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Trade Show Tips to Promote Your Business

Guest post by: Scott Lorenz

Article Overview: Trade shows are an important business marketing tool whether it’s a local show hosted by the chamber of commerce for a few hundred people or a mega show in Las Vegas for a few thousand. Potential buyers are coming together for their shared interest. If you can demonstrate that your company meets their needs you’ve got a new customer.

Trade Show Tips to Promote Your Business

Trade shows are an important business marketing tool whether it's a local show hosted by the chamber of commerce for a few hundred people or a mega show in Las Vegas for a few thousand. Potential buyers are coming together for their shared interest. If you can demonstrate that your company meets their needs you've got a new customer. As a public relations and marketing specialist, I've been to hundreds of trade shows working with entrepreneurs, start-ups as well as doctors, lawyers and authors. I am often called upon in the early stages of a company's existence to get them "on the radar." A trade show is a great way to get on that radar. Here are just a few trade show marketing ideas you can use to make it happen.

• Be prepared. Plan months in advance so that you have all the appropriate collateral material such as brochures, flyers, samples and business cards. Last minute printing and shipping add unnecessary costs to the project.

• Arrive early. Have everything in order. Double check the start time and end time for each day.

• Does everybody in the booth know the pitch? Have you role played? Do they know when to hand it over to the higher ups? There's nothing worse than an uninformed person booting a good lead for lack of good training. This is especially true if you are hiring local help to pass out brochures or samples. Make sure they know the basics and who to refer leads to.

• Want to be remembered? Give away something useful, not just a knick knack with your company logo. You'll know it's useful if they put it in their pocket as they walk away.

• Provide a call to action. IE "Order by March 15 get 25% discount" or other offer like "Get 3 for the price of 2" or "Free shipping on all show orders."

• Capture attendee contact information. Some shows have bar code readers on name tags but get some contact info from your customers. Offer up a gift if they provide it such as a free sample of the product or special deal. I just attended a show where some companies had 7 laptops all at bar top table height with a screen customized for one thing only: Collection of an email address and a name. People were lined up to part with their email address to get that free sample.

• Give away a sample of the product. If it's a food or drink let people taste it right in front of you. Ask for their feedback. Then give them a sample to take away with a brochure and remind them about that "call to action," IE "If you order by March 15 there's 25% off."

• Follow up, follow up, follow up. Contact the people you met with a nice email or snail mail letter. Send along a brochure, remind them about the offer, etc. If appropriate give them a phone call after a few days. It's not a 'cold call' if you met them in person right? It may take several contacts to cement a deal but the trade show is often the first step.

• Get on a panel at the trade show. Most trade shows have an educational component. Ask to be part of a panel discussion about your industry. Share your expertise and be noted in your field.

There are literally hundreds of things you can do to make your trade show a success. For more ideas visit the author's web site.

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Article Tags: conventions, displays conventions, exhibit ideas, trade show ideas, trade show tips, tradeshow ideas



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