Three ways to make your trade stand a success

Posted: 12^th September 2016

By: Amanda Danells-Bewley

Getting out of the office to find out what’s new in your industry, hear about research or connect with key players in your sector are all reasons to visit an exhibition – either as a visitor or exhibitor.

For businesses wanting to launch new products or generate valuable sales leads exhibiting offers a valuable ingredient in the marketing and sales mix.

Chosen carefully, taking a stand at an event is a valuable investment in your marketing and sales plan. It is an excellent vehicle for building brand awareness, can generate sales leads and will connect your business directly with new customers and prospects face to face. So here are 3 top tips for making the most of exhibiting at your next event;

• Be prepared
  Once you’ve booked your stand then plan what you are going to need. It’s no good just turning up on the day without knowing the size or layout of your pitch. A good conference or exhibition organiser will keep you up to date with details of what you need to do when, but don’t be afraid to ask about if you’ll have access to electricity, what are the set up / breakdown times, is there an exhibition programme that you’ll need or supply copy for and do you need to supply your logo for stand signage?
• Plan what marketing collateral you’ll need and order it well ahead of the event – will you need banners, leaflets, brochures or business card? Its also useful to polish up your 30 second elevator pitch.
• Be creative
  I’m going to put it out there that free pens on your stand will not get you noticed!
  Be creative in how you engage with visitors at the show – remember you are there to build relationships with potential customers. Use your social media and digital platforms creatively too to maximise your exhibition presence.
• Follow up!
  Hopefully you’ll have done some excellent data-capture at the conference. By following up each of these new contacts with a personalised email you can send information about post-event offers or news on special sales deals up, giving your business more opportunities to convert lead into sales.

Danells and Bewley Consultants helps organisations secure exhibitors at their conferences. When planning an exhibition, we carefully develop a range of different packages that offer businesses, whatever their size, get the most out of the event. We work closely with both  clients and their exhibitors to help the process as smooth as possible.

A longer version of this article can be found at danellsandbewley.com along with other blogs, hint and tips.