How To Be The Best Exhibit On The Show Floor

Egan’s Entries On Exhibits & Events  

Everyone wants their booth to be the one everyone else is talking about on the tradeshow floor. Accomplishing this feat, however, isn’t easy. But it is simple.

That’s right. Do just a few things right, and you’re well on your way to being the most talked about exhibit at the show. Think about what this means:  

• Greater word of mouth on the show floor means more attendees visiting your booth organically, just as a result of the “buzz” heard throughout the show.  

• More attendees visiting your booth means exponentially more opportunities for your sales staff to get the message about your product or service out there.  

• Having a well-attended booth can result in coverage of your company and its exhibit in the media—which is free publicity (in fact, it’s publicity you literally can’t buy).  

• A booth filled with prospects means, at the very least, a pat on the back from your management for having pulled off a great show. At most, it could lead to a promotion.  

So, how do you go about accomplishing this? The necessary ingredients for a “best in show” booth break down into three categories:  

1. Get Your Message Out There 

If you want to be the most talked about booth at the show, you’re going to have to do a lot of talking before the show, in the form of pre-show publicity.  

That means email blasts to current customers, with an invitation to stop by your booth and say hello, and perhaps giving them an opportunity to enter a “customers only” drawing for a special grand prize. You’ll also want to get the attendee list from show management and email targeted attendees (or use regular mail), asking them to visit your booth for a chance to win a valuable prize (different from the “customers only” prize).  

You might also want to consider using a two-part premium (think of a penlight flashlight and its leather belt holster) to get these targeted prospects to stop by your exhibit. They get the leather holster in the mail with the invitation, along with instructions to bring the invitation to the show to pick up their flashlight (which, of course, is engraved with your company logo and phone number).  

Don’t forget to promote the event on social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), as well as on your company’s website. The more talking you do before the show, the more chances you’ll have to talk with prospects at the show. Also, look for opportunities to promote your presence at the show itself, through advertising in the show program, or other promotional opportunities show management makes available throughout the exhibit hall.  

At some major shows (like the Consumer Electronics Show and National Association of Home Builders Show), exhibitors even use specially printed electronic room keys with their logo and booth number on them to promote their involvement to hotel guests at the convention hotels.  

Believe it or not, most companies don’t take these simple steps. Why? Because they’re not easy. “Easy” is renting a booth space and showing up. But to be truly successful—to be the “talk of the show”—you can’t take the easy way out. You absolutely must promote your presence in every way you can think of.  

2. Be Different

For you to stand out on the show floor, everything about your exhibit must be unique, from the exhibit itself to the way your staffers are dressed.  

You don’t necessarily have to have a large exhibit to stand out. I’ve seen small, inline exhibits that stood out solely because of their design (or lack of it). Argus Technologies, an outdoor power systems retailer, literally builds its booth out of the company’s products. “Even though the products aren’t attractive, they are what the customers want to see,” says Sandra Monroe, Argus’s marketing communications manager.  

Another way to be different from your competitors is to incorporate a live presentation into your exhibit marketing program. This is generally a presenter working on a platform in your exhibit, with a large flat screen monitor behind him or her. Outsourcing this can cost tens of thousands of dollars. But you can also create it in-house (although I’d still encourage you to invest in the talents of a professional presenter).  

Even if you don’t have a live presentation, create a compelling product demo. Make it visually interesting. Appeal to as many senses as possible. Add an element of whimsy for memorability’s sake (for example, demonstrate how much lighter your product is than your competitors by showing that difference with actual barbells). Design it to be presented one-on-one as well as to small groups.  

Continue promoting your presence at the show on social media platforms during the show. Tweet about how many people are visiting your booth. Remind recipients or followers to stop by to enter your drawing(s). Announce when your top management will be in the booth, able to meet with interested attendees.  

Finally, put some serious effort into finding a “killer” promotional product that ties in well. Forget pens, mousepads or mugs. Start your search by finding a reputable supplier who’ll work with you to find something that captures a unique aspect of your company or your marketing message. Plan to spend a little money here. In fact, you may want two promotional products: the really cool one for loyal customers and serious prospects, and another less-expensive tchotchke for those “tire kickers” who are just looking for a handout.  

3. Be The Nicest People In Town

Nothing is more appealing to a visitor than a sincere smile and a warm handshake, and the knowledge that the booth staffer you’re dealing with is really listening to your needs.  

Some companies have well-trained staffers who instinctively know how to make booth visitors feel heard and understood, so that product recommendations are based on the prospects’ needs. For other companies, booth staff training may be necessary to help your sales staff deal with the unique and, at times, puzzling way business is done on the show floor. Think of it as an investment in your staff, or as relatively cheap insurance for the rest of your investment in the show as a whole. The better your staffers relate to booth visitors, the greater your results will be—particularly when you’re planning to have a very active booth!  

