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How to Maximize Your Trade Show Experience - Expo for Women South Bend



What is tradeshow marketing? 

According to The Beginners Guide to Trade Show Marketing publish by Connor Benedict on Constant Contact's blog site "Trade show marketing involves showcasing and promoting your products and services at one of these large-scale, industry-specific events. Because trade shows aim to help businesses boost brand awareness, you’ll gain a ton of exposure and a whole new audience by attending one as an exhibitor. You’ll also get to meet other professionals in your field as well as new customers, learn what your competitors are up to, and gain insight into the broader trends, products, and services shaping your industry."

I like to think of trade show marketing is a hands-on approach to presenting your company, product or service, to the community through a trade show. You're not only introducing yourself to potential customers in attendance, but you're also introducing yourself to competitors, reconnecting with past and current customers. Your trade show marketing efforts, both online and offline, must be planned strategic and impactful to result in new business opportunities. 

As a host of the Expo for Women we have experienced the benefits and seen the results of trade show marketing when employed thoughtfully and strategically can provide an amazing return for your business.  With a successful trade show marketing campaign, you can:

  • Build relationships past, current, potential and create new customers. 
  • Develop new partnerships, networks, and check out your competitors.
  • Increase revenue, sell products, make appointments, provide services at the event.
  • Boost your brand awareness, increase visibility. 
  • Launch new products and services at the event.
  • Perform market research, try out new ideas. 

The key thing to remember you can achieve success with a successful trade show marketing campaign starting from the moment you decided to participate in the tradeshow event, at the event and after the event. 

Participating exhibitors / vendors in the Expo for Women are always asking for marketing tips so here are a few that are the most helpful: 

1. Create a buzz before the tradeshow 

Commit as early as possible and start posting on social media, sending out in emails and networking what you will be doing at the tradeshow, why they should come see you.

Write a press release (template) about the event you will be exhibiting in, what you will be selling, any special deals you will be offering along with a short description of the event and the details. Not sure how to write a press release? 

2. Tell everyone. 

Let your past, present, and future customers along with family and friends to your booth in advance. Encourage them to attend by offering them free tickets, free gifts or event discounts to help them attend and stop by your booth. This is your opportunity to increase your visibility in the community, increase your sales, and reconnect with previous customers. It's a mistake to expect the tradeshow host to find you customers, that's your job. 

3. Be memorable. 

Incorporate physical and visual display elements to attract people to your booth area. Your booth displays should be eye level when standing, so they can be seen over the heads of people who are standing or just passing by. 

Make your booth space interesting, colorful, and exciting to draw people to your booth. If you don't get the attention of the attendees, draw them to your booth, you don't have a chance to get to know each other, identify their needs and to sell them. 

4. Be inviting. 

Think of your trade show booth as inviting people into your store front. Remove or push the table to the back or side of the booth area. Instead of the standard 6ft table, bring shelving for displays, utilize high top table instead for appointment making or create an audience seating area for demonstrations or presentations.

The longer someone is engaging with you, the bigger chance you have to make the sale. 

People like fun things to do, and to win!  Inexpensive booth activities are: Trivia games, scavenger hunts, candy jar guessing game, card games, magic tricks, guess that tune, you get the idea. 

5. Community Giving - Donate a portion of your sales to a local charity. 

Letting your customers know your business cares about the well-being of your community. It shows your company wants to make a difference and not just focused on making money. It's a win-win for your business. Identify the charity in advance, and provide ways to give before, during and after the tradeshow event. Looking for the benefits of aligning your business with a charitable organization? Check this out 7 Reasons Why Your Business Should Partner with a Charitable Organization. 

6. Make them work for it. 

The goal of this event is to leave with appointments, interviews, services booked, customers in your store online and offline, impulse purchases and a way to connect to qualified leads after the event. An easy way to identify who is a qualified lead? As them. Have a short questionnaire, 5 - 10 questions qualifying questions (which includes their contact information) for those who stop by to answer, to enter them into a drawing for a prize from your business. It's better to leave a trade show with 50 qualified leads, sold products, booked appointments than 500 names in a jar.

7. Make it work for you.

Make all the activities related to the trade show event the before, the event and after creating new leads, customers, business contacts and partnerships. Have 3 - 4 reasonable, measurable specific goals, and the actions you are going to take to insure you reach your event goals. Trade shows work, the only question here is you. Will you work it? It's your business and your responsibility for your success. No one else is going to swoop in and do it for you. 

Stop by the Expo for Women Ladies Day Out held in South Bend if you are this way 
March 28th, 2023 brought to you by the team at C2 Your Health LLC. 
Stay Healthy. Stay Connected. Stay You.


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Location: South Bend, IN, USA

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