– Do’s and Don’t’s

SYNOPSIS IN POINT FORM

• Participation in fairs can be very costly
• Exhibiting in a fair can still make a lot of sense in certain circumstances
• Make sure that you cost up all expenses and calculate you ROI (return on investment)
• Your stand must be well positioned, conspicuous and attractive
• Always have promoters encouraging visitors to enter your stand
• Give people added incentives to talk to you such as offering them free food and drinks
• Make an attractive sales offer limited to the fair
• Always give out handouts which people may take back home with them
• Collect visitor contact data for future marketing use
• Carefully measure all sales ensuing from the fair to gauge its effectiveness

FULL ARTICLE

The relevance of exhibiting in fairs and exhibitions today, is a matter of much discussion. With the advent of so many powerful online marketing options, many have, in recent years, rethought their communication strategies and have pulled out of fairs, not least of all with costs in mind. A lot of what may be done online is either very inexpensive, or even scot free, whereas the participation in fairs with an exhibition stand, can be an extremely costly exercise.

The way I see it is that although many businesses’ dependence on fairs has greatly diminished, there are still many occasions and circumstances where these may be very relevant and beneficial to your business.

Like any other marketing channel, it offers its own specific criteria, possibilities and advantages, which are hard to replicate via other platforms.

The main aspect here, is naturally the physical encounter and interaction with your customers and more so with your prospects (potential customers). There are naturally countless limitations which are also inherent to online marketing, such as the absence of any direct human contact, including voice and sight. More so the inability to physically show and demonstrate goods, to hand out samples or even promotional material and printed matter. So a lot still can be achieved at a fair, which cannot through online marketing.

Your very first concern usually revolves around costs. Participating at a fair can add up to a little fortune, if you aren’t careful. So start off by properly calculating all your relevant expenses and don’t forget, like anything else, you either do it very well or you don’t do it at all. You want a sleek and striking stand, which will impress and attract people, not make you look like granny’s cottage industry is back in fashion.

Here are a few of them :
• air travel (if held abroad)
• accommodation, meals, internal transport & other travel expenses (if held abroad)
• exhibition space
• cost of stand
• cost of decorating and signage for stand
• cost of giveaways and consumables
• cost of manning the stand (never forget to include this)
• any additional costs incurred directly, such as hiring of temps to look after your main business premises
• opportunity cost – ie. could you have been more productive elsewhere and did you lose out considerably on your normal work
• finally never forget that this is very hard work, long hours, and that it might even take you a few days to recover after it is over

With your final costs in hand, you can then easily calculate how realistic it is for you to cover them effectively through the direct result of your participation. If you are after direct sales, then obviously calculate how much you have to sell, per day and even perhaps per hour, and establish whether this is a reasonable expectation or not.

If you are after general awareness and PR, then calculate roughly how many people will be seeing your stand, by checking on pervious years’ footfall figures. Make an estimate on how many of these might pass in front of your stand, how many will actually see it, how many might stop, and finally on how many you will have a lasting, positive and fruitful impact.

Then if all of this logical reasoning makes sense – go for it. However you must then apply the soundest of principles to ensure that you obtain the very best results possible from your endeavour.

Here are some golden rules which apply to participating at an exhibition :

These are all based on how you can obtain the greatest visibility with the greatest number of visitors there AND how you can get the very most out of your encounter with them. All ensuing reasoning will then emanate from there.

• Make sure you book early to obtain a good location within the fair. Never believe that it is the same everywhere, that is just sales talk
• If it is your first time to this fair, check out who the exact visiting audience is, to ensure that you get it right and prepare accordingly
• Prepare sufficient quantities of giveaways, brochures, cards, etc. It is very common for exhibitors to run out half way through and be totally stuck
• Your stand must be very visible, conspicuous and stand out amongst all the rest
• If and when appropriate, use flashing lights, moving items, sound, smell, and other tricks to attract attention
• You should always have promoters and host/esses stationed just outside your stand to draw people in
• Give people a reason to come into your stand, coffee and biscuits and alcohol are often hard to beat
• When allowed by the organisers, you can also have promoters roaming around the fair and handing out slips, coupons, vouchers and other means of ensuring that they make their way to your stand
• As a rule of thumb, it is usually better to have few very large signs rather than many small ones which can only be read when up close
• Also ensure that you give out handouts, information and samples – when applicable, which visitors can take back home with them
• Give them a valid reason to purchase there and then or at least until a certain date
• Use all your encounters to collect contact information from visitors, which may later be used for direct marketing purposes
• Make sure that the direct sale of items on site is allowed, as this is not always the case
• Always measure precisely the sales made directly through the fair, both during and after, as this will be a crucial factor in your decision on whether to participate or not the following year