Maybe you’re even reading this at the grand wazoo of lighting marketing events, the LDI Show in Las Vegas. You’re seeing old friends, competitors, hot prospects and the latest in lighting tech. There’s sensory overload from the lights, sounds, the weight of your swag bag. Your dogs are barking and the salmon you had at an exhibitor’s luncheon is threatening to swim upstream.
So, bubbeleh, are you getting the most out of your trade show experience?
Go-o-al!
The business-to-business trade show industry is booming, as measured by the Center for Exhibition Industry Research. It posted a gain of 3.8 percent over last year, with some sectors as high as 11.8 percent (e.g., building, construction). This means if you’re going to do it, you’ve got to do it well. You’re up against every other exhibitor, competing for space, attention, contacts and memorability. Whether you’re brand new to trade shows or an old salt, it might help to review some basics.
Before committing to a trade show, make sure it’s right for you. Are the people who will be attending part of your target audience? How many people attend? How many booths? Will the investment pay off? Are your competitors going?
After choosing to attend, your very first task, starting a year or so from the show, is to determine your goals for participation. They could be:
• Generating leads and attracting customers
• Showing off new products and services
• Assuring the industry you’re still here
• Taking a targeted number of orders (if it’s that kind of event)
• Debuting a new name or partnership
After you’ve locked down your goals, all preparation that follows should be related to them. If you don’t have one already, consider what your booth should look like given the budget you have. Since you’re in the business of lighting and staging, you know a little about what attracts people and can put those techniques to use in your exhibit. You know you only have a few seconds to capture the attention of passers-by. Make your space clean and comfortable, without clutter. Displays give you options for reaching people even without talking to them, such as signage, videos, brochures and demonstrations. Of course, it’s better to talk to people who pass by, so you can get a better sense of how they might benefit from your company and even get valuable feedback from them. Exhibit companies have expert design staffs that will work with you to get the look you want.
Less is More
One caution: don’t overdo the design. No TMI! You risk obscuring your message. One exhibit at a show for the National Apartment Association had a 1960s Austin Powers theme. It was a huge, tall booth in bright, psychedelic colors, complete with a cage with actual bikinied go-go dancers, flashing lights and ’60s music. No one could remember what the product was. I call this a John Wilkes booth, because it kills the message.
Make your display easy for people to read and understand. Avoid difficult typefaces and make graphics large enough for visitors to see as they pass by. Focus on your benefits. You want visitors interested in what you have to say, not distracted by busy visuals (a little tricky in our visual industry!).
Just as if you were doing a project for a customer, set up a timetable. Will your exhibit need video clips, programmed lighting, mapping effects? Get those into the plan and onto the schedule. Find out from the show’s production company what the guidelines are for size, height, power requirements, load-in dates, union workers, etc. If you can, make your booth reservation early to get a better location. Do you want to be close to the main entrance (where attendees might see you first or walk right past you)? To the right or to the left? On a corner? On a free-standing island? The earlier you make these decisions, the greater the possibility you’ll have of getting your choice. Book flights and lodging early for better discounts.
In the months leading up to it, publicize your presence at the show. Use social media marketing, direct mail and even phone calls to your current customer base. Plan, then do. When you have it, post your booth’s location on your website, your Facebook page and in your blog posts. Send media releases to pertinent publications and influencers.
How will you entice visitors to your booth? Giveaways and contests can help boost traffic. Make sure they relate to your product or service and are worthy of your company. Does anybody really need another tee shirt or fifty-cent ballpoint pen? If you have a crating company, consider a mini-crate imprinted with your logo and contact info for holding business cards. If you specialize in LEDs, come up with a related item. Perhaps keep some higher-end items in reserve for your special customers or prospects. Consider not putting giveaways on a front table, but deeper in your booth so people have to go into it rather than grabbing a freebie on the run.
Staffing Up
Choose your booth staff well. They represent your business and will be making that critical first impression. They must be knowledgeable, responsible, unflappable, and above all, trained. Work with them in advance, ensuring they’re well-scripted, well-versed in company products and lore, friendly and inviting, and able to deal with uncomfortable situations. Make sure they know what questions to ask to qualify visitors as prospects, how to gently get contact information, etc. Prepare them for things that might go wrong: missing brochures or giveaways, a technical malfunction, a power outage, a spill, etc. Ideally, they won’t spend booth time texting, chatting on their phones, sitting on chairs meant for visitors or eating. They have to be at top of their game because you’re in a hall filled with your competition.
During the event, consider sending out tweets and video clips about what’s going on, what’s coming up at your booth, what prizes are up for grabs and so forth. If the event producers have a daily news web show, get on it! Even six-second Vines can help enhance top-of-mind awareness.
Obviously, make sure anyone visiting or passing your booth knows your brand’s name. Your logo should be prominent on the display, your attire, your promotional items, your swag bags. You want to be remembered after the event the next time someone needs your kind of product.
While at the show, take the time to walk around and check out or even photograph other booths. See what your competitors are up to, discover new products, find potential business partners. Learn from what other companies are doing.
Included in your plans should be a follow-up strategy for beginning or reinforcing relationships with people whose contact information you collected at the show. Send a personal follow-up email thanking them for stopping by your exhibit, perhaps even offering them the opportunity to download a digital asset (e.g., e-book, infographic, white paper, video clip) that would be useful to them. Stay in touch with them, remind them of your website, forward new product and training information, even send holiday greetings.
The author credits Skyline Displays (www.skyline.com), Nimlok Displays (www.nimloktradeshow-displays.com) and the Trade Show News Network (www.tsnn.com) as helpful resources for this article’s preparation.
