How to Make Your Trade Exhibition Successful

In order to improve lead generation and revenue, you may have decided that 2016 you are going to attend a trade show and see if that can help you reach your audience and enjoy some success. Attending a show isn't the only thing you have to do, a show needs to be planned and you need to focus on ways to ensure that your trade exhibition is a success.

Remember, you are not the only company that is offering your particular products or services at this one event. There may be five, ten even twenty companies competing for your potential customers, so you need to ensure that you stand out above the rest and you attract potential customers to your stand, ensure your name is remembered and that the client wants to meet with you and buy from you in the future.

Give aways

Everyone loves give aways and you don't have to go expensive. Affordable printed t-shirts, useful gadgets and other promotional items is all that is needed to give to your potential customers as they visit your stand. When they go back to their offices after the event, you want them to remember your company name and of course, you get free advertising every time they use the products you gave them, so you will find that that one give away will work for you for months to come.

Presentations

Trade show attendees love presentations, so you will want to set up a number of presentations throughout the event. This can be a demonstration on a new product you have just launched to valuable advice and tips relating to your industry. Attract customers with effective presentations that add value to them and something that they want to know and learn about.

Lead Generators

Ensure when manning your stand that you only use your best lead generators. Within the company you will have some employees who have the ability to secure more new leads than others, use these people at the show to ensure your success. The better the lead generator, the more business cards you will have by the end of the event.

Promote

Take advantage in the weeks leading up to the trade exhibition to promote the event. Ensure clients and potential clients know you will be there and where your stand will be located.

Set up appointments right there and then

The final piece of advice we can give you to ensure your trade exhibition is a success is to set up appointments with potential clients at the show. Don't let them walk away and then call them, it is easier for them to turn you down. Set up as many follow up appointments as possible right there and then without delay.

How to Successfully Use Celebrities and Experts for Trade Show Events

When you attend a trade show, you are just another exhibitor among a sea of companies all selling the same products or services that you offer. It is imperative that you stand out above your competitors and attract your potential customers to your stand and there are numerous ways of doing this from custom designing a stand based on your audience to making use of celebrities and experts.

Connect with your customers

Celebrities and experts can help you connect with your customers in a way you may not have been able to do before. Even though you are manning the stand and working on meeting each new potential customers, having a celebrity or an expert in the field at your stand will attract more customers, helping you connect with even more people during the course of the event.

Marketing

When you plan to attend a trade show you start marketing it as early as possible. You make use of your social media pages and your website, you promote it on your blog and you want to reach your customer base, encouraging them to attend the event and visit your stand. With a celebrity attending or an expert in the field, chances are that more clients are going to want to visit the event and in particular, visit your stand.

Set Times

Ensure you have set time for your celebrity visit or your expert presentations and advertise these times. The last thing you want is for your potential customers to be disappointed. If they have clear times to work with then they will make an effort to set time aside and attend, which is also a positive for you, helping you add another new client to your growing customer base.

Answering questions

If you are having an expert attend the trade show, then ensure that they set a few minutes aside after the presentation to answer any questions that potential customers may have. It is important part of the process, it ensures that customers feel confident with your brand and products and confident that they can use your services in the future.

Photographs

In the event you have managed to secure a celebrity figure to attend your stand, even if only for half an hour, ensure that you have space to take photographs for potential customers to keep and remember. Ensure your company name is hanging above them in all photographs, a great marketing tool to help the client remember your company name now and moving forward.

Getting More Hit for Your Trade Show Buck

Whether you are planning to attend a trade show or you regularly attend these events, ensuring you get a good return on investment is imperative to the success of the event in the long run. You don't want to be wasting your marketing budget on shows that don't reward you in return.

How much should you be investing?

One of the most common questions is how much should you be investing in trade shows to ensure you get a good return on your investment. The majority of companies will tell you, you should not invest more than one third of your total annual marketing budget on trade shows. While they are exceptionally useful in generating leads and increasing brand visibility, you still have to keep budget for other marketing tools, such as online marketing and other offline opportunities.

Things to bear in mind

You may be wondering if you will get more hit for your buck when investing in trade shows, so there are some facts you need to know:

• 81% of trade show attendees have buying authority for themselves or their company.
• 77% of trade show attendees will find a new supplier at a trade show.
• 95% of attendees will meet their current supplies at trade shows and identify new products and service which they can use moving forward.

How to improve your revenue

So you've had a trade show booth custom made for you and you have booked your space at the event, now you need to know that you will get the outcome you are hoping for and you will walk away with a good return on your investment moving forward.

There are numerous reasons you have decided or are declining to attend a trade sow and these usually include face to face meetings with potential customers and current customers. You will also improve your brand visibility and lead generation, which can benefit the business in the long run.

Remember to look for a booth which is going to draw your particular customer. Customers are more likely to visit a stand that appeals to them and what they are looking for. If you specialist in technology for example, know your audience and then design your stand to really stand out and attract them. Get as many business cards or contact details as possible to add to your customer base to follow up on in the coming weeks.