Getting ready for a trade show? It’s no secret that trade shows are expensive, but prepping for the show in advance can save you time and money. So here are 6 steps to follow when looking to make your next trade show a success.
Start Planning for your Show in Advance:
Not only should you look into booking your booth for the trade show in advance but you should also plan for all the printed items you will need for the show as well. If you are disorganized, you may incur additional costs. One instance where you might get penalized is if you forget to bring something and need to have it delivered to the show. You not only will have to pay for shipping and handling but the show may slap on hidden costs.
Figure out What You Need to Bring:
At some trade shows you are locked into what size booth you will be exhibiting from. So plan accordingly for how you would like to set up your display, what marketing material you will need and the promotional items you will want to bring. Are you looking to have banners and backdrops with your company’s logo printed on them arranged in your booth? What types of printed items were you looking to have in your booth? Some popular convention items include folded brochures or booklets which are completely customizable, did you need more business cards or were you looking to have new business cards printed for the convention? You can even have postcards printed and do either a postcard mailing or use them for quick facts and promotions at your booth. If you didn’t want to have pamphlets printed you can always have quick information sheets printed and gathered together in a company branded folder for convention attendees to grab before they walk away from your booth.
Aside from the main set up of the booth dividers, a possible table and backdrop did you need a branded table runner? A table cloth is a great way to add pops of color and capture attendee’s attention with your company logo. Pop up signs are also a get way to showcase your company logo, key points, promotions or images you want to draw conventions attendees to. You could also add a company banner to the convention booth backdrop further spreading awareness of your companies’ brand. Next when getting ready for a trade show or convention another key way to have attendees remember your brand is with branded promotional items. There are thousands of promotional products and some of the most popular are USB drives, pens, stress balls, tote bags and water bottles. By choosing promotional products with longevity your brand will leave behind a long lasting impression with your booths attendees.
Focus on Sales:
When on the trade show floor, your main focus is attracting new leads who will turn into buyers to your booth. A trade show is a great place to network as well but sales should be a top priority. This the main reason why you are there, you can’t fake sales numbers. Compared to other forms of marketing you are more likely to obtain sales quicker at a trade show than anywhere else. Even if you do not make a sale here and there you are also gathering leads to potentially sell to in the future.
Know your Audience:
Not everyone that you come across at a trade show will be a prospect. Be prepared. Review previous sales data and make sure to review sales goals. Also make sure the show you exhibit in is where your target audience will be in attendance, but more on that in section 5. Next you will want to know the demographics and audience attending the show to make an informed decision as to if the audience is a part of your desired target market.
Choose the right Convention
In order to make your sales goals, you need to pick the right trade show. If you’re just starting out picking a show can be an overwhelming process. A few good tips to follow when picking a show are to check out the show’s history to see if many of the exhibitors returned the next year. If they did, then you can conclude the show produced the desired results. And lastly talk to other venders about their experiences with the show you are thinking about attending, if they agree that the show was effective at delivering on their promise then that most likely will be the show for you.
Generate the right leads
A key way to generate the right leads is to make sure your booth staff is trained to answer possible questions and record the visitor’s response and concerns if there are any. It is also helpful to rank your leads as you acquire them in 6 groups: “hot”, “warm”, “cold”, “ready to buy”, “need within six months”, and “possible future lead”. By doing this you can weed out the cold leads from your target market. After the trade show, you will want to send out your post-show mailings to reach the leads you gathered from the show to attack and or close sales.
By choosing a single source printing partner you can produce all the items you will need to make your next convention to make it a success. Here are ways Premier can help you
succeed with you next trade show:
Trade Show Check list:
Pre Show MailingSigns, BannersCollateral, HandoutsPromotional MaterialsPost Show Mailings
For more information on how Premier can help email us at info@premieruplink.com
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