Invest in trade shows: payback depends on you.

AuthorBohi, Heidi
PositionCONVENTIONS/MEETINGS: SPECIAL SECTION

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Does sweat start to roll down the back of your neck when your boss asks you to go over what you accomplished when attending the recent industry trade show the company spent $5,000 to send you to?

You're not alone. But at a time when every business expense needs to be justified, it's more important than ever to make sure costly, time-consuming trade shows bring home the goods if they are going to remain as a line item in the marketing budget. Although it depends on the trade show--local venues are obviously less expensive to attend, and international events are much higher--on average, plan on spending about $5,000 for a four-day event and that doesn't include entertaining clients, hand-out materials and promotional give-away items.

FEAR NOT

At first glance, the price will send you into sticker shock--especially for a small business or startup company. If you don't have a strategy for working the floor, you may as well drive down the road tossing $100 bills out the window. But if you have a practical plan and invest time in preparing for the show, these business-development opportunities can be much less expensive than other marketing tools and will add value to the company with residual benefits that continue for many years. In fact, trade shows cost 38 percent less than sales calls and are the No. 1 business-to-business marketing out-buy for supporting sales teams, beating out promotions, public relations and even the Internet.

More than 85 percent of decision-makers say attending trade shows saves their company time and money by bringing vendors together under one roof, and 91 percent of attendees say trade shows impact their buying decisions because the competition is in one place, allowing them to become aware of new products and services and to comparison shop in real time.

All of this adds up to an exciting buying environment, but it is still important to remember it is unlikely you will actually sign on the dotted line in a convention center swarming with thousands of other attendees. Instead, marketing experts say, each show needs to be approached with a plan based on the idea of being able to burn steady for the life of the show, instead of flaming out as quickly as it started burning.

A BUYER'S WORLD

Whether you're working a booth or walking the floor, the first thing to do is adjust your thought process so you always remember it's usually a buyer's environment, says...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT