ExhibiTALK

Leads are one of the main reasons most exhibitors participate in home shows. Some might actually write orders on the show floor, but many take leads. The following are four basic concepts that will make the difference between being profitable at shows or just covering costs:

Achieving our goals often hinges on pre-show planning. Those exhibitors that develop a thorough understanding of the Show and the opportunities it represents towards their organizational goals and resources will dramatically increase their chances for success. It is known that the single most common mistake exhibitors make is “just showing up” without properly preparing. Marketplace Events delivers buyers to the Show but it's up to you the exhibitor to attract them to your booth and interact with them.

Your success at a home show is highly dependent on your overall team performance. You have put hours into designing your booth, creating a strategy, printing handouts... Now it is time to invest in your team. They are at the front of the line and representing you to potential customers.

Booth size depends upon your show budget, the product selection that you want to bring to the show, desired objectives, the available show space, and your number of staff. Keep in mind that the size of your booth will have a direct bearing on your final results at the home show. For example, if your major objective at a show is to generate new leads, the amount of actual leads you can generate will be affected by a limited space.

In order to make the most of your participation in a home show produced by Marketplace Events, its best to have a marketing plan that includes pre-show, on-site, and post-show promotion. It should be decided what you would like to accomplish during each stage of your campaign. Create a list of specific goals and objectives and have them in mind before moving on to the execution of your plan. By having a well defined list of goals and a plan to achieve them, you will be able to evaluate the effectiveness of your plan and will be able to adjust it if needed. It is the foundation upon which you will measure your overall success.

Is your company's goal to schedule appointments and qualify buyers at our home show? The answer should be "yes" if you are in the business of remodeling, flooring, landscaping, roofing, gutters, etc...

It has never been easier to get more bang for your buck! All of the advertising (TV, radio, print, outdoor, and online) and PR campaigns that each show executes direct consumers to our home show websites. Once there, people are prompted to buy tickets online, subscribe to our email lists, and find out all the information about the upcoming show.

When planning on exhibiting it is always best to familiarize yourself with the display and booth regulations of the show. Depending on your booth location you will need to think about walls, flooring, signage, as well as the overall design. For example, the National Home Show in Toronto requires all exhibitors to have hard walls and show management has the right to mask any unsightly areas at the expensive of the exhibitor. While at the Great Big Home + Garden Show in Cleveland exhibitors are provided with back and side pipe and drape. Remember, the rules and regulations are in place to make sure all exhibitors are held to the same high standards. After all, we all want to look good!

The most important thing a customer gives you is their trust. Before they become your client and any money changes hands, a certain level of trust must be established. Permission based marketing helps to develop a trust relationship between your business and its customers. It also improves your credibility as a business.

Marketplace Events prides itself on being a permission based email marketer. Permission based email-marketing means we never send to consumers who have not requested our emails and we truly value their opt-in. We feel it is best to only speak to those willing to receive our message – they are the most receptive audience. In addition, this cuts down greatly on potential spam complaints to email service providers (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.) which keeps our email lists healthy and effective.

A home show can be more than just selling to the public. Exhibitors can nurture relationships with each other which often lead to business referrals and future sales. Marketplace Events encourages our exhibitors to foster long term friendships and partnerships with other companies participating in our events. Everyone can benefit from working together – making your booth more attractive, and generating additional promotional opportunities across the show floor.

There is no greater opportunity for face-to-face advertising than exhibiting at our shows. The qualified buyers come to you live and in person! Follow these quick tips when hiring and preparing your show staff and be sure to make the best first impression possible on the show floor.

Taking part in an experiential event can give you an edge over the competition. However, just signing the contract and showing up at the event isn’t always enough to get your company noticed. Also, great attendance doesn’t always equal a successful show – there are times when smaller numbers of highly qualified attendees can equate to more return on your investment. Ten serious buyers are more valuable than 1000 tire-kickers.

Marketplace Events is dedicated to helping our exhibiting companies excel on social media. If you have a new product launching, sale or promotion to announce, or an in-store event coming up, we want to hear about it and would love to share the information with our community on Facebook, Twitter, & Instagram.

In May Marketplace Events held its annual corporate meeting in sunny Palm Springs, California. This year's meeting was jam-packed with ideas on how to become a cross-selling superstar, marketing and sponsorship best practices, and systems to improve day to day operations. We even invited some of our valued exhibitors for a candid Q&A session on how we as a company could improve future events.

One of the highlights of our meeting was a backstage tour of Magic Kingdom. With a focus on customer service, it was great to learn from the Disney Institute how they ensure each persons visit to the park is consistent and full of quality FUN. I'm sure many of us took away valuable lessons which may be transferred on to the planning and running of our events.