trade shows | The Exhibit Company, Inc.

Articles Tagged with: trade shows

Jun 3, 2019

Top 5 Trade Shows to Attend in 2019

Looking for a few trade shows to attend in 2019? Trade shows are an asset, as they provide an opportunity to showcase your products, increase customer involvement, and launch new concepts. Choosing which trade shows to attend can be difficult as many probably sound like great opportunities!

To ensure that your marketing budget is maximized, here are five trade shows worth looking into for 2019. Hope to see you there!

Consumer Electronics Show, January 8-11, Various hotels in Las Vegas, NV

The Consumer Electronics Show is referred to as “The Global Stage for Innovation.” It’s one of the top technology trade shows, bringing together thousands of the biggest names in the consumer electronics industry, including Google and Mitsubishi. Some of the most exciting topics to be covered include self-driving vehicles, smart cities and homes, artificial intelligence, and drones.

PPAI Expo, January 13-17, Mandalay Bay Convention Center, Las Vegas, NV

The Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) Expo is THE show for the promotional products industry. Over 8,000 people from around the world attend this conference each year, including suppliers, consultants, and industry professionals. Some of the hottest trends in the promotional products industry include USA-made items, green products, and screen-printing technology.

American International Toy Fair, February 17-20, New York City, New York

The American International Toy Fair is designed for toy manufacturers and the only show of its kind. More than 1,000 exhibitors attend this event and show off hundreds of thousands of toys like action figures, arts & crafts, and nostalgic items. Even though the holidays will have just passed, brands in the toy industry will need to start thinking about Christmas 2019!

International Home + Housewares Show, March 2-5, McCormick Place, Chicago, IL

The International Home + Housewares Show brings together the top brands in home and houseware products. Over 2,200 exhibitors attend this event to share products and trends for modern homes. In addition to showcasing thousands of products, the conference also features keynote speakers, product demonstrations, and hourly presentations.

Semicon West, July 9-11, Moscone Center, San Francisco, CA

Semicon West is another trade show to consider in your lineup. This conference is designed for people who want to keep up with the latest developments in smart technology, including big data, IoT, blockchain, smart manufacturing, and other cognitive technologies. Thousands of business and technology leaders come out for this three-day event to reconnect and build new relationships.

There are many wonderful trade shows to attend, but these five are some of our favorites. They offer the opportunity to connect with industry leaders and take advantage of the latest technology in your specified field.

Oct 16, 2018

Why Startups Need to Participate In Trade Shows

Startup owners have a lot on their plates, and many end up overlooking the benefits of attending a trade show. These events are incredibly important for new businesses as they boost morale, introduce you to new contacts, and generate more sales. And, trade shows are far from old school. In fact, with improved economic and job growth, the trade show industry is expected to grow 2.8% this year.

If you’re on the fence about joining a trade show, we have some information that will clear things up for you.

Get Your Startup Noticed

One of the biggest challenges that new businesses have is getting noticed. This is even more difficult if you have a limited budget. Attending a trade show event introduces you to hundreds or thousands of potential customers. Your target audience is under one roof, and at the very least, you can get your startup name noticed.

Receive Immediate Feedback

Now that your business is up and running, wouldn’t it be nice to have feedback from customers? By attending a trade show event, you can watch how customers interact with your products. Listen to their questions so that you get a deeper understanding of your target customer. Once you gain valuable insight, it can be used to improve your startup.

Build a Stronger Network

Some of the most genuine relationships are built offline. There is no substitute for in-person networking, and this is what trade shows let you do. During your attendance, talk with leads, meet other industry professionals, and expand your network. Collect contact names and reach out at the right time – they may just result in sales for your business!

Assess Your Competitors

There’s no need to fear your competitors, but you should know how your competitors are selling their products and services. What can you learn from them? What do you plan to do differently? What niche can you fill? Also, it’s a good idea to be at some of the same shows as your competitors so that customers can view you as an alternative option.

Avoid Cold Calling

People really, really don’t like cold calling. It can turn them off from your new business, and cause you to waste valuable time. Put your resources to good use by attending a trade show and meeting people in person. You won’t have to push your products on people who aren’t interested or have your spirits crushed when people hang up on you. In case you didn’t know, over 200 million people are on the Do Not Call List.

Trade shows can be expensive, but they offer incredible value for your time. In a competitive market where brands are vying for attention, it’s important to position your startup as a thought leader and innovator. Before long, more people will recognize your brand and be willing to do business.

