, and to participate in education opportunities typically offered in conjunction with trade shows and other events.

Face-to-Face marketing experiences are personal, sensorial, tactile, emotional, and tangible.  No alternate or surrogate for that kind of direct contact exists.

Popularity: 22% [?]

A - Get the word out to prospects, clients and trade show attendees ahead of the conference.
B - Make the most out of every minute on the expo floor, and then network as much as you can to drive traffic to your exhibit outside of expo hours.
C - Follow-up on show leads and other connections immediately and persistently after the trade show, or even while still at the show.

A) Pre-show mailers, email blasts, and calls to set up at-show appointments are the three tasks you and your team should be focused on one to two months ahead of your show. Your team’s goal is to “get on the dance card” of every potential customer. Consider an incentive to get pre-qualified prospects to your exhibit space. Take advantage of show-sponsored marketing tools, such as postcard mailings to all attendees, or email blasts to lists of attendees from your target segment. Many shows can break out lists of just your target audience, often by their professional title.

B) Schedule enough booth staff to cover your exhibit space for the entirety of the expo hours, factoring in snack, lunch, and bio breaks. Make sure that knowledgeable staff are available continuously until the show hall is empty. Once you and your team leave the expo floor, make an effort to connect with prospects and clients at after hours receptions and networking events. Encourage those you meet outside of expo hours to drop by your trade show booth to see that demo or meet with that colleague that has experience with their situation. Do everything you can to drive traffic to your booth on the next show day.

C) If you’ve done A and B, you’ll have a long list of interested prospects to call on after the show. This is a great problem to have, but you need a strategy in place to make sure you turn those leads into sales. One idea is to handle as many requests and follow-ups as you can while still at the show. This offsets the work you’ll need to do when you return to the office, but also ensures that you are seen as responsive and engaged. But once you’re back to the routine of the office, it’s important to make time for proper follow-up on all of the leads acquired at the show.

Popularity: 15% [?]

There is a new gadget in the seasoned exhibitor’s toolbox – the Digital Media Display. For several years now, it has been very common to see LCD screens running demos and video clips within trade show display spaces. However, until now, these eye-catching bursts of color and movement have been difficult to integrate into the trade show display architecture because they need to be attached to a DVD player or computer. Housing that equipment in a hidden or attractive, yet secure location hasn’t been easy. But now there are Digital Media players built right into LCD display units, providing exhibitors with an easy to manage AV display option. These integrated systems contain firmware that allows an exhibit marketing pro to upload their content, whether a slideshow of still images, a video clip, or another presentation, to the unit and configure the playback settings. No more worrying about shipping both the display screen and the computer or DVD player, no more worries about hiding cables between the display and the unit. The “brain” of the units is built-in, and a lock secures your content and prevents you from being the victim of high-end AV theft. The most sophisticated Digital Media Displays even allow remote content updates, eliminating a laborious manual content change in large trade show exhibits with many demo units.

Exhibit Resources has partnered with a Digital Media Display expert to deliver turn-key AV solutions to our clients. Let us know if you need creative help with building this type of technology into your new or existing trade show display.

Popularity: 28% [?]

No Sitting!
There is no reason for booth staff to sit while in the exhibit space, unless your exhibit space has a lounge area or conference are and you’re having a productive conversation with a prospect or client. Booth staff need to be up and actively reaching out to potential visitors. Sitting behind a table creates a barrier between booth staff and visitors. Booth staff should wear the most comfortable professional looking shoes they have. And schedule your staff so that they can take regular breaks to rest those legs and feet.

Absolutely No Eating or Drinking!
Schedule breaks and lunches for you and your staff so that staffers can have snacks or meals somewhere else other than in the booth space. And leave the coffee cups and soda cans in the food court, you’ll be able to get more at the next break. And think twice about that stick of gum, a mint might be the better option.

No mobile phone usage or texting.
Of course these days it’s very easy to quickly check your email or txt messages on a smart phone, but while you’re representing your company in your booth space, you shouldn’t reply to those messages or receive or place calls. Set your email outgoing message to let your clients know that you’ll be at the show, and will return their calls ASAP if you happen to be unavailable when they call. Adhering to this rule will ensure that you are available to make eye contact with show attendees and effectively engage them in conversation when there is interest.

Never leave an booth unattended.
Be sure to schedule booth staff so that breaks and meals are accommodated. It’s wise to try and have two staffers in even the smallest booth space, just so that there is some overlap in case one person must leave. An unattended booth during show hours is the just like a store being closed during the posted “open” hours. Again, you’ve spent enough money to reserve the booth space, design and set up your display, get staff to the show, so get the most our of ever expo hour with a staffed booth.

Don’t neglect housekeeping.
All booth staffers, no matter how much of a super-star they may be, need to be vigilant about keeping the booth space neat and tidy. Keep trash cans out of sight, personal belongings in storage areas, pick up any trash that appears in the booth, place furniture back into the default locations when visitors leave, replace any light bulbs that may burn out, vacuum the carpet at the beginning of expo hours, and generally do whatever you can to keep your space looking its best.

Popularity: 27% [?]