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At iPromoWorx, we've been
assisting clients with their trade show promotions
for years. We can help you develop a strategy to direct
qualified attendees to your booth.
If you're still judging the success of your trade
show by booth traffic alone, it's time to think again.
You may be wasting time on unqualified or under-qualified
individuals. Your most important objective should
be reaching as many potential and current customers
as possible in the time available. Arbitrarily increasing
booth traffic can cause havoc at the booth and create
an ineffective selling situation.
- Determine which companies
and individuals you most want to visit your booth.
- Select current customers,
reps, dealers, and/or qualified prospects.
- Prepare a pre-show mailing
piece with a theme that reflects your objectives
and supports the design and theme of the booth.
- Follow up with a second mailing
or perhaps a fax or personal phone call.
Increase your response rate with pre-show planning.
As part of your pre-show planning, look beyond the
traditional. Often, exhibiting at a show that is part
of an auxiliary industry has more impact than exhibiting
at a trade show that is part of your primary industry.
Doing this provides prospects that would not ordinarily
have direct access to your products and services.
To evaluate the potential
of a trade show, determine the:
- Overall budget (travel, booth
costs, advertising, etc.)
- Objectives (sales, product
launch, visibility)
- Booth display (new, used,
renovated)
- Advertising and promotion
(promotional products, direct mail, trade journals)
- Staff training required (internal,
outside consultant)
- Target audience (attendee
list, current customers, prospects)
- Lead-generation method (develop
custom form, swipe machines, business cards)
- Follow-up method (sending
literature, phone follow-up, direct mail)
Well before the show, develop a marketing strategy
that will carry through all of your advertising and
promotional efforts. Selecting and promoting a theme
provides added excitement and helps heighten brand
awareness. Try these tips for planning a successful
show:
Use a planning guide. Establish
a section for each part of the event, e.g. budget,
travel, booth design, etc. Keep all contracts in the
appropriate section. Include a calendar and a show
floor plan with your space clearly marked. This guide
will be an invaluable tool, not only for this event,
but for all future shows as well.
Try a "bulky"
pre-show mailing. Pre-show mailings are an excellent
way to reach your target audience, and a "bulky"
mailing is most effective in ensuring that your mailing
gets opened. Include a promotional product that ties
in with your theme and suggests what your booth has
to offer. A study by Exhibit Surveys, Inc., determined
that a pre-show direct mail piece containing a promotional
gift can produce close to three times greater traffic
than one without a gift.
Make staff available and identifiable. Staff your
booth adequately and provide comprehensive training.
Make your booth staff easy to identify with comfortable
clothing sporting your corporate logo.
Create a lead follow-up
plan. Create a plan before the show to follow up on
leads immediately after the show.
Trade shows are one of the strongest tools available
to build and cement solid relationships. They provide
an excellent opportunity to make current customers
feel important and to resolve any customer concerns
or issues. For a successful show:
- Within 10 seconds, catch the attention
of a prospect passing by your booth.
- Stand ready to greet attendees and have your
nametag clearly visible.
- Qualify prospects and sell your product within
six minutes.
- Be enthusiastic! Use attention-getting devices
and personalized promotional items.
This is no time to relax. Effective and timely follow-up
is critical to the success of your trade show. After
the event:
- Wait a few days to follow
up so attendees can catch their breath.
- Examine literature requests
and follow up on customer concerns.
- Make follow-up calls to prospects.
- Incorporate your promotional
campaign theme into post-show mailings
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