Oct 16, 2018

Trade Shows and Your Target Market: What You Need to Know

One of the most important aspects to consider when attending a trade show is your audience. If you don’t take the time to consider them, you could end up wasting thousands of dollars on a custom booth design that doesn’t connect with anyone. It has happened to other businesses, and you don’t have to make the same mistake.

Defining a target audience isn’t as easy as it sounds. Before you jump into your next trade show event, here are some things to know.

First, Ask Yourself a Few Questions

To start assessing your target market and what an ideal buyer might look like, here are a few questions to ask yourself.

Who are your current clients? Assess common buying patterns, gender, age range, job titles, etc. in your current customers. This will help you create buyer personas for your company. Buyer personas are fictional yet accurate representations of your different customers.

What personas are attending the trade show? Do some research and determine what types of personas will be at the trade show. By identifying your personas, you can create an appropriate booth, choose giveaways, and share messaging that they will find interesting.

What personas are you most interested in working with? What personas will help you reach your objectives? Choose a trade show that is relevant to your needs and will put your brand in front of the right people.

Next, Create a Custom Booth for Your Audience

Once you have defined your target market, it’s time to create a custom booth that addresses this audience’s needs. There are endless ways to engage your unique audience thanks to technological advancements in the trade show industry.

Younger demographics prefer learning about products through touch screens, virtual reality, augmented reality, and digital signage. Older adults tend to appreciate genuine, face-to-face conversations along with tangible information like brochures and handouts. Set up a few cozy chairs with refreshments to invite them in. Giveaways work well for all audiences, just be sure to choose items that are relevant and useful.

Also, consider the appearance of your trade show exhibit. Does it capture attention from where your booth will be located? Is the message clear and easy to understand? Have you promoted your attendance at the event on social media? Finally, choose your best staff. They should be friendly, knowledgeable, and patient – your true A-team!

Last, Follow Up with Prospects

As you meet people and collect their contact information, have a plan to follow up with them. This is made easier when you use an app or database to track leads. Write notes about each person so that you know when to follow up and how to personalize the message. As you connect with these people and learn more about who is truly invested, you can fine tune the criteria for your best lead opportunities.

Over time, you’ll be more effective at choosing the right people to spend time with. They say that 80 percent of your success comes from 20 percent of your efforts, so targeting the right people will allow you to work smarter, not harder.

Jul 29, 2018

10 Do’s and Don’ts When Preparing for a Trade Show

A lot goes into planning a trade show event, so you certainly don’t want to waste the opportunity. No company intends to do this, but there are times when things unfold differently than expected. As you prepare for an upcoming trade show, it’s important to have your ducks in a row. Your exhibit and the people running it represent the quality, tone, and professionalism of your brand. Be proud of what you have to offer!

Here are 10 vital do’s and don’ts when preparing for a trade show.

DO…

Set clear objectives. Don’t jump into the big day without knowing what you want to achieve. Are you looking to build relationships? Grow your contact list? Generate more sales? Once you know your objectives, you can establish what metrics mean success and how you plan to measure ROI.

Choose a good location. It’s hard to get prime spots, but make an effort anyway. Getting your name on a list can put you ahead for next year. Of the spots available, choose one that is in the front and will receive good foot traffic.

Train your booth staff. Your staff should be well-versed on your products and the goals you want to reach. They should also know how to operate whatever technology is in the booth such as touchscreens and virtual reality headsets.

Smile and be friendly. Your trade show booth staff should be friendly and approachable. Reinforce professional behavior, positive body language, and genuine smiles. Choosing the right people will make this task easier. Also, require your staff to wear badges or name tags.

Promote the event on social media. Let your customers know that you’ll be attending the trade show and what they can expect by visiting you. It helps to offer an incentive or promotional item to encourage people to visit you. Use hashtags to promote your posts, including any from the trade show itself.

DON’T…

Sign up for shows out of obligation. Depending on your industry, there are many great trade shows to attend. If you’ve been going to the same one for years, try something new. This way, you can open yourself up to new audiences and build a stronger network.

Collect business cards in a fishbowl. This is an outdated way to gather lead information. Instead, make things more personal by adding contact info to an app and truly learning about each person.

Bad mouth the competition. Don’t view other companies as your enemies-learn from them. Knowing the competition allows you to offer a better product that is truly one of a kind. Plus, belittling others shows insecurity.

