Trade Shows & Dating – What Do They Have in Common?!
It’s not always the loudest person, or the flashiest dresser, who gets the dates. Attracting suitors in any setting is just as often accomplished through less obvious means. It’s no different with custom trade show displays.
Projecting an image of substance, quality, sophistication, class, mystery, or confidence can arouse enough interest so that someone will want to investigate a little further. Your goal should be to set yourself apart amidst all the confusion, busy activity, and visual and audio stimulation. Be noticeable and inviting, without appearing crude or desperate.
Some valuable strategies you might consider adopting to assure the effectiveness of your custom trade show displays are:
Placing yourself where you are likely to be noticed by the right people.
Going to more parties, or trade shows, increases your odds of finding somebody. Look for expos with high traffic. Focus on those with traffic that is likely to be appropriate for your product or service, and your price point.
Location, location, location. That’s the old formula for business success. A prime location for your retail store gets you traffic. The same goes for your custom trade show displays. While attendees at trade shows intend to see as many exhibits as they possibly can, they have limited time and energy.
The best booth locations will have the most traffic. Some will see people passing by their display several times, due to their proximity to entrances or locations in the center areas, while some in far corners may never see some of the people at all.
Proximity to other popular exhibits might either attract traffic and attention to your exhibit, or overshadow your booth to the point it is not noticeable. A location next to one of your strong competitors might not be desirable unless you have competitive advantages that you can easily and quickly highlight.
Arousing curiosity and making yourself approachable. You only have a few seconds as people walk buy, to grab their attention. This can be accomplished in several ways:
- Size does matter. The largest display at the event will be noticed.
- Defining your space with sidewalls, flooring, and overhead banners can help prevent your visitors from being distracted by nearby sights and activities.
- Interesting design and quality materials in your custom trade show displays will go a long way toward inducing people to stop by and make small talk.
- Flashy lighting, bold imagery, catchy phrases, and video presentations can make that first impression and spark interest that your staff can further encourage.
Making the most of your good reputation. If you have already successfully marketed your brand, make the most of that by coordinating your custom trade show displays with your general marketing strategy. If you do not yet have a reputation, here is where you start building a good one. If yours is tarnished or misunderstood, now is the time to take steps to correct that.
You will likely invest considerable time and money in your custom trade show displays. Careful planning and project guidance will help ensure a good return on that investment.
