GETTING THE MOST OUT OF YOUR EXHIBITING INVESTMENT

Exhibiting at tradeshows and exhibitions is a uniquely effective marketing tactic.  Exhibiting epitomizes experiential marketing, meaning it can combine various disciplines of media and communication to impact the audience's total environmental experience.  Encompassing marketing, advertising, promotion, education and design, exhibit marketing has evolved into a fully immersive multimedia experience.  From 10'x10' booths, to vast multi-story exhibits, the exhibit hall is a fundamental part of a company's marketing mix.

Following are some basic guidelines to maximizing your exhibition ROI:

• Know Your Audience
  Make sure you study the exhibitor prospectus for each show at which you consider buying booth space.  Don't consider exhibitions with audiences that are not right for your product or service and make sure you design your exhibit to appeal to your ideal audience.

• Setting Measurable Objectives
  Determine what you want to achieve from your exhibiting experience.  Set quantifiable goals such as introducing new products, generating leads, awareness, public relations and checking out the competition.  An example of a quantifiable objective would be to deliver your brand message to 85% of your target audience.

• Before You Arrive
  First, make sure you select a booth location that works for you.  Do you want to be near the refreshments or near the entrance? Likewise, market your investment ahead of time: consider a direct mail program to drive traffic to your booth. 

• Working the Booth
  Do be professional, a good listener, knowledgeable about your product or service and enthusiastic.  Don't stand in the aisles and don't engage in idle conversation with other booth staff—it will turn attendees away.  If you are using giveaways, make sure they are appropriate for your audience.
  
  
• Follow Up and Evaluation
  Regardless of the method you use  (custom lead retrieval systems, business cards, note pads) following up with contacts is crucial.  Likewise, create a post-meeting evaluation report that includes leads generated, comments from customers or prospects, an account of your competition and recommendations for next year.

ASSEMBLING AN EFFECTIVE MEDIA KIT

Every company needs a quality media kit that promotes the company its products or services. The main point of a media kit is to educate your audience on who you are, what you do and why it's important. The key to compiling a good media kit is identifying who the media kit is for as that will determine the content to include:

Some combination of the following should be in every kit you distribute:

Cover Letter
The cover letter should be no more than one page and personalized to your audience.

Company Information
Include material that is the most relevant and current, such as a concise fact sheet about your company and its history, as well as key corporate contacts.

Products/Services
Include material on your products and/or services, but do not overwhelm your audience; only include the information necessary for the reader to have a basic understanding of your products and/or services.

Media Content
Include original copies (not photocopies) of important company-released press releases about the company itself or its products and services.

Financial Information
If your company is public or is seeking potential investors, it is appropriate to include a basic financial statement.

Consider creating an electronic version of your company's media kit that can be distributed via email or accessible on your company's Web site in PDF format.

As your media kit is usually the first impression your audience will have of your company, be diligent about proofreading all components for typos, misspells and outdated information.

Best regards,

Peter Rush, Chairman & CEO

Visit Our Web site: www.kellencommunications.com 

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