As a start-up or small business, booking into a trade show for the first time can be daunting – you’ve likely spent a lot of money on your stand location, not to mention your stand itself, and you have no idea if it will pay off. If this sounds like you and you’re worried that you’ve forgotten something, here are five things to check.
- You booked a power socket.
Every trade show is different, but some do not automatically include power sockets in the price of their stand locations. There’s nothing worse than turning up to a trade show on the day and finding that you have nowhere to charge your laptop or phone and no lighting if you need it. If you haven’t already, double-check to see if you need to book power sockets.
- You know how to erect your stand.
Exhibition stands can be puzzling to put up, and although you may not want to ruin how neatly it is packed in the box, you need to take it out and to put it up fully. Erecting your stand at least once before the show is just good practice, even when you’ve done it a dozen times before as it allows you to make sure that nothing is missing and gives new team members a chance to get to grips with how things work.
- You’ve got printed marketing materials.
Although you may be planning to follow up with everyone via email after the show, it’s wise to have a selection of printed marketing materials such as flyers, brochures, and business cards for people to take away if they prefer. Nearly half of all consumers feel that they receive too many emails from businesses and marketers, and so they may be unwilling to sign up to your email list without getting to know your product first, and without something to give them, you could lose the sale.
- You have some freebie incentives.
Whether it be sweets in a jar or some cute little branded gifts, freebies will help draw people to your stand and, when carefully selected, can also help build brand trust and awareness. An excellent example of a smart freebie would be a branded bottle opened for business that sold bottled drinks or a handheld fan for a company that sells AC. You can have your own label put on thousands of wholesale products with services such as Alibaba Private Label.
- You get some rest and bring your smile.
Last but not least, perhaps the most important thing that you need to bring to your exhibition is your smile and your own personality. Exhibitions can sometimes be three or four-day events, and it is surprising how tiring standing and speaking all day can be, so get some rest, wear some comfortable shoes, and treat every passer-by from the first to the last like the potential customer that they are.
So there you have it – five things to check you have for your first trade show. Have you exhibited at a trade show before? Do you have any tips to add?