Forget to follow up with leads. Before attending the event, have a follow up strategy in place. To ensure it’s effective, you’ll need to collect communication preferences from your leads and be prepared to reach out soon after the show.

Overwhelm prospects. Avoid throwing too much at your visitors at once. Be accessible and leave out informational materials such as brochures and business cards. This is why interactive technology is so important; it allows people to interact with brands on their own terms.

Make the most of your trade shows by keeping these 10 do’s and don’ts in mind.

Jun 28, 2018

5 Reasons Why You May Not Be Gaining Leads From Trade Shows

One of the most popular motives for attending trade shows is to generate leads. Attending just one event can put your brand in front of hundreds or thousands of people. Once you meet potential clients, colleagues and vendors, you can nurture these relationships and turn them into paying customers.

But, what if your trade shows haven’t been giving you leads to work with? Does this mean that your efforts have been wasted?

No.

Trade shows are one of the most profitable business-to-business media strategies. In 2016, they generated 12.8 billion dollars in revenue. If you’re not gaining the number of leads you had hoped for, better optimization is the answer. Below we share five reasons why you may be missing out on qualified leads and how to fix them.

You don’t know who is attending.

Do your homework before each show to learn about the audience. What problems are they trying to solve? In some cases, you may even identify specific individuals to reach out to through email. Set up a time during the conference during which you can chat about your product.

You’re not talking to the right people.

It’s frustrating when you have a great conversation, but the person you just spent time with can’t make any decisions. Nevertheless, these are key opportunities to get your product closer to the right person. Ask for the contact information of the prospect’s boss, or look through an online organization chart for a name and number.

You don’t have a reliable lead retrieval system.

What lead retrieval system do you rely on? The most common techniques include collecting business cards, filling out handwritten forms, scanning badges, or renting/owning a qualifying system. Be sure that your lead management system is reliable and consistent. Any information that slips through the cracks is a lost opportunity.

Your trade show booth doesn’t attract visitors.

In some cases, companies don’t have leads to work with because they aren’t getting enough foot traffic. Make the most of each event by custom designing your trade show exhibit and hiring friendly, knowledgeable booth staff. Between portable, modular, and custom exhibits, there are ways to amplify your brand without cutting into the budget.

You are not following up with potential leads.

The work doesn’t end when the trade show is over. Enter your leads into a database, along with relevant notes. As you follow up with the prospects (usually in 3-5 days), you can separate them into groups based on how likely they are to buy. To nurture leads through the funnel and personalize communications, use marketing automation software.

Are you guilty of any of the five issues listed above? Address the shortfalls and strengthen your lead generation strategy for greater trade show success.

May 25, 2018

The Top Trade Shows For Your Small Business This Summer

Summer is usually a slow down period for businesses. People are vacationing, taking time off work, and spending more time outdoors. Unless your business serves the summer lull, you probably use this time to catch up on things before the fall starts. While it’s great to get organized, don’t forget to keep your business up to date on the latest trends and technologies. The best way to do this – attend a trade show.

Below are the best trade shows for your small business to attend this summer. Hopefully one or two are nearby, but if not, turn an upcoming conference into a small getaway!

June 2018 Trade Shows

InfoComm, June 6-8

Las Vegas Convention Center

Las Vegas, NV

InfoComm is the biggest event for the professional audio and visual industry. The event brings in over 44,000 people from hundreds of countries. By attending, you can check out thousands of exhibitors that are showcasing the latest developments in education, technology, networking, and more.

E3 Expo, June 6-8

Los Angeles Convention Center

Los Angeles, CA

The Electronic Entertainment Expo is always a fun one to attend. It features the latest advancements in video games and computer software presented by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA). While not directly tied to small business, it’s worthwhile to see the software developments being made. Plus, you might need to refresh your break room with new video games!

July 2018 Trade Shows

Semicon West, July 10-12

Moscone Convention Center

San Francisco, CA

Semicon West has a little bit of everything. It mostly attracts buyers and engineers, but all businesses can learn something from the event. This year, get a glimpse of the technology that’s coming next such as hybrid electronics, big data, IoT, smart manufacturing, smart transportation, and other cognitive technologies.

IFT Food Expo, July 15-18

McCormick Place

Chicago, IL

If your small business has anything to do with food products, this is one event you don’t want to miss. It features the industry’s largest collection of ingredients, equipment, and processing and packaging supplies in one convenient location. Discover global food trends and talk face to face with manufacturing companies.

