Trade Shows: 7 Tips to Increase Traffic

Gone are the trade-show-yesteryears of folding tables and chairs, blue draperies, and stale marketing gimmicks...at least we hope so.

As a tactic of a larger branding strategy, today's trade shows offer more substantive, real-time, qualitative information AND purpose with profit. Smart exhibitors are listening to and solving customer needs, not manning a run-of-the-mill-flea-market-offering.

Challenging? You bet. (According to www.stateofinbound.com...)

• 63% of marketers say their top challenge is generating traffic and leads.
• 30% of salespeople say prospecting is the most difficult part of the sales process.
• 38% of salespeople say getting a response from prospects is getting more difficult.
• 63% of prospects are somewhat or not at all knowledgeable about a company before a sales rep makes the first contact.

In light of these stats, how can a your business' trade show presence overcome these issues? The first step in qualifying a prospect is mostly done for you given the fact that he/she is already on premise. It's the perfect opportunity to engage, initiate, and evaluate the buying process and your prospect. It's a natural environment where one-on-one human conversations with immediate responses can take place. These comfortable conversations will provide the forum for education and potential relationship building.

To prepare for these interactions, make sure your trade show marketing strategy is in place beforehand in order to run your victory lap afterwards.

7 tips that will help get you in shape:

1. Review your existing brand targets, strategies, and objectives.
• Who?: Demographics
• What? #1 - Pick the best trade shows to attend. Ones that connect with your demographic.
• What? #2 - Develop your 60-second elevator speech for your company's products/services.
• When? Decide on the best time/season of need to reach your target.
• Where? Chose the right demographic density; the location of your booth in retrospect to foot traffic; travel distance from your company (for logistics); and distance from trade show hubbub.
• Why? The reason you are exhibiting and the goals you hope to accomplish.
• How? Your product/service differs from your competitors and best meets your prospects need.
2. Consider what your content focus for each specific trade show will be. 
• Are you featuring a new products and/or service?
• Will you offer give-aways and/or tie-in events for promotion?
• Are you building your company's brand along with individual products/services?
3. Ensure that all your exhibit touch points echo your company's brand objectives with some added dynamics to draw interest. You have about six seconds to capture the attention of a prospect, so bland won't cut it. Create a multi-sensory experience that will stick in your prospects gut long after they encounter your exhibit. How are your visuals? Can they hold your product or engage kinetically somehow? What's your message? Can they taste or smell something connected with your product or service?
4. Support sales with trade show specific marketing materials. Extend the sales dialog by getting the right materials into the right hands.
5. Tie-in PR. Capitalize on your presence with speaking engagements, special demonstrations, press releases, and news conferences. Ask event organizers for the media list and use it! If you have a new product, grab a reporter at the event and tell them about it.
6. Socialize on social media. Encourage attendees to engage on your company's social media outlets. Post frequently and take photos of interactions.
7. Scope out the competition. Use this opportunity to meet and research your competitors. Gather intel...because you know they'll being returning the favor.

Need trade show expertise? Contact info@hornsbybrandesign.com

Sources:
http://www.stateofinbound.com/?__hstc=20629287.022b99efc655aac954579a9335c1f01b.1524001444472.1524001444472.1524001444472.1&__hssc=20629287.1.1524001444474&__hsfp=1658171268