Trade shows can be intense experiences. It is a time to showcase your company’s capabilities and gather leads to increase your customer base and grow your network. When it comes down to it, the connections you make can significantly add to your trade show ROI. You will meet a vast array of attendees at your next trade show, so we have outlined a few of the usual suspects you are likely to encounter.
1. The Tire-Kicker in the Trade Show Booth
These people are largely there for the freebies and promotional giveaways, wanting to acquire as many goodies as possible without having to pay for them. Although they may occasionally show interest in your custom trade show exhibit and company, they are mostly putting on an interested face in order to gather free items from your staff. They can often be spotted with a cornucopia of branded items, sending the notion of brand loyalty out the window rather quickly.
2. The Trade Show’s Time-Killer
Time-killers aren’t exactly what you have in mind when calculating your trade show ROI, yet they are an inevitable part of the event. This person is simply stopping by your exhibit while they wait for a promotional show or demo that has piqued their interest. They are more likely to be pulled to your exhibit if it has intriguing interactive features and graphics. Most of the time, they’ll vacantly wander around, looking uninterested before killing time at the next appealing-looking exhibit.
3. The Interrogator
Perhaps the kind of person you wouldn’t be surprised to find at a trade show, interrogators tend to run around the trade show floor collecting data on the services and prices of different companies. Don’t be surprised if they are pitting competitors against each other. Interrogators will ask many questions, jotting down the details you provide in notebooks or on their phones. Before you know it, they disappear when they have the information they need from you.
4. The Rival
An employee from a competing company may decide to stroll over to your booth, perhaps asking you questions about your company that are relevant to your shared market. Although there is no harm in making connections, be sure to keep your trade secrets close to your chest when a rival comes prying for information.
5. The Targeted Attendee
Attracting the right people to your exhibit, i.e., those individuals who can actually benefit from your business, is why you are exhibiting at the event. Make sure your staff understands who these visitors are and how to engage with them to deliver the message that invokes the desired action. This is the jackpot visitor you want in your exhibit!
Trade show ROI can depend on the relationships formed at the event. At Exhibitus, we believe that great design should deliver measurable results. That is why we have an entire team dedicated to proving your exhibit’s return on investment. We ensure that the event manager gets the resources necessary to justify and optimize the investment of a trade show exhibit. Contact us to learn more about our Results Division.