Tips from a Teen on Maximizing Your Trade Show Marketing

• Updated on: 2019-07-26
• Read original article here

When was the last time you took a fresh look at your trade show presence? I’m talking about the big picture, not just the booth or your handouts.

We know the world has changed. People’s attention is diluted by the activity around them, including the clamoring of gadgets and media. Your marketing message can get lost in the cacophony.

It used to be that, if your trade show booth looked the same, year after year, your customers would know how to find you. You could make contact at the various shows, and the continuity would be a welcome sight.

These days, a dated looking booth or exhibit will not attract the young prospects that you need to keep your business growing in the years to come. Young consumers are comparison shopping in depth and making spending decisions based on professional marketing and word of mouth. These young people are your upcoming and current customers, and you need to have a plan for how to reach and engage them at trade shows.

Below are some of my ideas for your trade show presence, along with comments from my son, Ben, a gadget-enabled teenager:

Sandy: You probably have boxes of unused business cards and you are thinking, “This is a good opportunity to get rid of some of those.” However, you might also approach it like this: a trade show is a custom event, and it’s worth a custom business card. Unusual substrates, bright colors, creative diecuts, and flawless foil effects all draw attention and stand out in the pile of cards your prospects are taking home.

If you chat with someone at your booth, take a moment to write something on the back of the card before you hand it to them, and really personalize it.

Ben: I enjoy business cards and will keep those unusual ones, just because they look good. If you give away a little personalized business card holder with your logo or an interactive code, that would be something I would keep and use. Other give-aways I might enjoy would be crazy sunglasses, iPad covers with your logo, candy in wrappers, small individually wrapped food items, and little things I can fit in my pockets. My motto is: “You can’t put a hoagie in your pocket!”

Sandy: It is so affordable to customize and create large graphics for your booth. Vertical banners and wraps can modernize your same-old-same-old booth space. Graphics can be printed in the city of your destination and delivered to the show floor. Easy!

Ben: Think colorful. Attractive.Go beyond paper and use fabric, metal or unique man-made materials. Use 3D graphics. Use the space in your booth in all dimensions. Create interactivity in unexpected ways. If you have graphics that have torn or worn edges or are faded, please do everybody a favor and throw them away.

3. Be Creative with White Papers and Handouts

Sandy: I love to collect — and keep — white papers. I consider them a very smart and valuable handout, whether it is a case study, the results of a survey, or tips on how to do something better. I’m a traditionalist from the perspective that a thick sheaf of white paper with a corner staple says, “Ooh, there’s something good here.”

For attendees who travel light, make the information available electronically with a swipe of their phone, but be sure to hand them something else memorable that reminds them that “Print Makes the World Go Around.”

Ben: Use a QR code to allow visitors to access your marketing materials. For example, the code might take them to a video, and at the end there is a link to more information. You make them pay a little with their attention in order to get the goods. Track who has accessed the literature and follow up. Promote print, yes, but if you want to get your marketing material into customer’s hands, you have to deliver it however they want it.

4. Take Advantage of Email and Social Media

Sandy: Half the battle is getting people to the show. Early commitments will improve the odds of people showing up. For the months leading up to the event, include show information in all of your emails. Do a big email push within a month of the show to encourage registrations. Personalize your invitations and include your booth number. Reward people for opening the email and for coming to the show by having a prize tied to their email address or promo number.

Tweet from your booth using the show hashtag. For example, the upcoming GraphExpo show is already using the #GRAPHEXPO hashtag on Twitter. You can find and provide show news and other important information well before the show. On the show floor, you can tweet updates from your booth. Find out the twitter handles of your customers and include them in the conversation. People love looking up at show screens and seeing their name in lights as you greet them or thank them for visiting your booth.

Ben: During the show, thank people for visiting your booth by messaging them on Facebook. People will see that post far after the show and potentially their entire network will see it, too. Post photos on your Facebook page immediately, not at the end of the show. Don’t be a diva; follow people back on Twitter and friend them on Facebook.