Have staffers canvas the show once each hour (or several times each day), looking for people carrying your “killer” promotional item. Give them fifty dollars in cash. Talk this up in your booth, and tell the people who get the item that it can happen to them, too. Keep a poster or white board on display in your booth with a list of the names of each day’s hourly winners.  

Set up a contest that’s open only to current customers who introduce you to new prospects. They receive a contest entry for each prospect they bring to you. Make it something worthwhile and personally useful (not your product or service, which will more than likely benefit the customer’s company, not him or her directly). Depending on how much each new prospect that becomes a customer is worth to your organization, the prize might be substantial—from an iPad to a luxury vacation.  

“Build it and they will come” only works in the movies. In real life, you have to make your presence known through a combination of traditional and online media. If you’ve been the best booth at the show, how did you accomplish that? Leave a comment with your story.

 

Dave Egan is head writer at Writers Direct Group, a full-service outsource writing resource for live trade show presentations, event theming, product demos, website content and other written- or spoken-word business communications. Contact him at Dave@WritersDirectGroup.com or 877-7GET-WDG [877-743-8934]. This article was first published online by the International Center for Exhibitor & Event Marketing (ICEEM) at http://www.iceem.net/

 

6 Tips for First Time Booth Staffers – by Suzanne Axt

1. Always be Punctual.  Make sure to arrive at least 10 minutes before you are scheduled to staff the booth, especially if you are on the second shift for the day.  This one thing helps the booth to run smoothly.    

2. Pack your Booth Attire.  Remembering to pack the booth shirts has always been an issue with staffers. I’m guilty of this myself!  As a Trade Show Manager, I carry a few extra shirts, but the staffer cannot be guaranteed that I will have their size.  So this is crucial.  Of course, comfortable dress shoes are a must.

3. Breath Mints.  This is a must as staffers tend to talk to many people visiting the booth and dry mouth often happens.  I make sure the staff has bottled water so that they are not parched.

4. Never Eat in the Booth.  Crumbs make a mess and no one wants to approach you mid-bite. Only bring bottled water into the booth that you have a cap for.  I have seen numerous coffee spills on both booth carpeting and demos.  Drink your coffee before entering the booth.

5. Ban Cell Phones.  Yes, texting and answering your phone in the aisle next to your booth is still considered rude and unapproachable.  Cell phones should be turned off and looked at before or after your shift only.  The exception is if you are waiting for an emergency call or a big contract to be signed and absolutely must have access.  The customer in front of you at the booth is more important at this moment.  They shouldn’t have to wait for you to get off the phone.

6. Don’t bring anything into the booth that is valuable.  There is usually limited closet or cabinet space anyway. Laptops, big purses, and backpacks should all be left in the hotel safe.

Need help in training your booth staff or setting up Pre and Post Show Meetings? Please contact Suzanne at suzanne.axt@TradeShowMadness.com.

Does Your Exhibit Marketing Program Support Your Brand?

Egan’s Entries On Exhibits & Events  

Your company endows you with the responsibility of being the guardian of its brand each time you step onto a trade show floor. Very few top executives at your company have a responsibility like that! But you do, and that makes you extremely powerful.

With that responsibility comes a (largely) unspoken agreement that you’ll do all in your power to promote the brand according to the desires of your company’s marketing team. For starters, that means you have to be well versed in the ins and outs of marketing, so you understand your brand backwards and forwards, and function almost instinctively in support of the brand.

My intention in writing this column is to help you formulate a systematized approach that serves you, as you serve the marketing team and others in your organization, by promoting the company’s brand effectively. Here are some basic considerations you might want to keep in mind as you function as your company’s “Keeper Of The Brand”:

1) Does our exhibit currently generate the mood, mindset or energy our brand is known for?

If not, what needs to be done in order to make that happen? 

2) Does everything in our exhibit—from the booth itself to graphics to staff badges—reflect the authenticity of our brand?

If not, what needs to be done in order to make that happen? 

3) Is the message we’re intending to communicate in our trade show marketing efforts being reflected back to us through our customers?

If not, what needs to be done in order to make that happen? 

4) Do the staffers in our exhibit understand our brand message, and support our brand in their appearance, behavior and attitude?

If not, what needs to be done to make that happen? 

5) Is information about our brand easy to access in our exhibit?

If not, what needs to be done in order to make that happen? 

6) Do we have a plan in place to detect threats to our brand, either from new businesses or competitors that are changing their marketing plans?

If not, what needs to be done in order to make that happen? 

