If you’re going to be exhibiting at an event this year, you’re going to want to get the most out of it that you can.
So here is our 13 step guide to making sure the exhibition works for you.
- What’s your objective? Is it to sell something? Is it to gather leads? You need to define early on, the reason is for exhibiting at the show.
- Find the right show. Make sure that the exhibition is going to have the footfall and the right people attending.
- Book your space. Make sure that you can maximise on your investment. Ideal areas to chose are close to seminar/theatre entrances, sponsored demo areas, cafes or the toilets. That’s where you know there’ll be a large number of people passing by.
- Choose the type of display that you’re doing to take with you. If it’s a small event, you’ll only need a roller banner. For bigger exhibitions, you need something like a pop up stand. If it’s a shell scheme stand, you’ll need to look at how you’re going to decorate the area. You’ll have three walls in effect, to place graphics on or put banners up against. You might want to look at using a systems stand. These can be modular and you can size them to fit different venues. Your key message should always be high up on the stand so that it can be seen from a distance.
- Check out those ‘extras’. You can pay an arm and a leg for extras at exhibitions. Power sockets, Wi-fi; Make sure you take as much of it as possible with you.
- Take a seminar or speaking slot. If this is offered, not only will this help attract people to your stand, but it positions you as an expert in your industry, and that’s invaluable when it comes to your marketing and sales.
- Decide what marketing collateral you need to take.
– Leaflets / Brochures / Offer Flyer
– Does everyone have a good supply of business cards?
– Do you need a ‘giveaway and/or bag? - Get the staffing right and here’s the magic formula. (Total visitors / by days the event is running) / hours the event is open each day/60. You need to calculate how many people you need on the stand.
- What to wear. You need to mirror the people you want to attract. If you’re attracting families, consumers or children, you should dress more casual, than if you’re trying to attract the Chief Exec of multi-nationals. Dress in the same clothing, in the same colours. If everyone dresses differently you’re not going to look professional or stand out.
- Gathering leads. Remember, it’s all about quality and not the quantity. Make sure you attract leads from those people who you want to be doing business with. The classic gold fish bowl for your business cards is a great tactic, but don’t just let anyone put a card in there or, if they do, make sure it’s marked in some way that you don’t waste time following up a lost cause.
- Other exhibitors. A great source of leads at all exhibition is the other exhibitors themselves, particularly if you’re in a B2B business. This can be an absolute goldmine, but don’t talk to them during the main part of the exhibition day. They won’t appreciate it and you’ll be wasting time when you should be talking to visitors to your stand.
- Follow-up. Don’t forget the follow up. You’ve qualified all the leads, you have the contact details of everyone who visited you, but so many people fail at this step and just fail to follow up. Upload your visitors data to your CRM system immediately and make sure that they receive the first email from you on the same day that they visited the stand. It really does set you apart from other competitors.
- Analyse the results. You need to find out if it was worthwhile exhibiting. Did you cover your costs? Was it worth the time and effort? Do you want to exhibit there again next year? Because if you do, there’s probably going to be an early bird discount in the next few weeks that you can take advantage of.
So that’s our exhibition checklist. If you would like to talk to us about your marketing collateral, your exhibition stand or your promotional giveaway, Just give us a call on 01603 397704.
