• How-to

If carried through the right way, trade exhibitions can prove to be a significant lead generator for your company. Unfortunately, more often than not, companies neglect what needs to be done to make the most out of a trade show. Here, we give you some key pointers.

A. Before the exhibition
* Identify your goals. Are you looking to promote your new product? Or scout for new leads? The question of which exhibition to participate in and what resources are to be used depends on the goals you set yourself.
* Put the word out. Let the world know you’re exhibiting. Send out direct mails; create an FB event page, tweet about it! Send personal invites to key contacts and potential as well as existing customers.
* Plan ahead. Fix your budget; chalk out a list of actions and ensure that everything from display materials and technological requirements to an ample supply of business cards are taken care of.
* Bring in help. Sometimes it’s a good idea to invest in an effective PR company to help you with both pre- and post-event promotion. Make sure that they have an excellent network of contacts.

B. At the exhibition
* Make a good impression. In order to attract visitors to your booth, it needs to be eye-catching. A clean design, high-impact display boards, interesting lighting techniques and high quality AV presentations will provide an impressive overview of your company to potential leads.
* Promote yourself. Take part in panel discussions and look to see if you can give a talk on a relevant issue pertaining to your industry.

C. After the exhibition
* Follow up. You’ve invested time, money and effort for this exhibition. So, follow up with potential buyers and distributors. This way, you are ensuring that you’re not forgotten.
* Review your performance. There will be areas where you can make improvements and this process will highlight it for you. Also, in retrospect, having had a sense of your market and the competition, you might want to do things differently. Re-evaluate. Reassess.

©Entrepreneur November 2010

Tags:
business, promote, trade shows