Sonas Blog

Whatever industry your business is in, you need to have a presence at your industry's major trade shows and regional events. Trade shows provide opportunities to reach decision makers in your industry. According to the Center for Exhibition Industry Research, increasing sales is the single most common trade show goal for 83 percent of marketers.

Appropriate trade show staff can make or break your campaign. They are the essence of your exhibit strategy, and if it wasn't for them, your pre-event marketing efforts would be near pointless.

Participating in a trade show can quickly eat up your marketing budget.

To see any positive returns, you need a well-planned strategy and flawless execution.

Some companies start planning several months before the event, and with good reason. As soon as you get on the exhibition floor, you only have a moment’s glance to grab the attention of attendees.

So, what exactly can you do to create a buzz long before the trade show?

Trade shows are one of the best places to launch a new product. Why... because trade shows give you the opportunity to interact with intended users of the product face-to-face. A chance to watch as a target audience interacts with your new product and gain insight directly from the users; how often do you get that?

Trade shows are also great for product launches because of the extensive media coverage. Often, these events attract a lot of media attention meaning several TV, Radio, Magazine, and Newspaper companies will be there to cover the event. 

To help make the launch successful, here are a few ideas you should consider:

While trade shows are an opportunity to build brand awareness, the main reason businesses participate in these events is to generate leads. You want to get contact information and initiate conversations with people who are likely to become your customers. That’s usually the main aim.

However, capturing leads isn’t as easy as it sounds. Attendees won’t just give you their contact information because you showed up at the event or because your booth looks good. If you want to get their contact details, you need to work for it.

Here are six ideas to consider;

Trade shows can be a great place for your business to start earning a reputation and making connections with customers.

However, the type of connections you form at the booth is often far more telling than the number of interactions you have. A properly planned trade show campaign will allow you to expand upon your current inbound marketing techniques, rather than slipping back into your old low conversion outbound marketing habits.

Trade show marketing should be about forming new relationships, not necessarily making one time sales.  

Stop thinking short term, instead think long term.

Here are some of our thoughts about the mindset of successful trade show exhibitors.

"There is only one thing worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about." -Oscar Wilde

Although Wilde died in 1900, people are still talking about him and his "wildeisms" are still quoted. The goal of every company exhibiting in a trade show is to keep that talk going and translating into business.  Trade shows represent huge opportunities to create new relationships, raise brand awareness, and make some noise.  In other words, keep people talking!

Exhibiting at a trade show is the quintessential occasion to come face-to-face with qualified prospects for your products, all the while representing a large percentage of your company's marketing budget. So making the most of the time and money invested in exhibiting means carefully avoiding trade show mistakes that sabotage all your efforts.

Unique promotional concepts and trade show ideas are what you need to make your exhibition a sought-after destination at a trade show event. If you’re creative enough to stand out from the competition, you’ll attract large crowds.

The best way to learn about these new trade show ideas is to attend as many events as possible, both within and outside your industry. Walk through the exhibition hall to see what others are doing, paying particular attention to booths that are attracting large crowds consistently. Do they have a unique trick no one else knows about? Find out by politely asking about their techniques.

Trade shows are an excellent platform to meet and engage with your customers and prospects face-to-face.

This, according to experts, allows brands to initiate conversations and build long-term relationships.

However, trade shows can also be quite challenging if you’re not prepared.

You've spent a lot of time, money, and effort preparing for a trade show. Your company booth design is eye-catching, you've ordered customized branded giveaways that attendees will love, and you've invested in transportation and hotel rooms for your employees who will be manning your booth. Everything's set - so what could go wrong?