Whether you are building your exhibition displays for the first time, or simply looking to re-energize your approach towards your trade show visibility and effectiveness, it is always a good time to re-think the most elemental aspects of your arrangement and emphasis. It is so easy to get trapped in the same fundamental approaches that the mistakes become part of your set-up and negatively impact your show.
- Precise targets: It’s not enough to just want to maximize your exposure and to get people to see your product. You want to establish who your likely audience is, create fliers and pamphlets that specifically appeal to them, and then get those informational materials into the hands of the people who are most probably going to inquire into and purchase your products. Target bombing may be easier, but it is more costly and much less efficient.
- Pick and choose: As much as it may seem to be easier to attend every industry trade show and to spend your energy on every customer who passes by your exhibition displays, this can be a waste of time and energy. Research the trade shows you are thinking about attending. If your product is similar to a dozen other booths and with relatively mediocre attendance, you may want to reconsider the potential rewards as low yield. If you can see another trade show has little exposure to your type of product, your presence is maximized with little competition. It may not be worth the expenses to transport your exhibition displays to the first type of show, but your investment will return rewards at the second example.
- Advance logistics: Not only should you plan in advance but you should always advertise your presence at a trade show in advance. First, ensure that you budget your investment wisely, with neither too little to advertise nor too much so that you waste resources. No business should come out of a trade show with an overall loss. To help your exhibition displays to advertise themselves, invite clients and potential customers to your booth before the event. After the displays are up and your ground game is established, a good amount of customers milling around your booth helps you to look like the legitimate business that you are. Nobody feels comfortable patronizing the company whose booth is desolate and empty, no matter how good their exhibition displays. If you have loyal customers, incentivize their attendance. They can see how well your business operates, and they become free advertising agents for potential customers.
In addition to creative, eye-grabbing exhibition displays and bringing friendly, outgoing customer representatives, the effectiveness of a trade show for your company relies on basic approaches. It’s easy to lose track of the trees while finding your way through the forest, or simply busy with day-to-day activities. Reevaluate your reasons for attending shows and reorient your marketing technique. It can not only save you marketing expenditures, but expand your visibility and exposure, increasing those valuable credible leads that are the reasons for attending trade shows in the first place.
For more, learn to see your displays through your visitor’s eyes or how to make your displays pay off.