What do you need to succeed at trade shows? If you can check these 16 points off your list, you’re well on your way:
- Align your trade show goals with your overall marketing and company goals
- Create goals that are specific, measurable, and timely
- Pay early to avoid rush charges and (surprisingly high) late fees
- Booth space rental is about one-third your budget, for the rest invest more in areas that give you the best R.O.I.
- Pick shows with an audience that best matches your target market
- Go back to the highest R.O.I. shows from previous years
- Design your exhibit to boldly and clearly communicate who you are, what you sell, and why your prospects should buy from you
- Design your exhibit to support your booth staffers as a workspace…and work to keep your ongoing expenses down
- Reach out to attendees before the show, via phone, email, mail, ads, and the web
- Offer attendees something of value (information, presentations, demonstration, show specials, giveaways) in exchange for a visit
- Select motivated, friendly, knowledgeable booth staffers
- Train your staffers to handle the steps to shorter trade show interactions: engage, present, qualify, and close
- Capture at-show, on paper or electronically, the prospect info your sales team needs after the show — and then give it to them after the show
- Before the show even starts, prepare a person, materials, and a database to fulfill your leads…and an all-out effort ready to follow up leads after the show
- Plan ahead to give yourself more time to adapt to problems, especially for international shows
- Take a binder with all your contracts and contacts with you to the show, including graphic art files on a thumb drive if your display gets lost
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