It can be daunting preparing for your first-ever trade show. You know how important it is to attend industry shows because that’s where the contacts, trends, and customers are. However, you know you have to do it right to make the event pay off.
That’s where employing these three ideas can help!
1) Prepare a Budget
You’re not looking to break even at a trade show, or worse, lose money! The point is to connect with lucrative partners, find the best vendors, and of course, attract new business. To do this, you’ll want to prepare a budget and do your best to stick to it.
A trade show budget involves expenses associated with booth space, shipping, staffing, the physical exhibit, and the installation and dismantling of the booth. You might also have to cover cleaning and some other miscellaneous expenses. By getting a budget together, you can project a possible ROI (return on investment) to help you decide if it’s worth it to attend.
2) Set Some Goals
Obviously, making money is a good goal to have, but what else? Making your goals concrete is a smart strategy for achieving them and making the most of the resources you put into the trade show. You might make a goal of connecting with a certain number of contacts or qualified leads. You might choose a number of sales made or a total dollar amount in revenue earned.
Just remember to make the goals S.M.A.R.T. (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely)!
3) Get Help
As a first-timer when it comes to trade shows, you’re probably not an expert at every facet of the process. So why not get help from people who know what they’re doing? That means finding an exhibit marketing partner who can help you make the right decisions throughout the process.
An exhibit marketing partner can assist you in figuring out whether you should rent or purchase your exhibit, what size your booth should be, and the best ways to spend your budget to maximize ROI. If your goal is to be successful at a trade show, exhibit marketing partners are worth their weight in gold!
I hope these ideas help you. If you have questions or want to find out more, don’t hesitate to contact us!
~Tony Johnson