How to Prepare for a Trade Show, Regardless of Budget

You know your product or service better than anyone else. Focus on what is unique about you. Do you have a product that no one else has? Can you produce results quicker than anyone else? These are your unique selling points, and they are exactly what you need to focus your trade show around.

You will want to design an eye-catching display based on your unique selling points. You might have a table with your company's logo. On this you might put signs which highlight your unique selling points. You might have an entire wall behind you dedicated to your unique selling points. No matter what you do, make sure your display is eye catching, unique, and easy to read. Use as few words as possible to highlight your unique selling points. Use high-impact and engaging pictures to draw your points home. I like to define my message, and then work with a graphic artist and a sign company to make my ideas a reality.

I also like to integrate technology into my displays. If people are standing around chit-chatting on the other side of the room, and I've got a video with a simple message playing, on a loop, they are likely to be watching it and absorbing the message. I videos without sound, so the message is purely visual.

I like to integrate food into my display. Everyone likes food. Food will draw people over and get them talking to you. Once you have their attention you can ask leading questions to identify if they are a potential customer and how you can meet their needs.

In addition to food, I use goodies. A large bag with your logo is a good idea, because everyone will visit the other booths and put the information into your bag. Everyone at the event will be seeing your logo, and people will even seek you out to get their bag too!

The other goodies I like are ones that everyone uses. I thought that mugs would be great. Everyone has beverages. Then I found out not everyone likes the same kind of mug. If it's a women's event, I like to use emery boards. Every woman needs these from time to time, and if they throw them in the bottom of their bag, your emery board with your logo will always be at their fingertips.

In addition to designing your booth, and figuring out what you will give away, you will need to worry about staffing. Over-staffing is a real problem. You want the booth that everyone is coming to see, not the booth full of a bunch of bored people. By the same token, you do not want to under-staff. If people have to wait too long to talk to you, they will likely walk away without hearing your message.

You should tell your staff what to wear. A medical event might be best with staff in scrubs. An event for CPAs is best staffed with people in suits.

You should also tell your staff what to talk about. This goes back to your unique selling point, and identifying key questions to ask prospective customers.

Remember to think of every little detail. Do you have brochures and business cards? Do you have something to place them in? Do you have a way to record leads so you can follow up with them afterwords? Think of all the possibilities, and have all the supplies on hand.

If you've spent the time to properly plan all of these things, your event should be a smashing success. I usually get requests from other booths asking me who my graphic artist is, who my printer is, etc. When others at the event tune into your booth, you know they've taken notice of how busy you well as how visually appealing and easy to understand your message was. And having many well-qualified leads who have understood your unique selling points will lead to successful business opportunities for your company!