August 2018 Trade Shows

Fire-Rescue International, August 8-10

Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center

Dallas, TX

The FRI Conference encourages small local businesses and local residents to support their first responders. This award-winning event is one of the fastest-growing shows in attendance. Learn how first responders report to all types of disasters and how to create a disaster plan of your own.

International Woodworking Fair, August 22-25

Georgia World Congress

Atlanta, GA

The International Woodworking Fair is one of the top woodworking events in the world. It’s a great opportunity to learn about furniture manufacturing, architectural woodwork, custom woodworking, and more. Suppliers and retailers of plastic and other materials are also present. It’s a great time to learn about the best technologies and materials to support your own products.

By making an appearance at a few events this summer, you can keep your business moving in the right direction!

Feb 15, 2018

How Technological Advancements Have Helped Exhibit Design Firms

Technology has made incredible advancements over the years, inching its way into all types of industries. Even exhibit design firms have found a way to incorporate technology into their custom displays. Here at The Exhibit Company, Inc., we use technology to create touchable 3D experiences. These displays welcome interaction and are effective at developing memorable encounters.

Exhibit design firms like The Exhibit Company, Inc. continue to find new ways to integrate technology into their designs. Let’s examine a few of the ways that these advancements are already being used in their creations.

Touchscreens Free Up Time and Resources

With the rise of smartphones and tablets, people are naturally comfortable using touchscreen devices. Therefore, when visitors walk past a display and notice a touchscreen, they are instantly drawn to it. Interactive touchscreens are effective at delivering information and adapting to each user. This technology is also cost effective and environmentally friendly. We never hesitate to use touchscreens in our displays to enhance the user experience.

Mobile Apps Allow for Effective Lead Capture

Trade show apps bring the best technology to exhibitors. These apps allow for lead capturing, optimizing event success and driving ROI. Having contact information stored in a neat, organized manner is far better than having a fish bowl of names. As exhibitors can more easily measure the success of their trade show events, they see the value they’re getting from attending conventions and investing in custom booths. You can find some of our favorite lead capture apps in a previous post.

Digital Graphics Can be Adapted to Each User

We can’t ignore how good digital graphics have become over the years. Traditionally, printed materials were most popular for trade shows. The problem with printed materials is that they need to be re-printed for each show. This requires time and costs money. Digital graphics, on the other hand, are cost- and time-effective. Though the equipment can be an initial investment if not rented, digital displays can be used over and over again.

Technology Allows for Flexibility

Lastly, design firms like ourselves have a greater degree of freedom and flexibility because of advancements in technology. We can serve our clients better and provide individualized, immersive experiences. For example, custom smartphone apps offer new ways for exhibitors and visitors to connect and displays can be tailored to each person’s needs. Additionally, online tools such as social media and email are helpful for engaging with audiences before and after the event.

Technology has significantly benefited the exhibit design industry. As exhibitors see a greater return from their investment, they won’t hesitate to take advantage of more trade show events. This means more business for exhibit design firms as well as the opportunity to build bigger, better booths.

Dec 28, 2017

The Importance of Trade Shows for Small Businesses

Trade shows are great marketing opportunities for small businesses. Some business owners are hesitant to add them to their marketing mix because they can be time-consuming and costly. While you can’t commit to all trade shows in your industry, it is important to attend a few. Taking just one day off of work can result in hundreds of potential new clients and increased brand visibility.

If you are a small business owner, don’t overlook these benefits of attending trade shows.

Meet Local Businesses

Attending a local trade show allows you to meet other businesses and organizations in the area. You can find related businesses to connect with and promote each other’s services. For example, if you run an ice cream parlor and one of your local neighbors has a sandwich shop, you could offer a free small scoop of ice cream with each sandwich purchase. This would benefit both businesses by drawing in more traffic and sales.

Network with Like-minded People

Networking is an automatic benefit to attending a trade show. It can be difficult to take a day off work, but the number of people you will meet is incredible! With so many like-minded individuals that come from the same profession or related industries, the possibilities are endless. Strengthen relationships with existing customers. Develop relationships with new leads. Engage with potential suppliers and even future talent for your organization.

Build Brand Awareness

The more people who know about your brand, the better. A trade show is a great opportunity to build brand awareness because you can position your products and services in front of the right audience. And, by handing out promotional items, you can send potential leads home with a reminder of your business. This is a nice change of pace from buying ads and targeting people in the digital space.

