These trade show marketing tips will help you to get the most out of your next trade show. Most of the tips are just good advice that won’t cost you anything at all except a little time and effort.
One thing to avoid at trade shows is the wasteful giving away of your brochures. Some people actually hire models to hand out their brochures. People will take the brochures from the pretty girl in a bikini and toss them out at the end of the aisle.
Instead of giving away brochures that nobody wants get some trade show giveaways that you can hand out. By having unique giveaway items you’ll attract some people that only care about the freebies but others will be attracted because they will see people gathered around your booth. The people that are actually interested in the products or services of your company will ask about those products and services and they will take your brochure. The way I view the giveaway items is that I use them like a fisherman uses bait to catch fish. If I want potential customers to come to my booth and talk to me I have to bait them with something. The trade show giveaways are my bait to draw in my fish. The people that just want the freebies are actually helping me by making it look like something exciting and interesting is going on in my booth. They help to draw in the big fish for me. Standing in the aisle forcing people to take my brochure is a waste of brochures and it just annoys people.
If the trade show giveaway items you are using have your logo, website address or phone number then you are giving away little advertisements about your company. Give them out freely! It isn’t costly to give away pens, notepads or other branded materials. If you are super aggressive at talking to people that pass by your booth it is hard to imagine that you could speak with 100 people. Let’s say that you did speak with 100 people and they all grabbed a pen and notepad. What would that cost you? Your cost for the giveaway items would be insignificant compared to the cost of attending the trade show.
