The area of business that many casual observers associate with a trade show is sales. People think of trade shows as a sort of market, where businesses go to sell products to interested consumers. These same people logically assume that the business skills needed to thrive at trade shows are all related to the art and science of selling. It isn’t just casual onlookers who fall victim to this sales-driven mindset when it comes to trade shows. Even participating businesses get caught up in the potential sales involved in a trade show. These businesses spend all of their time and resources, prior to the trade show, honing their sales pitches. During the trade show, they focus primarily on closing sales and become discouraged if they are not moving product. When the dust has settled and the show is over, these businesses base the success of their trade show on their sales only. To be sure, sales are a potentially important aspect of trade shows. It should be noted, however, that trade shows are at least as much of a showcase of the business area of marketing as they are of sales.

Increasingly, individuals and businesses are coming to view trade shows as the valuable marketing opportunities that they are and have always been. These folks understand that, even if the sales don’t happen, a trade show can still be a success from a marketing perspective; in the long run, they further acknowledge, trade show marketing may have a greater, more sustainable impact on their bottom line. This all begs the question, what contributes to successful trade show marketing? Here is a look at a few contributing factors.

Branding

The primary reason trade shows are marketing opportunities is that trade shows are opportunities to convey and develop your brand. Thus, it can behoove a business to think less about making sales, a short-term gain, and more about how the trade show can leave the interested customers and industry professionals at a trade show with a favorable impression and an increased awareness of their brand. This brand development is what will ultimately yield long-term business growth. Because trade shows are industry-specific, decisions about how to present your brand in the context of the industry and your competitors are more important than usual. One helpful trade show marketing tip would be to think of your brand not only in the largest possible sense, but also your brand for that specific day. How are your aesthetics and presentation perceived in the moment by potential customers? This may be more productive than a sales-oriented mindset.

Equipment

Of course, there is trade show equipment that can contribute to your marketing success. Think about how your audio-visual equipment, decorations, music, promotional giveaways, etc. all can contribute to the perception of your brand both inside and outside of the convention center. Distributing items such as t-shirts or pens with your company’s name and logo can be an effective way of developing your brand, depending on your target market.

Follow Up

Your marketing efforts on the day of the trade show will have little impact if you do not successfully follow up with the leads you generate during the show. The pace at which your competitors are able to track, store, retrieve, export and follow up on the customer data they acquire at a trade show has never been faster. Your business needs to keep pace accordingly, and there is equipment that can help you do so. A tradeshow scanner will help you scan the barcoded badges and business cards of tradeshow attendees and can quickly connect to a computer with the right software to turn your tradeshow leads into sales further down the road.