Face-to-Face Interaction

If you sell products online, buyers are limited in what they can see and do. At a trade show, they can interact with your products using their five senses. How many times have you become interested in something simply because you saw it in person? This happens all the time! Additionally, you can use a trade show for old fashioned face-to-face interaction, something that is limited these days.

Evaluate Competitors

By making an appearance at a trade show, you can evaluate the competition. What are other businesses in your industry doing to gain leads and customers? How is your product similar? How is it different? You can only tell so much from a website. Observing your competition in action is the best way to know what you’re up against.

Trade shows are essential for small businesses. Pick a couple and make the most of them. You won’t regret taking time off work to promote your brand and develop new relationships.

Dec 7, 2017

Which Trade Shows Are Right For Your Industry?

With so many trade shows to choose from, it can be hard to decide which one is best for you! The right trade show can position your brand to capture new prospect leads, generate brand awareness, and increase traffic to your website. On the other hand, attending the wrong trade show can end up costing time and money.

To ensure that you get the biggest bang for your buck, let’s discuss the ways that you can determine which trade shows are best for your industry.

Check the History

It’s best to choose shows that have an established history. This way, you can get a better idea of how successful the show was in the past and if you can benefit from attending. Some of the factors to consider are:

How many attendants does the show normally get?
How many vendors pay for booths?
What do veteran vendors have to say about the event?
What types of sponsors promote the show?
Does the event organizer do a good job of marketing the event?

Know the Audience

Part of choosing a show is getting your products in front of the right audience. As you narrow down your options, consider the audience that will be at each event and if they will help you reach your goals. If your goal is to increase sales and revenue, you must put your brand as close as possible to the people who can make purchase decisions. If you’re interested in raising brand awareness, the options aren’t as limited.

Contact Past Vendors

It can be helpful to reach out to vendors who have attended past trade shows but are not your direct competitors. Ask them if they felt the event was effective. By speaking with vendors, you can also gather important information such as local hotel accommodations, pricing, booth size. and more.

Check Space Availability

Sometimes, it all comes down to the practicality of the event. Is the space the right size and layout for your needs? Can you ship your custom exhibit display to the show, or do you need to have a new one designed? If the space is conducive to your needs, it may not take much work to get yourself there. However, if you need a new exhibit, you’ll have to factor in time and cost to determine if it’s worth it.

Trade shows can help your brand reach specific goals, such as boosting sales, raising brand awareness, or increasing traffic to your website. Take the time to research the various trade shows in your area to determine which one will put you in front of the right audience.

Dec 5, 2017

Evaluating Leads and Maximizing Trade Show Management

After your company makes an appearance at a trade show, you must determine if it was worth your time. To do this, you’ll need to measure your results. Let’s explore some of the best ways to evaluate your leads and effectively manage your trade show attendance.

Direct Traffic and Organic Search

One of the easiest ways to tell if you had a successful trade show is by measuring the direct and organic traffic of your website. Direct traffic refers to how many people type in your company’s URL into their browser. Organic traffic means the number of visitors who arrive at your site by searching for related products and services in search engines.

By attending a trade show event, you can increase both types of traffic. Create a landing page to send trade show visitors to. This way, you can look at how much traffic you have on a normal day and compare it to how much you have after attending a trade show. This will tell you if your marketing efforts were successful.

Social Media Followers

Another way to evaluate lead quality is by analyzing your social media goals. After attending a trade show, you should get more followers on social media. Thanks to a number of analytics tools, you can track new members and determine which channels were most effective.

The channels make a difference because you want to invest your marketing dollars into the most effective ones. If your audience is more likely to be on Facebook, you’ll want to put more of your budget into this channel for maximum engagement.

New Submissions

One of the main goals of attending a trade show event is to generate leads. If you’re using a marketing software program, capture the data and identify new submissions in your system.

As you know, not all trade show leads are created equal. Some of your leads are not in a position to buy from you, so you don’t want to waste time and money pursuing a conversation with them. To separate quality leads, you will need to set qualification criteria such as:

Authority
Budget
Timeframe
Need
Contact history
Potential sales volume
Account characteristics

New Customers

New leads are great, but new customers are even better! Fortunately, you can determine how many new customers you’ve gained by looking at event registrants and whether they made a purchase or not. The best way to do this is by incorporating closed-loop marketing, which can be found through your analytics program. This way, you can look back at your registrants and their life cycles. How many people visited your landing page? How many people converted?