7) Do we have policies for managing both positive comments and complaints or criticism from show attendees (bringing them back to the office, if necessary)?

If not, what needs to be done in order to make that happen? 

8) Are the employees who will be staffing the booth fully aware of their role, and trained to succeed in it?

If not, what needs to be done in order to make that happen? 

As you can see, there are pitfalls everywhere, and holes in your plans that may need attention. But that’s the point: address those problems and you’ll be in a better position to do the right thing when it comes to promoting your brand. And you can do it. You’ve got the power! Remember, you’re the “Keeper Of The Brand.”

This column has focused on the practicalities of promoting your company’s brand through trade show exhibiting. So much has been said about branding (and it’s become a buzzword in its own right). But how much are companies really following through, aligning their sales and marketing efforts with their brand position? Have you experienced problems with this in your own company, or perhaps a company where you worked previously? Share your favorite brand-related story with your peers here. 

Dave Egan is head writer at Writers Direct Group, a full-service outsource writing resource for live trade show presentations, event theming, product demos, website content and other written- or spoken-word business communications. Contact him at Dave@WritersDirectGroup.com or 877-7GET-WDG [877-743-8934]. This article was first published online by the International Center for Exhibitor & Event Marketing (ICEEM) at http://www.iceem.net

 

 

 

The New PR for Trade Shows – 9 Ways to Create Buzz by Suzanne Axt

Reblogged from Trade Shows:

Social Media is all the newest way to create buzz for your company’s trade shows via public relations.  Here are nine ways to increase traffic to your booth at your next event: 

Your Company’s Website

Let everyone know what trade shows you are planning to attend and your booth number.  List any new demos that are being introduced or speaking sessions.

Read more… 260 more words

Attending EXHIBITOR2013 – by Suzanne Axt

 Exhibitor 2013 is the trade show for those involved in trade shows and events.  The educational sessions offered over a four day period are all geared towards the industry.

I attended the show held at Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas over March 18^th through 21^st, 2013.  Although I’ve been in the industry for over a decade, it was the first time I have been able to attend this show.  Most years I have been working as a Consultant at other trade shows that run the same week as EXHIBITOR, so this was a real treat!

Educational Sessions

Since I am pursuing the Certified Trade Show Marketer (CTSM) designation, I was finishing my remaining classes and sitting for the Final Exam.  CTSM consists of 23 core classes covering topics such as:  Using Surveys to Measure Your Performance in Trade Shows and Events; Integrated Marketing Communications; How to Measure the Value of Trade Show Participation; The Nuts and Bolts of Budgeting for Results; Business Marketing Strategies and Trade Shows; and Realizing Your Public Relations Potential to name just a few.

All topics are relevant and helpful to you in being able to excel through practical application of the techniques learned.  You do not have to be pursuing the CTSM to benefit from the sessions offered.  There are also peer-to-peer round tables offered as well as elective sessions.

CTSM Final Exam

The Final Exam is a comprehensive exam of over 200 questions that cover all 23 core classes and runs from 12:30pm to 3:30pm to allow ample time to finish.  If you pass the Exam, you are then eligible to complete a Portfolio to complete out the CTSM process.

CTSM Portfolio

The portfolio covers all the skills you have learned and are using in your current job function.  Once registered for the Portfolio, there is a 12-month completion timeline to meet.

While it seems like a lot to put into this designation, it surely shows that only the truly dedicated will complete it as there are only 394 people who hold the CTSM designation to date.

Trade Show

While the trade show is going on between 11:30am and 3:30pm, there are no educational sessions.  This makes for a steady flow of booth traffic as attendees swarm into the hall to explore new vendor relationships; visit with current customers or clients; or to see what is new.  I personally liked running into several colleagues and a few former clients while visiting the trade show floor.  It is satisfying to not only put a face to a name, but to be able to meet informally in this type of setting.

If you have not been to EXHIBITOR yet, I truly recommend taking the time to go.  It is an experience not to be missed!

Suzanne Axt

suzanne.axt@tradeshowmadness.com

3 Ways to SAVE on Shipping and Material Handling – Suzanne Axt

Both shipping and material handling is notoriously known as being one of the most expensive necessities of a tradeshow next to the cost of your booth space.

Here are 3 Ways to Help Reduce Your Spending without sacrificing service.

1.  Ship in Bulk.  Consolidate your shipments into one major shipping lot.  Too often staff will ship last minute smaller packages instead of making the shipping date of the bulk shipment set by the Tradeshow Manager.  Most people  don’t realize that small packages still have to meet the minimum weight of  100 pounds (even if its only 25 pounds!).  Not only that, but  a special handling charge has to be charged because a show floor worker now has to put that small package on a cart and drive it through the exhibit hall to your booth personally.

