Last Updated on Mar 31, 2020 by James W
Trade shows offer your business a great way to interact with customers and clients. If the show goes well for your business, its profile can be raised, and you could even turn some people into customers. Trade shows are also very competitive though. There will be plenty of other people who want to achieve the same things as you for their businesses. So, how can you make your trade show exhibit the best one in the room?
- Get a Good Spot
When you first arrive at the trade show, you will need to get a spot. This is where you will organise your exhibition stand. And it’s where you will be for the duration of the event. If possible, you should book a position in advance. Make sure you find out how the allocation of places works before you show up. Whenever you do get to choose the position of the stand, make sure it’s a good spot. It should be somewhere where lots of people will pass by during the day. You don’t really want to be stuck in a dark corner of the room. It’s much more difficult to be seen and heard when you have a bad spot.
- Generate Buzz on Social Media
Of course, trade shows are about face to face interaction, so you need to keep this in mind. But don’t forget about how important social media can be as well. It offers a good way of generating buzz around the event generally and your own exhibit in particular. If you do this in the run up to the trade show, then you could encourage more people to turn up and see what you have to offer. So, don’t forget to use social media in advance of the show and during it too. You can keep people up to date with what you’re doing even if they’re not able to attend the trade show in person.
- Rehearse with Staff in Advance
If your employees are on top form at the trade show, then this will make your life a lot easier. They will be the ones who are directly engaging with the public alongside you. So, they need to be prepared and confident ahead of the event. It’s a good idea to plan it in advance. Make sure that everyone understands what their role is and what they will be expected to do. Some companies even draw up a loose script that employees can help to guide them when they’re talking to the public. But how you prepare your staff for the trade show will be up to you and them, so discuss it together.
- Have a Game to Play
Introducing an element of fun into your exhibition is always a good idea. If you can show people that your business is playful and engaging, this can only ever be a positive thing. Many of the best and most popular exhibition stands are the ones that have interactive games. What form these games take depends on the business and the sector they’re operating in. But if you get creative, there is no reason why you can’t come up with a game that is engaging and relevant to your business. You could give prizes away to winners if you like too. This will add an extra dimension to the game.
- Focus on What You’re Doing
There is always a temptation at trade shows to focus on what other business rivals are doing. Yes, these events do offer you the chance to have a look at what other businesses are offering. But you can get too wrapped up in what others are doing. And that can be damaging to your own trade show efforts. It’s your exhibition stand that should matter most to you. When people are not focused on their own activities, they take their eye off the ball. Your exhibition stand is the only one that you have any control over, so it doesn’t make sense to be worrying about the others.
- Give Away Promotional Items
It’s always good to give people something that they can take away with them when they walk away from your exhibition stand. This could be the thing that reminds them about your business in the future. And that could lead to extra sales. You can take the safe option and hand everyone a business card. But these often get thrown away at the soonest opportunity. Instead, you could use promotional items that have an actual use. It could be a pen or a hat or a wristband. You can find plenty of promotional giveaway ideas that can be personalised online.
- Use Electronics Creatively
You should use technology to your advantage at the trade show because it can really give your stand an edge. If your exhibition stand is the one with creative lights, sounds, and screens, then yours will be the one that more people gravitate towards. That might sound simplistic, but that’s the way it works. The stands that are eye-catching and appeal to the senses are always the most popular at shows like this. So, prepare this ahead of the trade show and think about what graphics and lighting could be best for you. Of course, it is possible to go over the top, so you need to be careful not to do that.
- Deliver a Clear Message
Every good exhibition stand has a message. It could be a catchy tagline that is displayed under the brand name. When you are deciding what this message will be, make sure that it’s something that is clear and obvious. You don’t want to leave people scratching their heads. It should be something that they can easily latch onto and understand. When you’ve formulated that message, and everyone is agreed on it, you need to keep repeating it. If you get that message out there to as many people as possible, it should make an impact on some of them. And that could be what helps your business to stay in their mind.
