Building a Trade Show Marketing Plan-Part 1 Promotionally Yours, Sheri Breaux

It’s every exhibitor’s fear. You reach your space, set up the perfect display, layout your marketing materials, run through your talk tracks one last time, and… nobody stops. After a while, you start to feel anxious, and the next thing you know you’re chasing people down, forcing them to take your brochures and yelling your product points at them as they run down the aisle. Ok, maybe that’s a little overly dramatic, but if you rely solely on foot traffic to get people to your booth, it can sometimes feel like this.
Booth traffic can make or break a trade show investment. The Center for Exhibition Industry Research has found that 76% of trade show attendees plan their booth visits in advance. In order to make sure your booth is marked on their show route, you need to start promoting your presence well in advance.
Here are a couple of tips to help you direct booth traffic:
Invitations – Don’t Expect Them to Show Up Uninvited
Attendees won’t know you’re going to be at a show unless you tell them. Announcing your presence at an event using pre-show mailings, sending e-vites and adding show info to your email signature are musts. You can also create some buzz by teasing details about what attendees might see or get at your booth on social media and your website. No matter what you do, always be sure that dates, times, locations and your booth number are front and center.
Incentives – Be a Great Host, Bring Gifts
Invites are a great start, but sometimes it takes a little more to motivate people to stop by your booth. A sweepstakes for your premium product or service will grab attention and help start a conversation about them. Show specials can move a mildly interested prospect into a face-to-face meeting. You can also use your invites as an entry or redemption form for sweepstakes and giveaways allowing you to track prospects easily.
Remember, not all traffic is created equal. Sure, you want to draw a crowd, but be sure to keep your eyes and ears out for high value prospects. Develop a list of questions to help separate motivated prospects from the crowd.  It’s also a good idea to thank qualified prospects for their time with a higher value giveaway that is not available to the general public.
It’s never too early to start promoting your booth. Be sure to take a campaign approach with your pre-show promotions, using multiple touches through a good mix of marketing channels. Creating a buzz is a great start, but it raises the visitor’s expectations of your booth. Meet and exceed those expectations with your booth, and your trade show exhibit will be a sure success.