Tradeshow Perception Success
We all know that trade shows are not cheap. The cost of booth space, product literature, airfare,
shipping, hotel costs, and meals can take a significant toll on a business’ bottom line. So if you are
already heavily invested in your trade show, why try to short cut the presentation of your
company and products at your booth? Poor professional image of your company will undermine
your return on investment. Too many companies provide a poor presentation of their company’s
products.

Here are two of the most important elements of a trade show that are absolutely vital to the
effectiveness of your booth’s success. After these two elements, you can start thinking about
other tips that are listed, but it is pointless to do anything else until you have taken care of the
first two items.

You have a great story to tell about your products, and we all wish we could just grab everyone
by the collar that walks by your booth and say, “Wait just a minute, are you nuts for passing by my
booth, do you know what this does, do you know how great and revolutionary it is.” Many people
walk by without even glancing at your products. Poor corporate image (what I call visual integrity)
and/or poor communication material that are not leading the prospects to get interested in
your booth create many missed opportunities.

Visual Integrity…Image is everything. “If you are going to cheapen and short cut
your image, why waste your money on the booth?”
Poor corporate image can kill all chances of a sale no matter how good your product or service is.
It’s simple; if you don’t look the part, chances are prospects won’t give you the time of day, let
alone visit your booth. Making sure that you have a professionally developed corporate image is
vital, and this goes beyond just talking about trade shows. If you have a website, brochure or any
other marketing material, you should have a good consistent image and message.

Visual communication
Knowing how to display and communicate your message to your prospects is crucial.
Think of your booth like a book on a shelf. Before the prospect knows anything about your book
and the story, they need to be intrigued by a stimulating and interesting cover that gives them a
quick insight into the book. Then a prospect will look at the inner flap of the book to read more
about it; they might look at the index, the preface and read a first few pages of the book. To
capture your audience’s attention, give them a little information, let them digest it, then give
them more and so on. You can compare luring people into your booth to fishing. You throw out
some good bait, hook the fish or prospect and slowly reel them in.
There is a lot of advice about tradeshows and there are other things to consider, but these
should be your first priorities. Once you have taken care of your tradeshow booths,
company image and communication, review the other tips listed below.

Planning:
Don’t wait until a week or two before your show and rush to get your signs, brochures and other
material. It will show in your tradeshow presentation.
Start planning early. Good regular tradeshow exhibitors routinely start planning their appearances
6 to 12 months in advance.

Research:
Research a trade show before you decide to exhibit. Ask yourself, does this show attract a large
number of people from your target audience?

Prepare Sales Reps:
In addition to your booth’s visual image, make sure that your sales reps understand your overall
message and be able to show the products well. Nothing is worse than having a great booth
with an unprepared or lazy sales rep that just does not fit or present the material correctly.
Remember your company is on display. What you are selling at a tradeshow is, primarily, first
impressions/perceptions about your company. Be professional, well-dressed, and mannerly at all
times. You never know who is watching.

Be Organized:
Take notes. Take time before the show to create a lead-card system to record pertinent information
and to facilitate post-show follow-up. Do not depend on your memory — no matter how
good you are. A few words scrawled on the back of a business card will not provide enough
information after the show is over, especially after you have met with many people.

Follow Up:
Many people skip this step – following up with their leads. If you have a prospect that shows
interest in your product at your booth, after the show, you must spend some time following up
with them in the form of a phone call, an email, a letter or all three. With businesses operating
with less people, prospects are very busy when they return from a tradeshow. They do not have
the time to make you a priority. Contact them and find out what their plan is. If they are not
interested now, schedule a follow up. This will give your prospect a mental deadline and time to
think about doing business with your company.

Giveaways:
If you are going to use giveaways, provide something that is relevant to your product. Just don’t
give them a trinket for the sake of giving them something or because the sales rep at the
promotional supply told you that it is the hot item of the year. Also, depending on who you are
trying to target, profile the prospect first before giving them something. For instance, if you are a
software company and want to provide free demos of your software, you might want to ask a few
questions to make sure that the prospect is a realistic potential buyer and not someone that
wants a freebie.