22 Things Your Tradeshow Marketing Needs to Succeed

Transcription

1 22 Things Your Tradeshow Marketing Needs to Succeed by Tim founder and co- owner of Communication One Exhibits. At some point, you ll need a new or refurbished exhibit. Which means, at some point you ll need us! At another point perhaps about the same point as you need the new booth you ll need to figure out how to use social media to draw more traffic and leads to your tradeshow booth. Which means (again) that at some point you ll need us! So while you re waiting for those moments, here s our shortlist of 22 Things Your Tradeshow Marketing Needs to Succeed. In this, we take a look at your exhibit, your tradeshow booth staff, your graphics, your planning and execution. If you want the full version, check out 101 Rules of Tradeshow Marketing it s a Kindle download on Amazon.com: 1. The main job of your tradeshow booth graphics is to grab the attention of a visitor long enough to bring them into your booth to learn more. If your graphics don t clearly communicate a single, distinct message, your graphic designer isn t doing the job required. 2. Look at your exhibit as if standing in a visitor s shoes and ask: What s in it for ME? A tradeshow floor is chaotic and you have only a few seconds to grab a visitor s attention IF they even look at your booth among the hundreds or thousands of other booths. The graphic messaging and the booth design should answer the question clearly. 3. Stock your staff with outgoing happy people and show them the BIG picture as to WHY your company is using this marketing method. Tradeshow staff often are given small tasks but don t have a grasp of the overall

2 goals of the event. If they understand WHY your company is exhibiting at THIS show and what SPECIFIC GOALS are to be accomplished and HOW it s done, they have a much better chance to succeed. 4. In tradeshow design, don t underestimate the power of good lighting. Most exhibit halls have crappy ambient lighting. By using proper light, YOU control the look and can direct visitor s eyeballs by highlighting the areas you want them to see first.

3 5. Think of your tradeshow booth as a 3D version of your company. Does it truly represent who you are and what you do? If a visitor is not familiar with your company (and even if they are), they should walk away from your booth with a clear idea of what your company s brand is all about: look, feel and attitude. 6. In a tradeshow booth, you ARE your company. Act accordingly. Your image, dress and behavior are all reflections of your company. Your tradeshow staff will act much better with these ideas in mind if they re trained to do so. 7. The Number One Thing you can give a tradeshow booth visitor? A smile. 8. Your lead capture form should be customized to get exactly the information you need. No more, no less. 9. Seek to disqualify visitors. The sooner the better. For both of you. In this way you re not wasting your time or theirs. 10. Create an objection list to prepare your staff to answer all possible objections as they come up. Preparation is important, especially when your visitors want to come up with reasons NOT to buy from you. If you ve identified all of those objections and your staff has ready responses, many of those objections will vanish. 11. Eliminate the fishbowl for business cards giveaway. Business cards can t swim and fishbowls are for fish.

4 12. The signage at your show should clearly communicate what your company does and why your visitor should care. There is a hierarchy of tradeshow graphics: at the top should be your company s name (if familiar) or the big branding tagline (if not familiar). Next should be a supporting statement that elaborates on the big statement. At the bottom is where the supporting bullets and detailed information should be but not too detailed: you still want to leave room for questions. 13. Compared to other marketing mediums, tradeshows are expensive. Without clear metrics and established goals, it s probably a waste of money. Establish your goals, build a plan and execute the plan. Learn from what worked and what didn t work, and then rinse and repeat for the next show. 14. Read the show rules. It s amazing how many exhibitors don t. It can cost you unexpected money if you break a rule. Ensure your staff knows the rules. 15. A professional presenter may seem a bit spendy, but the right one will more than pay for themselves. They know how to attract attendees, draw them into, present a pitch in just a few moments, and then turn them over to your booth staff. And they can do it several times a day. 16. When hiring a booth designer, the most important element is likely to be how well you get along with them personally and professionally. Ask for references and check them out. Finding someone that you get along with will make the long process of designing and fabricating a booth go much better with less angst and stress. 17. You should be able to read the text on your booth from thirty feet away. 18. It s cheaper to dress up an old booth in new laminate and graphics than it is to have a new one built. Building a new booth is great (for exhibit fabricators), but it s expensive. If your budget is slim, consider renting, or refurbishing your old booth. Or find a used booth and refurbish that.

5 19. Let your signage do the work. Don t make your visitor struggle to figure out what your company does. 20. Events are a people business. Your tradeshow staff is the front line of your company. How do they measure up? More than anything, your booth staff is critical in how your company is perceived. You may have a knockout booth, a great product, a terrific space on the show floor and a scintillating tagline, but if your booth staff sucks, face it: your visitors will think your company sucks. 21. If your carpet is the same color as the aisles, a small psychological barrier to entering your booth is largely removed. 22. Never, ever pack your tradeshow leads in your exhibit shipping case. Take em back to the office with you. Make copies before you leave the show if you can. Need a new tradeshow booth? How about a good social media tradeshow marketing plan? Get in touch we can help! Tim Patterson can be reached at: Communication One Exhibits 1995 Trade Street NE Salem, OR Podcast / blog: Twitter: LinkedIn:

6 Facebook: YouTube: Communication One Exhibits is a full- service custom tradeshow design and fabrication project management company, located in Salem, Oregon. Whether you re looking for a simple banner stand or literature stand or a large custom- designed and fabricated tradeshow booth, we can do it for you. And probably for less money than those big guys in the big city with the big overhead. And it ll look as good or better than theirs. And you ll have more fun doing it with us! Creative Commons Copyright 2013 Tim Patterson: feel free to share this with anyone you would like, as long as you share the whole thing and don t change any of the content.