Part 1 of 2: Tips for Tradeshow Exhibitors

Trade shows offer unparalleled opportunities to reach potential clients, industry leaders and strategic partners. You can maximize your tradeshow experience with planning, execution, and follow-up. Part I of my post on tradeshow tips is focused on exhibitors. Part II offers tips to help attendees make the best of their tradeshow investment.

1. Set clear goals. In order to maximize your investment, everyone involved must get on board with setting goals for planning, executing, and following up on trade show leads. The most obvious objective at a trade show is acquiring qualified leads that can be converted to sales. If you are unveiling a new product, you might define your goals in terms of the number of product demonstrations you conduct.
2. Invite prospects. Make advance appointments with key customers and prospects. Take advantage of opportunities outside the tradeshow booth. ESI Las Vegas features private meeting rooms for an intimate environment to woo your key clients!
3. Make a good first impression.  Be at the front of your booth with a welcoming smile. A prospect should walk by your booth and in five or six seconds have an idea of what you’re selling and whether it applies to them. Never be caught reading, eating, or talking on a cell phone. And don’t sit down –it suggests you’re not interested.
4. Train your booth staff. Help your booth staff maximize their efforts in the booth. Skip the small talk and dive into questions that will quickly establish why the visitor is at the show, the role the visitor has at his or her company, and whether your products might be a good match.
5. Create “buzz” in your booth.  Be sure to keep things lively with presentations, demonstrations and give-aways. A creative gift can highlight your brand’s qualities. A giveaway like a logoed tote bag will even get attendees to advertise for you!
6. Follow up! A trade show encounter is just the beginning of the sales process. Immediately after the show, compile a prospect database of everyone and quickly follow up with the hottest leads. For the “heavy hitters,” send out a personalized package with a small gift.
7. Measure your ROI. Be sure to track the long-term results of your efforts: how many leads resulted in sales worth how much and how long it took to close those deals. Not only will the data give you a sense of the return on your investment, but you can use them as a benchmark against next year’s show.

Nancy Griffin

Nancy Griffin has been a recognized leader in the spa industry for more than fifteen years. She was introduced to the business of spa in the early 90′s, when she completed Graduate Management studies at the prestigious Cornell
School of Hotel Administration. Accomplishments include founding SpaTrade.com and the SpaExec networking events. She also directed the educational programs for IECSC from 2005 to 2010. After Questex Media Group acquired SpaTrade and SpaExec in 2008, she continued to lead the companies
as Executive Director. Griffin returned to her entrepreneurial roots in 2010.

Griffin is a veteran speaker and journalist covering spa industry trends. She is currently principal of the content marketing and internet strategy firm Contento Marketing Group.

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