Trade shows can bring massive rewards to your company, but they can also end up costing more than what you bring in. To ensure that you’re managing your trade shows effectively, take the time to evaluate the quality and quantity of your leads after attending each event.

Nov 4, 2017

How to Effectively Use Promotional Items at Your Trade Show Display

Using promotional items at a trade show is always smart. But, it’s easy to run out of ideas as to how to present them. Should you hand something out to each person that walks by? Is it better to leave the items on your table for visitors to browse? Or should you reserve branded swag for your most qualified leads?

Below are a few ideas for effectively using promotional items at your trade show display. Let’s leave a lasting impression on new customers!

Choose Relevant Items

It’s easy to get into the habit of handing out promo products that are inexpensive such as keychains, lanyards, car decals, and pens. We see them so often, our brains are trained to know that they come from a particular brand. These items are also attractive for trade show events because they are cheap, easy to store, and can be passed out to many people.

However, we recommend sticking to products that are relevant to your audience. Not only will this distinguish your brand but also show customers that you understand them. For example, reusable water bottles are great for companies that have an eco-friendly focus. Stress balls are perfect for businesses that provide consulting services.

Consider Your Location

Another approach you can take with branded merchandise is based on your exhibit location. If you’re at the front of the event, consider a useful item that can be used at the start of the show. For example, tote bags work well because attendees can hold goodies in them. If you’re in the middle or back of the event, guests will have different needs. They may be thirsty and will appreciate a water bottle.

Include a Call to Action

Branded swag will get you some impressions, but your hope is that customers will take the next step to engage with your brand. Include a CTA with your items to guide customers to the thing you want them to do, whether it’s calling your business for a free estimate or following your brand on social media.

Engage with Everyone Who Takes an Item

It’s best to showcase your free items at the front of your exhibit where people can see them. You might get a few people who walk by, take an item and leave, but it’s not the worst thing in the world. They now have an item with your name on it.

That said, make it a goal to engage with everyone who takes something. You can use these couple of minutes to ask questions or share your company brochure. For added engagement, ask the person if they’d like to share their business card to be entered into a raffle.

Promotional products are a great addition to your trade show. Rather than automatically handing them out to everyone who walks by, use them to your advantage. These small, useful items can be effective at getting your foot in the door with the right customers!

Oct 20, 2017

Pro Tips: Learn 4 Key Reasons Why You Should Customize Your Trade Show

Planning a trade show is a highly involved process that requires months of planning and coordination. Between booking hotel rooms, ordering trade show supplies, and managing communications, there is plenty to keep you busy in the months prior. Unfortunately, one small miscommunication can compromise the success of your trade show. To ensure that everything goes smoothly, it’s best to customize your event to your exact needs.

Below are four great reasons to plan a custom trade show to impress vendors, sponsors, and attendants.

Stick to Your Budget

Budgetary concerns are always a main issue for trade show organizers. Where should the event be held? How much should you spend on marketing materials? What type of food should be served? With so many ways to spend money, it’s helpful to narrow down your options.

For example, if the trade show is for toy vendors, consider choosing a menu, entertainment, and location related to this theme. It’s cheaper to play music in the background (think Kidz Bop) than hire live entertainment. Also, hosting your event at a school gym or cafeteria is less expensive than renting out a banquet hall.

Display Your Individuality

There are hundreds of trade shows for businesses to attend, so what makes yours unique? Personalizing your show can make a huge difference in whether people return to your event in the future.

Better serve the needs of vendors by customizing your event. If your trade show is about organic food, serve up a healthy menu, incorporate 3D presentations, and invite industry leaders (e.g., organic farmers, horticulturists) to share their experiences.

Meet Your Objectives

What objectives do you have for your trade show event? Do you plan on generating awareness toward a particular cause? Is your intention to bring together businesses for networking opportunities? By defining your goals, you can create a custom trade show to meet these exact needs.

Let’s say that you want to connect engaged couples with local vendors that do flower arrangements, catering, printed invitations, and more. Plan an accommodating layout with premium booths that feature more space and extra outlets. Consider how many people will be attending your event so that you can make it comfortable. You want people to enjoy their time and stay as long as possible.

