Statista reports that the B2B trade show market in the US was estimated to be worth 10.2 billion dollars in 2022. This being said, 95% of marketers say they believe that in-person events will help achieve their business goals.

 

So where do we start with business exhibitions?

Research

Always research the event before you decide to participate. Is the audience demographic relevant to you? Do your goals align with the organisers? Are your competitors in attendance? Things like this are incredibly important to consider. Once you have signed on you’ll want to make sure you’ve planned everything from stand design to signage. What will be on your booth? How many employees will you be taking? You’ll get more out of the event if you plan ahead.

 

Set goals

It’s important to consider what you want to achieve from the experience. Would you like to get a certain number of leads, would you like to form new business connections? Maybe you’d just like to get more exposure for your business. Whatever it is, you’ll want to set measurable goals so you know if you’ve achieved them at the end of the trade show.

 

Offer incentives/ interactive experiences

It’s often found that the stands that perform the best are the ones that offer incentives and interactive experiences. This draws people in and attracts a buzz around your booth. This can involve games, competitions, giveaways, or even sometimes just friendly staff who can entertain attendees.

 

Create a plan for follow-ups

It would be very productive to decide how you might deal with follow-ups after the event. You should have everyone's contact information so it could be good to decide if you’re going to email them, call them, or send them any offers you have. It’s about thinking through which approach would be best for your organisation and the kind of message you’re trying to send.

 

Evaluate

In advance, work out how you’re going to evaluate your entire trade show experience. Will you hold meetings, will you create spreadsheets with your goals and numbers of interactions or conversions? It’s always incredibly important to reflect on what went well, what didn’t, and what things you could work on for next time.

 

Why get involved anyway?

If you didn’t already know, here are just a few of the many benefits!

 

Generate leads

Trade shows help you to generate leads. According to Conference Source, in 2022, it was reported that 70% of businesses generated new leads and brand awareness from business exhibitions. Many people still have the preference of face-to-face selling over cold calls, zooms, or LinkedIn messages. Trade shows give you the opportunity to meet hundreds if not thousands of your target demographic under one roof.

 

Increase brand awareness

Positioning your brand at trade shows helps people to learn more about your business. This helps with your visibility and helps attract potential customers if your online presence isn’t as strong as you’d like it to be.

 

Networking opportunities

At these events, there are also many other organisations that may be relevant to you and your brand mission. Perhaps you can form business connections, partnerships, or a supporting community via networking opportunities at the event.

 

Brand reputation

By participating in a trade show, you position your brand as an organisation that stays up-to-date on the relevant industry news and trends. Attendees and other businesses will see you as a key player who takes an active role in contributing to the industry. This will help establish or improve your reputation.

Hopefully, this helps you to think about how beneficial trade shows can be and how you might prepare in advance for them. You do get out what you put in and overall, they can be a very engaging and rewarding experience.