If you invite people to text a code to win a prize, be respectful and ask them to opt in to any future messages. Be aware that, even if they opt in, they may view you as spam, so use text messages sparingly. Be sure everything you send has immediacy and value specifically for them.

Upload videos on your YouTube channel before and during the show. Include other cool videos on your channel that people can unlock if they interact with you.

Link your media together so that you are everywhere your targets are. Give people something good to find if they go looking for you.

5. Prepare Your Booth to be Noticed from Far Away and Up Close

Sandy: There will be times when your booth is so busy, people won’t be able to get close enough to talk with you or grab a souvenir. Those are the times you need your brand to stand out, above the heads in the crowd. Make sure your company name, logo, slogan and other memorable pieces in your arsenal are visible from a distance. So many companies rely on the little black and white signs that the show provides rather than using the space at the top of (or protruding beyond) their booth to attract attention.

Ben: This may sound brutal, but you don’t want everybody in your booth. You want current and future customers to come and stay for a few minutes so you can give them your attention. You want the other people to admire from afar and move along. Give people an idea of what you are all about from a distance so they can either find you or disqualify you. And remember this: your company name should not be your booth headline or your slogan. Please don’t try to lure me in without telling me why I should care.

Also, consider partnering with a big name, even if it’s not specific to the market for your show. An example would be a major food brand or a well-known retailer. You can ride on their coattails with their name, and they can use you to expand their brand into business markets.

Sandy: Be sure that when people wade through the crowd and make it to your booth, they are rewarded with a smile and hello, something new or unique about your company, something fun to take away, and a tangible way to keep in touch after the show.

Ben: Don’t be a goon and don’t be a stalker. Eye contact and a slight smile is enough. Watch for signs from visitors that they are ready to converse with you. If you don’t pick up on those signals, they’ll get annoyed, they won’t wait around, and they’ll have a negative impression of you.

Sandy: By the last days of the show, you are tired and your voice is raspy. Maybe you have run out of the best souvenirs. You want to hand out everything else so you don’t have to carry it home. Your nametag is curled and you lanyard is stained with coffee. Don’t forget, though, that each new visitor is experiencing the show with fresh eyes. If you look frayed around the edges, so will your booth.

It is important to build a strategy of staying energetic, optimistic and open to more conversations. Choosing healthy food, which is increasingly available at trade shows, and staying hydrated and not over-caffeinated will help in the long run.

Ben: Exhibitors who travel like try new foods, hang out with friends and customers, and sample the local cuisine. That’s part of the fun of the trade show experience. Keep in mind that your number one job is to make the event successful for you and your employer, so be sensible about your after-show choices.

Sandy: If you haven’t updated your booth in the past five years, I urge you to get a set of unbiased eyes to help you evaluate it. Planning ahead to maximize engagement with a fresh look will improve your trade show success.

Ben: As I mentioned before, provide signs or items that users can scan or get text information. Make sure landing sites are mobile-optimized. Offer many ways for show visitors to learn more about you during and after the show.

Be creative about getting your contact info into people’s phones so they have it if they want it. The longer the information stays with them, the better your chances are. Make sure you get into their devices, into their show bags, and into their briefcases when they pack to go home.

Sandy: Finally, keep in mind that young people are very savvy consumers, both online and in real life. Don’t underestimate how swiftly you can be disqualified based on the look of your booth and the vibes your salespeople give off. If anything, you have to tighten up the things you can control, be extremely well prepared, and look as good as you say you are.

Make the best use of your trade show presence to attract the customers that will keep you in business in the years to come.

Sandy Hubbard is Print Futurist for PrintMediaCentr. She recommends that you call your local print professionals and enlist their help in freshening your printed materials and graphics. Learn what’s new and what’s possible with new materials, interactive marketing strategies, and memorable show souvenirs. For ongoing ideas to stimulate your creativity, please visit www.printmediacentr.com regularly.

Benjamin Rutter is a gaming fanatic. He has been reviewing video games for four years, and he beta tests new games before their general release.