Trade Shows Are Not A Waste Of Time

by Richard Avdoian

There is still time to join area business owners and professionals as an exhibitor at the St. Louis Business Expo on April 19, 2017 at the St. Charles Convention Center. 

Tradeshows and expos provide many opportunities to meet your next business partner or customer, visit vendors who provide services and products to businesses, attend business seminars and exchange business cards with other attendees.

For years, when the economy was strong, businesses and professionals could get away with doing what they have always done to attract business and prosper.  As they say those were the good old days. Today customers are reaching new companies and service providers less by word of mouth and more through the internet, tradeshows and social media. Companies need to shift their focus and marketing from hunting for new customers to being hunted. Tradeshows are a great venue to showcase your expertise and expose your company to business owners and professionals hunting for services and products.

I have heard many companies and professionals complain about the low ROI from participating in tradeshows given the investment in time and money. It really doesn’t have to be the case if properly prepared. For tradeshows to be cost-effective and to increase your ROI consider these tips.

Start promoting the day you commit to participating in the show. Create a few variations of email blasts promoting your participation in the expo starting with a save-the-date, followed by a few others sent two to three weeks apart to your prospects, clients, colleagues and family and friends. Each blast should appear as a special invitation: “I would like to personally invite you…”; “Please join me….”; “I am excited to announce…”.

Inquire about possible speaking opportunities. It never hurts to inquire as many tradeshows offer free seminars presented by exhibitors. These opportunities offer one more opportunity to really position your business as a leader and expert in your industry. Typically seminars range from 45 to 60 minutes. The focus of the seminar should not be about your business but rather about sharing your expertise related to your industry and target niches.

Make sure your booth design is appealing. The visual appearance of your booth is the porthole to attracting key prospects. Take the necessary time and invest the appropriate funds to design a booth that best represents your company, service and products.

Be selective when selecting employees to represent your business. Nothing will guarantee a bad experience and terrible ROI like sending members of your company who are not properly trained to effectively work a expo. Worst yet is sending employees who are not confident or knowledgeable of your services and products.

Invest the time and funds. If you are a newbie to tradeshows consider consulting with tradeshow and marketing experts to create a booth and plan in order to get the best ROI.

It is not too late to join 100 plus businesses and professionals showcasing and positioning their companies as experts.  Hope to see you April 19th at the Expo either as a fellow exhibitor or an attendee.

Richard Avdoian is president/CEO of the Midwest Business Institute Inc., a business consulting and training firm.  For information about training and seminars, contact Richard at 618-972-8588 or Richard@RichardAvdoian.com.