5 Tips for an Outstanding Trade Show Experience

By Jacqui Antonetti - Instant Imprints

Trade shows in U.S. and Canada run all year long and they are powerful marketing tools. Not only they are a great way to expose your brand, but most of all, they offer a fantastic opportunity to create meaningful engagement with potential clients.

Trade show visitors are already curious about your industry and maybe your specific business, so you want to make sure that you leverage that opportunity by following a few tips, especially if you are new in this.

1. Use eye catching visuals. You will not be the only one exhibiting at the trade show; therefore, you need to use visuals that stand out for the right reasons: innovative, great quality, and bright colors are the minimum requirements for eye catching images.
2. Clear branding. You want to make sure that your logo is readable and easy to both identify and remember. Make it easy for your prospects to remember you. Also, include here other elements of your brand, such as icons and taglines, for example. The intention here is start building symbolism so, the audience will be able to recognize your brand by looking at an icon or a phrase that represents you, just like it happens with larger brands like Coca Cola and Apple.
3. Be consistent. This not only helps your prospects to remember you, but it also sends out the right message: professional, detail oriented, and coherent, among other traits that help your potential clients perceive you as trustworthy.
4. Be relevant. I mean relevance in two ways (keep reading). You know that the trade show visitors end up with a bag full of “junk” that will most likely throw away without even looking at it. This is the reason why relevance is so important. Yes, you absolutely must give away marketing material and gifts; however, is not about quantity, but quality. This is one of those cases where less is more. Prepare one very good piece of informational material that they almost feel sorry to throw it out. The same with the gift; give away something that is useful. If you have a larger budget, then include also a giveaway that will create an experience. Something like candies or games or balloons for kids.The other way we recommend you to be relevant is in your conversation. This is a very important part of your trade show experience. Don’t make it a sales pitch, make it an opportunity to learn more from your potential customer and then say the one or two things that will most likely be of interest for them. Believe me, they will remember you if you do this.
5. Build your contact list… And follow up with them afterwards or else the time, money and effort you invested in exhibiting at the trade show will go to waste.

If you are a small business owner and you have to be more conscious about how you spend your budget, you still have opportunities to stand out even if you cannot afford a prime location at the trade show or the highest quality promo product. Come talk to one of our branding experts at no cost: https://instantimprints.com/find-a-center/