Who really has time to read a 500-page exhibitor’s manual? You really should make the time, if you want to make sure you know all the rules for the space where the trade show is going to be, but between getting your trade show booth ordered, your graphics printed, your staff clothed and primed, and your giveaways ordered, you might find yourself pressed for time. Here are some key points that are applicable to almost every trade show exhibiting situation.

Your booth is not protected by the security guards. The security guards are hired to protect the hall itself, not the individual booths. That does not mean that they won’t stop someone if they catch them trying to steal something out of your booth, but it’s not technically their job to do so. They are told to stay around the edges, watching for people who aren’t supposed to be there. Protect your booth and its contents by keeping an eye on it all the time. If you can’t do that, try to position your booth next to an industry colleague so that the two of you can help each other out with security. If the show is more than a day long, make sure you pack up any valuables and secure them.

The hall cleans the exhibition space every night, so that means they will vacuum your booth area. Make sure all random things are picked up and, best of all, don’t bother crawling around trying to pick up random specks and pieces of paper before you leave for the night.

Your company name and booth location usually won’t automatically be printed in the directory. You usually have to fill out a form to be listed. Make sure you do this. Additionally, most shows will provide a certain amount of invitations with your logo on them for you to send to some of your customers, and they will usually provide five badges for every one hundred square feet of space that you rent.

Most show manuals will tell you how large your booth is allowed to be. Make sure you know these dimensions before you order your booth. Also, make sure adhesive items like bumper stickers are not part of your promotional giveaway. Most exhibit halls and show companies prohibit them, because they end up stuck places they aren’t supposed to be.

Make sure you call the company if you have any questions. It’s always better to be overeducated as to the rules, rather than to show up and not know what is going on.

Effective Trade Show Marketing on a Budget

Budgets are under a great deal of pressure; there is restricted money available for campaigns but at the same time, there is an even greater need to do more with less. How do you maintain and improve on your marketing effectiveness when clients are harder to sell into and when you have half the budget you had last year?

That’s an acid test situation!

An initial broad approach is to revisit your planning and research. The more you invest in planning, the better the potential outcome for the budget. Focus on shows and activities which have generated positive ROI based on past experience. Cut out the extraneous, optional extras you can do without and identify just what the mission critical aspects of the campaign really are.

This may mean cutting out poorly performing trade shows you traditionally attend; it may mean you try new tactics and strategies and move into new areas to exhibit. By now, you should understand you are going to be moving well out of your comfort zone, but therein lies the real point; with a tight budget you have no choice but to get creative.

You have restricted options for cutting costs with trade show management. The way trade shows are contracted for means there is a substantial lead-in period – it is not unusual for a trade show to be booked up a year in advance. You can cut costs by sharing the space you have booked with someone else who is looking to exhibit, and you can cut out the optional extras that you don’t really need. Again, this comes back to taking a cold hard look at what you really need to get the job done.

Ultimately though, exhibiting is not about spending money; trade shows are money spinners and should be viewed as profit generating centers. Focusing on Return on Investment (ROI) will maintain your profitable momentum and ensure you retain a strong focus on the bottom line – this is not an exercise in customer relations but a strategy to deliver substantial, bottom line performance to the company profit and loss account.

3 Step Trade Show Selling

This sounds simple but in practice there is more to it – follow 3 simple steps to maintain your trade show focus: Plan, Qualify and Follow Up.
Do these three things and you will maximize your trade show impact, and best of all, your competitors are probably only doing one of these (at best).

Failing to Plan is Planning to Fail

You can never start planning your trade show soon enough. This is where you paint the ‘big picture’ and set goals and responsibilities. Blue Sky Thinking is fine, but you also want to know just what you are really doing exhibiting in the first place. Once that is set, you then move on to be very specific about setting targets; how many sales, how many qualified prospects, how many sales demonstrations, how many sales appointments or presentations will be achieved.

Planning is continuous – it never stops. But if you know where you are going, you have a far better chance of getting there.

Qualify Attendees, Do Not Try to Sell to Everyone

Be clear – not everyone attending the trade show is going to be someone you want as a customer. Resist the urge to try to sell to everyone you meet, and remember basic sales principles. The first step when you meet an attendee is to qualify them: do they have a need or problem your business can help them with; do they have the authority to make the buying decision or can they put you in touch with who that person is; and finally, do they have the budget or the means to pay for whatever you’re selling.

If you have “yes” to all these questions, you have yourself a hot prospect you want to spend time with.

The End of the Trade Show Day is Not the End of the Work – Follow Up

This is where many exhibitors fail – they relax after the show and do not follow up in a prompt and professional manner. All the information you have collected on potential prospects and customers should now be put to good use. Phone calls and mailings need to be performed so the people you spoke to see you are professional and looking to do business. Don’t forget that these same people will also be dealing with your competitors from the show – stay ahead of them by doing the follow up and keep the promises you made at the show.