Draw in the Right Vendors

When you have a tailored trade show plan, you can present it to potential vendors. They will want to see your layout to determine if it’s something they’re interested in. Offer tiers of pricing on your booths. This way, people who are willing to spend more can get a space that is larger and nicer.

Customizing your trade show is a great move that allows you to focus on a specific audience while saving money and offering something unique from your competitors.

Aug 28, 2017

Your Next Trade Show Needs to Be Located Here (How to Select the Perfect Venue)

Choosing where to hold your next trade show isn’t always obvious. Trade shows are held at all different places and open to specific industries rather than the general public. Key factors to keep in mind are size and location, venue accommodations and staffing requirements. A little bit of planning goes a long way in ensuring a successful trade show with your name attached to it!

Below are a few tips for choosing the best venue for your next trade show, as well as ideas on where to host. Enjoy!

Size

One of the first steps in choosing a venue is assessing the space that you need. How many guests are you inviting? How many will attend? For attendants to be comfortable, they need to be able to move freely from booth to booth.

Location

Regional trade shows welcome guests from all over, so it makes sense to choose a venue that is located near an airport. This makes it easy for guests to make travel arrangements. Venues that are centrally located also tend to have other amenities nearby, such as restaurants and hotels. People will be more willing to come to your trade show if they don’t have to navigate through unfamiliar territory.

Accommodations

The venue you select should offer more than space. We recommend taking tours of each venue before making a decision, as things can look better or worse in pictures. Here are some of the small but important details to pay attention to.

Available parking
Entrances and exits
Restrooms
Accommodations for people with disabilities
Electrical outlets, power cables, and extension cords
Phone and internet access

Staffing

Generally speaking, staffing for your event will come from your own company. But, some services can be provided on behalf of the venue such as valet parking, security, catering, and more. Consider this money saved and an improved event.

Best Venues for Hosting a Trade Show

Below are a few of our recommendations for trade show venues.

Banquet halls
Convention centers
Performing arts venues
College and University complexes
Hotels
Field and Open grounds – Outdoors

Putting on a successful trade show starts with selecting the right venue that will encourage people to sign up. By following our suggestions above and consulting with design experts, you can find a venue that offers the amenities and accommodations that are needed for your event to run smoothly!

Apr 13, 2017

Measuring Trade Show Marketing Value

If you were asked what the true value of your trade show marketing efforts were, would you be able to answer? Most exhibitors do not track the percentage of leads brought in through trade shows, nor their return on investment. If you can’t recall the last time you looked at these numbers, you’re not alone.

The main reason why exhibitors don’t track and measure lead data is because management isn’t asking. However, things can change on a dime. If management decides that trade shows are no longer a good investment, you will have nothing to back up your case.

Not only is having data a great way to demonstrate your value, but it can also help you create more effective strategies, campaigns and designs. Let’s take a look at how you can gather the right data to support your program.

Determine the impact on your company’s revenue.

Tracking revenue after a trade show is difficult because you’re not closing most sales on the floor. Instead, you’re meeting with interested customers and sending them off to your sales team. Depending on the product/service you sell, it could take weeks, months or years before a conversion is made.

The good news is that you can approximate the value using assumptions that are based off past experience from your sales team. To do this, gather the number of sales leads, the close rate and the average value of the sale. Multiply the numbers together to get your estimated revenue.

Add up your total savings.

Attending trade shows can bring in business while also saving your company money. Track all of your savings. For example, how many “meetings” do you have at a trade show? How much would it cost to have these meetings in a different setting (i.e., travel, lodging, food)? Other cost savings may include the reusing of exhibit materials, acquiring names for sales databases and eliminating field sales calls.

Factor in promotional activities and impressions.

List out the promotional activities that were seen or heard by your audience. People who visit your booth or see it from afar are considered impressions. Count the total number of people that you reached and determine what percentage of them fit your buyer persona.

Next, determine how much it would cost to get these same impressions using direct marketing or advertising. This data indicates your cost-per-impression figure, which helps you quantify the value of your impressions.

Calculate your payback ratio.

One final metric to look at is your payback ratio. This is done by adding together your estimated revenue, total cost savings and total promotional value. Divide this number by your total show budget to get your payback ratio. When you run this number for each event, you can compare apples-to-apples and determine which ones are most successful.

Don’t wait around until management starts asking for data on the success of your trade show events. Start collecting, tracking and measuring this information today so that you have what you need for future discussions.

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