Trade Show Marketing Ideas & Tips

Nimlok Trade Show Marketing Blog

Trade Show Follow-Up Strategies

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Trade shows are one of the best and thriving face-to-face marketing strategies. There is nothing that replaces meeting face-to-face. That’s why trade shows and events are still one of the strongest forms of marketing. Although an expensive way to market, the return on investment can be tremendous. As an exhibitor, you feel a sense of relief and accomplishment once you have a successful trade show. However, it’s important to understand that once the trade show is over, your work has only just begun. The power is in the trade show follow-up.

Gmail screen of email for trade show follow up

With your goals/objectives in mind, you should have a concrete way of determining success. Here are some tips for your trade show follow-up strategy.

Reach Out

Make it a priority to email & call booth visitors so that you can follow-up and provide them with what was promised. But by doing so, add leads and notes to your CRM and continue the conversation had on the show floor. The more detailed information that can be added about each lead into your CRM database will make your follow-up more effective and your sales team more successful.

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Trade Show Marketing

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Trade Show Marketing can have a significant impact on the ROI of your events. How you market before, during and after will make a difference. Ideally, begin your pre-show/event marketing about two to three months in advance of the trade show or event. A study conducted by the Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) found that conversion of booth visitors to qualified leads rose 50% when a pre-show promotion was used. This statistic in itself should be enough to make you consider pre-show marketing, at a minimum. In addition, continuing to market both during and after the trade show or event can boost success and ROI as well.

Trade Show Marketing phone image with facebook displayed.
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Trade Show Sponsorship

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Contract to exhibit in any trade show and you are offered trade show sponsorship opportunities galore. From your logo on the show program to the tote bags everyone carries and everything in-between. What exactly does it mean to sponsor an event? Sponsoring an event means that you (as the sponsor) offer money, products or services to support a trade show or event. In exchange, your company gains business exposure. How do you determine if a trade show sponsorship opportunity is right for your company? Is it really worth spending part of your marketing budget on such sponsorships?

Trade show booth with bright vibrant graphics showing trade show sponsorship options for giveaways at booth.

Sponsorship Statistics

According to Exhibitor’s 2019 Trade Show Sponsorship Survey which queried more than 200 face-to-face marketers, the vast majority of marketers currently invest in sponsorships. The survey revealed that the majority of exhibitors are investing in sponsorships of some kind. It also noted that the average spend is nine percent of their exhibit-marketing budget. This is quite a substantial portion of the budget. It’s important to determine if sponsorship is the right fit for your company.

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To Speak or Not to Speak

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Why you should pursue speaking opportunities at trade shows and industry events.

Image of back of man standing in front of a room of seated people speaking at a trade show event

There are several ways that you can boost your return on investment at trade shows and industry events. In this article, we will discuss why applying for and considering speaking opportunities at trade shows or industry events is one great way to maximize your return.

Thought Leadership

Speaking at a trade show or industry event highlights and increases your thought leadership and credibility. This positions not only you, but your company, as experts in the field. This gain in credibility helps to reinforce your company to existing or former customers and introduce your company to new prospects. This type of thought leadership can put your company at an advantage over the competition.

Demonstration

When you are speaking, you also have the opportunity to demonstrate how your product or service can benefit current and prospective customers. You have the un-divided attention of the audience. At your trade show booth, you typically only have a few seconds to a few minutes to engage the prospect and educate them about your company.

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Tips to Improve Trade Show ROI

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Whether you’re a trade show exhibiting newbie or a seasoned veteran, it’s important to make sure you’re getting the most bang for your buck. You’ve taken the time to decide on a show to exhibit in. You’ve planned your budget, display and presentation. You’ve prepared the materials you will need at the show. Now you need to be sure you will achieve your return on investment (ROI). Trade show exhibition is an expensive form of face-to-face marketing, so it’s important to be sure that you get the best ROI as possible. There are a few things to keep in mind that can help improve your trade show ROI. According to CEIR, over 64% of heads of marketing agree the B2B exhibition channel is highly effective for multiple marketing activities. The value of trade show marketing is acknowledged, so let’s review a few tips to improve trade show ROI.

group of people meeting to discuss how to improve trade show roi

1. Have a Marketing Plan

To begin with, you should have a marketing plan for all of your marketing efforts. When exhibiting at a trade show, it’s a good idea to create a marketing plan for the show itself. This includes what happens before, during and after the trade show. This should include:

Pre-Show Marketing

Let your target audience know you’ll be there.

Make your target audience aware that you will be at the particular show. Give them a compelling reason to visit your booth and meet with you. Social media announcements, email newsletters and maybe even a good old fashioned phone call are some ways that you can make it known to your audience that you will be exhibiting. New product/service introductions, giveaways and interactive displays and games provide a reason to stop by. Just remember to make sure that your giveaway or game, etc. falls in line with your company values, goals and message. On occasion, you have access to an attendee list. In this case, it could be a good idea to reach out to anyone who appears to be a qualified fit for your product/service. Try to schedule an appointment with them during or around the show.

Contact the Media.

Contact the show organizer for a media list of those that are confirmed to be at the show. Reach out to the press with information and news about your company, products and services.

Show Strategy

Recruit your best staff for the booth.

You’ve got the pre-show down – you’ve done your pre-show marketing and have your booth designed and in the build process. Now consider what you will do during the show. If you’re not equipped for what’s happening once on the trade show floor, then all the pre-show marketing and stunning trade show booth display will be worthless. Make sure your best staff members are working the booth and are prepared with branded apparel, advertising materials, giveaway items, demonstrations and are trained on the in-booth interaction plans and anything they will need for success. The staff is working the front lines and will ultimately determine the success of the show.

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