WHY ATTEND TRADE SHOWS
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Exhibiting at a trade show offers you one of the best ways to get in front of customers and prospects in a relatively short amount of time. Trade shows give you the opportunity to create that all important first impression.
At a typical national trade show, with 10,000 attendees and 1,000 exhibitors, you can realistically have 200 visitors each day. If you were making sales calls, you could not even approach that number.
Ask any sales representative what their biggest challenge is and the answer is almost always “Getting a Face to Face Meeting”.
I (We) cannot afford to attend a trade show. Without a doubt the cost of exhibiting can be the biggest concern of all companies. Furthermore, many feel there is no ROI (Return On Investment). Yet many companies do not take the time to properly calculate the ROI of the shows they attend. Evaluating the success or failure of a show should always be done. (This will be covered in more detail in a later Newsletter)
In general if you were to calculate the cost to generate a “Face to Face” meeting at your business location and then measure the cost to generate a “Face to Face” meeting at a trade show, I believe you would be surprised to find that the cost per lead is much more economical at a trade show event.
Here are some of the benefits from attending a trade show.
Generate Leads: This is actually the meat of attending a trade show. It creates a follow-up mailing list of qualified leads. This is what could and should potentially bring return on your investment.
Sell: You can also sell your products or services right there. This does not happen at all trade shows but if the event occurs you need to be prepared. You must have a quiet area or arrange a one on one meeting later that day in a more quiet business environment.
Get Competitive Intelligence: Your competitors will be at the same shows you are. This is the perfect opportunity to see how they market their products or services and the advantages they claim to have over yours.
If you or your company is not presently exhibiting, it is well worth the effort to take the time to look into trade shows. The Internet has an incredible amount of free information available. Considering using trade shows as a marketing effort is the first step to “Successful Trade Shows”.