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10 Tips for Trade Show Success
by Edward Bryce
Published on this site: August 29th, 2006 - See
more articles from this month
Small, medium and big businesses benefit so much from making their
products and services known to the public through different events, stalls
and stores they establish in malls.
One of the events that proved to be beneficial to these businesses is
trade shows. The primary goal is to showcase products or services to various
markets that may be interested in availing the services or the products.
Moreover, other benefits can be acquired as well from participating in
a trade show.
A businessman should not be afraid even if he is new in the field because
of the amount of exposure he would get through these kinds of events.
Trade shows are a continuing trend in the business sector. Malls have
always been open to hold such shows and be a venue. Therefore, trade show
will continue to exist in every corner of shopping malls. It is not only
appropriate because people who are visiting malls are in a shopping mode
so most likely they will drop by your booth and have time to listen and
view your products and services. Who knows, you might have a handful or
a number of leads by the time the show ends and close a number of sales.
You do not want to miss that opportunity, right!
But participating in a trade show is not a piece of cake. You would need
fresh and innovative marketing ways to catch the attention of potential
customers and you should be financially able to participate. A trade show
is not a one- man show but tendency is all your competitors will be present,
so be very
creative in your marketing ploy.
There are some great tips for you to guide you in achieving success
in trade shows.
- Identify the purpose of your participation in the trade show.
Aside from increasing your sales and collecting possible leads or customers,
trade shows are opportunities for you to observe the trends in your
area or field of business. You may learn the newest products or services
that your competitors may offer. Through these, you can assess how your
business is catching up in the industry you are involved in and you
can think of ways to improve or plan out your next step. Trade shows
can also help in your networking efforts with colleagues that are not
competitors and suppliers. Therefore, be sure that your products and
services are cut for the trade show you have participated in. You do
not want to be out of place, would you?
- Plan out your budget.
Every wise businessman should includeparticipation in trade shows as
a part of his marketing plan because it can cut off costs on his part.
In case you have a series of trade shows to participate in, be sure
to inform the proper people who can help you, pose a partnership with
them and in the end share the expenses. Most likely, these are your
show sponsors, suppliers, previous attendees, vendors and your customers.
Do not forget to register early for the trade show because usually they
have early bird discounts.
- Get organized.
Once you have registered, you should keep papers and pertinent documents
that you can refer to in the future or when the show is near. Be sure
that all documents such as registration form, booth and floor plans,
invoices and notes are all intact in one folder. You might need all
these to confirm your participation and to submit to the organizers
your booth floor plan and design so they can make the necessary adjustments.
- Identify the goals you want to achieve during the trade show.
It will be an extra effort if you would research on who is going to
participate and who will be attending but it will be worth your while.
Set a plan and identify a number of high quality leads to achieve within
the period of the show so that you have something to look forward to.
- Make your customer know that you are participating in a trade show
by marketing it.
Publish print ads in different publications especially in the trade
show publication. Send out invites to your prospects through direct
mails. Ask these prospects and other long time customers to drop by
your booth and try out some of the new products or services you have.
- Your participation does not stop from just stalling a booth in
a trade show and wait for customers to drop by.
It is important for you to create an appealing atmosphere by being creative
in the manner of your presentation and how you make your booth striking
and a level higher than the other booths. You can include value- added
services inside your booth and make use of technology such as LCD projectors
and DVD players to present your product or services to customers. Make
sure that you assign staff in the booth who is knowledgeable about your
products and services. This way, you can take a rest in manning the
booth but still be confident of the person you will leave behind. Also,
prepare your materials like brochures, flyers and giveaways. These are
necessary point of sales materials that the customers can refer to after
dropping by your booth. Be sure to have your contact details on all
of these materials.
- During the trade show,
Focus and get your acts together. Try to plan out your work by focusing
on your set goals and the number of prospects you will have to follow-
up. Make sure to keep some notes of the promises you made to prospects
like a follow- up call, a presentation of your products in the prospects
office, a quotation for your services or products or even a visit.
- After gathering some quality prospects after the show,
Be sure to keep their interest high by following them up with letters,
thank you cards, an email or phone call.
- After the show,
It is best to make an evaluation of how well you did by determining
if you have reached your identified goals before the show, if you have
executed your plans well and whether you did an immediate follow-up
to an interested customer.
- Keep in touch with the shows organizers,
Sponsors and interested prospects and customers. Be sure to actively
participate in the next show. You can even volunteer. Additional task,
yes but it will be all worth it.
There you have it! All the recipes for a trade show success served in
a silver platter. Be sure to keep them all in mind until your next serving.
Edward Bryce: For more great trade show related articles and resources
check out http://weknowtradeshows.info
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