Exhibiting at a trade show is an excellent way to reach a large number of potential new customers and to strengthen relationships with existing customers.  It’s also one of the largest investments a company makes.  By establishing goals and employing certain tactics to reach these goals, the investment you make in exhibiting at a trade show can yield remarkable results.  It all begins with detailed planning.

A recent CEIR study shows that shopping is one of the primary reasons for attendees to attend a trade show to prepare them for decision making and purchasing goals.  The study entitled Attendee Preferences by Job Title is an outgrowth of the “What Attendees Want from Trade Exhibitions” study done a decade ago. It examines how executives want to experience exhibitions and what motivates them to visit an exhibitor’s booth.

CEIR divided potential attendees into four groups: executives, upper management, middle management and lower management/staff. All replies were rated on a scale of 1-7, with seven the most important factor. When asked to rank 22 possible reasons to attend, all four groups expressed the same top three reasons: to shop, buy and learn, with varying levels of importance based on their position.

Where else other than a trade show can you be face-to-face with so many decision makers in one place?  Effective pre-event marketing can serve to get as many of those key customers in front of you as possible.  The key here is to know your market.  Who are you trying to reach and how is your message aligned with your corporate marketing objective and your attendees needs and goals?

In our next post, we will offer suggestions on structuring a marketing plan that will yield results.  We invite you to join in and follow the discussion.