2.  Rethink your Shipping Crates.  If your shipping crates are over-sized, you are paying for extra space on the shipping truck.  Especially if these crates cannot be stacked on top of each other.  This results in more room needed, and possible a second truck used for your overall shipping lot.  I have consolidated several large booth crates into two large booth crates by consolidating what was actually used at the tradeshow.  The original crates were over-sized and had taken a real beating due to forklifts on the show floor literally dragging the crates because of their unusual size and not fitting onto the forklift.  Not to blame the show floor workers, because of the size, my own warehouse workers had to do the same thing.  By having the booth crates rebuilt, I not only saved the company money on shipping costs, but on the wear and tear of the crates themselves.

3.  Build with Lighter Materials.  Consider using lighter materials with your booth build.  Fabric looks just as great as pressed wood and certainly is lighter to ship.  Aluminum or plastic is certainly lighter than wood or steel.  This is especially true for hanging signs and booth pieces that are not supporting heavier items.

I hope these 3 suggestions have helped you to see ways in which you can save money on your shipping and material handling charges.  I welcome your comments on additional ways to save in these two areas.

Cheers,  Suzanne

Suzanne Axt

suzanne.axt@tradeshowmadness.com

How To Find The Right Models For Your Event

Egan’s Entries On Exhibits & Events

If you’ve been in the tradeshow business for any length of time, you’ve heard the name Judy Venn, or even seen it in your exhibitor’s manual, as Judy’s firm is frequently an official contractor, offering models, hosts and hostesses, reception desk staffers and other professionals for tradeshows and events. Judy Venn & Associates has been offering trained tradeshow talent to exhibitors for more than forty years.  

I felt it might be beneficial for you to know a little more about the process of matching the right model to your project, so Judy and I sat down for an interview.

Dave: What is the most common need a tradeshow manager has when contacting you?  

Judy: Most everyone needs a person to manage the reception desk, meet and greet booth visitors, and swipe their badges. Many of our clients have found it’s much more cost effective to hire local talent rather than to bring in someone from the company to handle those responsibilities. We have talent in virtually every tradeshow city, so the client doesn’t need to cover travel, hotel or other costs that would be involved when using a company staffer.

Dave: Judy, what makes a model qualified to represent a company at a tradeshow or event? 

Judy: He or she must have experience working with people, and also be intelligent, with a good personality. We’ll check those qualifications when one of our office staffers interviews the candidate.

Dave: How do you match clients with the appropriate talent? 

Judy: We send photos and resumes of potential talent that best fit the client’s stated needs. In some cases, the client will want to interview the model by phone (or via Skype) prior to the show.

Dave: What are the top three things you look for in models before signing them to Judy Venn & Associates? 

Judy: Intelligence, personality and love of people. Technical matters can be learned, but those three qualities must be innate in the model for them to be on our talent roster.

Dave: What are the most important qualities a JVA model has to have to work tradeshows? 

Judy: Professionalism and integrity. We don’t want our talent to be thought of as “booth babes.” We’re providing professional people who are uniquely talented to perform a specific and important professional job, and do that with integrity.

Dave: How does gender factor into the people you recommend as talent for your clients? 

Judy: It helps to know who’s attending the show. For example, it’s mostly males attending SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) and IBS (International Builders Show), so most of our clients prefer female talent. On the other hand, most of the attendees at the AORN Show (Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses) are females, so our clients usually request attractive males to work the booths as product demonstrators.

Dave: Is there one piece of advice you’d like to offer prospective clients before they contact you? 

Judy: We can be more helpful if the client already has a good idea of what they need, and what they want to accomplish with the talent in their booth. It’s time consuming to send photos and resumes, only to have the client come back with a different, or more thorough idea of what they’re looking for.

Also, when deciding whether or not to use professional booth talent, I always encourage clients to weigh the true cost difference in bringing someone from the home office, versus hiring one of our models. By the time you add up air, hotel, food, ground transportation and the time spent away from the office, it’s much more cost effective to hire local professionals who do this for a living.

And we don’t just offer models. There are many types of talent we can provide: hosts and hostesses, brand ambassadors, sales assistants, demonstrators, interpreters, presenters, look-alikes, chair massage therapists and even costume character performers. That’s a wide variety of talent that can help the exhibitor get as much as possible from the tradeshow experience and increase their bottom line results.

Dave Egan is head writer at Writers Direct Group, a full-service outsource writing resource for live trade show presentations, event theming, product demos, website content and other written- or spoken-word business communications. Contact him at Dave@WritersDirectGroup.com or 877-7GET-WDG [877-743-8934].