Creating excitement about your company’s participation in a trade show starts long before the event itself. You must also plan your marketing strategy to reach attendees and generate interest in your booth. Bringing the right team to the show is vital. These individuals are the face of your business and will impact your customers’ perceptions.
Set Your Goals and Objectives
If your team represents your business at a trade show, they should be prepared and clear on the goals. They should have booked meetings to meet with potential customers or partners before the show and know their responsibilities. Setting measurable goals makes it easier to assess your efforts’ success and identify improvement areas. It also helps your team plan the resources needed to meet their quotas.
Develop a Marketing Strategy
It is important to develop and gain internal alignment on clearly measurable objectives that tie back to the overall goals of the event. For example, measuring the number of demonstrations or booth visitors is likely an appropriate metric if a company is looking to generate leads. Ensure a system is in place to capture the number of business cards collected and a follow-up plan for post-show lead management. Creating and maintaining a shared calendar for sales teams to provide visibility into their booth schedules can also help.
Design an Engaging Booth
Ensure that booth staff are ready to engage with attendees and help them understand the value of your products or services. Asking open questions and listening carefully to answers is important. Infinity Exhibits use vivid colors to draw attention from onlookers. More colorful designs are easier on the eyes and stand out from the competition. They can make it less invasive for guests to provide their contact information.
Hire the Right Staff
Hiring the right staff is one of the most important aspects of trade show planning. Staffers should be knowledgeable about your products and services and able to field inquiries from visitors. You should also train them to identify a qualified lead and close sales. Having experienced professionals like event planners, salespeople, and even an SEO marketing consultant on board can help you manage the process of organizing a trade show and ensure everything goes smoothly. They can also help you promote your event and boost attendance.
Create a Comprehensive Checklist
Ensure your sales team has a system to capture leads during the event and post-show follow-up. It could include filing away business cards, taking notes, or entering lead data into a CRM system. Enlisting professionals with experience creating trade shows, like event planners and salespeople, can help streamline the planning process. They can also offer insightful counsel and subject-matter knowledge to guarantee the success of your event. Obtain feedback on your presentation and event to identify areas for improvement.
Plan for Logistics
The meticulous planning, tons of work, and sleepless nights that trade shows usually can go awry in a flash if you encounter shipping problems. Working with a logistics company specializing in transporting freight helps you avoid the headache and expense of such disasters. Ensure your team knows their responsibilities during the show and have meetings in the weeks and days leading up to the event to set expectations. Also, have a system for following up with show leads to help your team stay productive post-show.
Prepare for Unexpected Events
Ensure teams are prepared for event changes and new tasks by creating pre-show, day, and post-show timelines and checklists. Keep these updated throughout the planning process and mark team meetings in shared calendars, accounting for the event’s time zone. Conduct a debrief after the show to evaluate what went well and how the team can improve for future events. It could include reviewing the number of qualified leads, booth traffic, or other metrics. It’s also important to follow up with attendees who expressed interest in your business.
Organize a Program
A trade show program helps attract and engage attendees, support goals and objectives, and create an overall positive experience. It might include seminars, workshops, and presentations from industry experts. Encourage your team to pre-schedule booth meetings with potential clients, customers, and partners. It can help your team focus on generating new leads and increasing sales opportunities. Ensure you have a system to capture and prioritize post-show leads within 24 hours of the show. It will help you determine the effectiveness of your trade show participation and help justify future event participation.
