Trade Show Creative Ideas

Trade show exhibitions are one of the largest B2B marketing strategies used by businesses in the U.S. today. According to Statista, such events earned revenue of $13.2 billion in the year 2017 alone. Should you consult advertising experts, they will tell you that trade shows are an excellent channel for showcasing your products to the right audience and raise sales. With the help of the right trade show creative ideas, new enterprises and budding small businesses can build a presence in the market by projecting awareness for their products. It might interest you to know that marketing experts allocate 20% of their budget toward trade show promotions.

Trade shows can act as the ideal platforms given that you’ll have a dedicated audience to cater to. However, the fact remains that your brand will also be competing with possibly, hundreds of businesses serving the same niche. For this reason, you’ll need to use various advertising strategies that will help your company stand out from the crowd. Such strategies will make sure that your brand name remains with potential customers when they leave and are encouraged to place orders with your company.

Let’s take a quick look at the best trade show creative ideas you can use for advertising and how they’ll work for promoting sales.

#1. Plan Giveaways that Promote Your Brand and Provide Contact Details

People love freebies and you can use this interest as the possibly the best promotional tactic. Design the gift according to the kind of products your company manufactures. Like, for instance, if you sell school supplies, a great giveaway would be eco-friendly backpacks from leading online companies like CarryGreen.com. Have the gifts imprinted with the company logo and name in a stylish font with the contact details spelled out clearly. These details could include an email address and/or a phone number.

Giveaways are effective trade show creative ideas. That’s because they help the recipients remember you from an event that included hundreds of participants. Most important, they’ll find your contact details easily when they’re ready to call and order. Choosing eco-friendly gifts can indicate that your company is committed to the future of the planet. This factor is becoming more and more important for the average American consumer who prefers to support businesses that have adopted practices for a cleaner environment.

#2. Showcase Your Booth in the Best Light Possible

Awesome window dressing for your booth is a highly potent trade show creative idea like this feature on the Business 2 Community explains. When booking your spot, choose a corner location where you can get the maximum visibility. Remember that your booth is a miniature storefront for your company and you have only a few seconds of a passerby’s time to make an impression. Use bright colors complete with the brand name and logo. Make sure the product names are distinctly indicated with their positives presented in an attractive way so that visitors are enticed to come in and take a closer look around.

#3. Train Your Staff How to Make an Impression

Having attracted visitors into the booth, you possibly have only the initial few seconds to create a favorable impression. And, the best way to do that is to train your welcoming staff well. Smart, well-dressed personnel perhaps, in unique, signature outfits with a great smile and firm handshake can act as ambassadors for your brand. Make sure you choose people who have a dynamic, outgoing personality and are well-informed about the products and their features. You cannot have your people faltering when answering queries about how great your company is and why it is profitable to partner with your business. Conduct extensive rehearsals with Q&A sessions if you have to. For more information about how to do this, you can check out this article on the HubSpot.

#4. Give Demonstrations about the Working of the Products

One of the most ingenious trade show creative ideas is giving demos of how the products work. Potential customers are looking for practical reasons why they may want to choose your products above those offered by competing companies. And, you need to provide those answers. Depending on the size and functionality of the products, you can have samples on site and work them for customers. However, if the products are too big for a trade show booth or your company offers services, go for highly advanced audio-visual media. Play videos on large screens or invite visitors to check out features by giving a presentation on laptops and tablets.

#5. Advertise Your Presence at the Trade Show

A great way to promote the success of your trade show presence is to encourage existing customers to pay you a visit. Send out emails broadcasting your booth number and the date and venue of the trade show. The more prestigious the event, better will be the impression you create. Advertise your attendance on your website and hand out flyers around the company’s physical address. And, just as the folks at the Entrepreneur magazine advise, informing friends and family members is another effective trade show creative idea. You can also welcome company employees to invite their friends to attend the show.

#6. Choose the Right Follow-Up Strategies

Having made the right impression is not enough if you don’t get conversions and sales. When visitors check out your booth, request for email addresses and contact information. Later, you can use these details to follow up with the people who liked your products. Sometimes, refreshing memories with an email or phone call can earn you an order.

Showcasing your company and its products and services at B2B events is a great move. But, with a few smart trade show creative ideas, you can make sure that your presence at these prestigious events gets you the best results in the form of conversions and increased sales. Formulate a winning game plan today.