Emma Swales, founder of Marketingesp,  answers your questions about exhibitions & trade shows  - how to use them to enhance your success and leads generated.

That's it for today!
Thank you to everyone for sending in their questions & many thanks to Emma Swales for providing her expert advice.

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11:35 - Mark Wingfield has sent in this question for Emma:
Hi Emma, I will be exhibiting shortly and have two questions which are interlinked:

1. Tips and tricks on getting people to part with their contact details for follow up.
2. How to ensure that browsers are responded to rather than drift off the stand if attendees are busy.

For background, I will have some kind of receptacle for collecting business cards, but am not convinced that spending money on a data capture scanner gun is well spent, especially when at the same show last year the reliability of the equipment was patchy.

Emma replies:
Thanks for your question, Mark. Getting contact details is always the ultimate goal. As I have said in all my answers, you need to have clear objectives:

• Contact details for a contact database for future marketing
• Qualified leads

76% of visitors attend exhibitions with clear objectives.They want to find new ideas, new suppliers and new partners. 

For a contact database the easiest way is to have a free prize draw - these people are those that don't want to talk to you and may or may not be interested in your product or service. They are relevant because they visited and because you can market to them in the future. 

Have a copy of your prize draw rules available that covers the issue of direct mail and/or email marketing - by participating in the draw they understand you will from time to time send them information etc etc. You will not sell or pass on their information to anyone else etc etc. 

A qualified lead is someone who wants to do business with you potentially. These people are easy to get information from because you will be engaged in a conversation with them. 

When you set out your show objectives you need to be clear what type of leads you want to get. The easiest way of doing this is to classify them into A, B and C.

You also need to know what questions you have to ask to qualify them and what information you need to give them to keep their interest and to take them to the next stage. 

I'm not a fan of the electronic lead gatherer! I always devise a specific lead form for my clients that is designed around their objectives. Electronic pens don't always work and don't always provide the facility for you to record all the pieces of information you need. 

When you design a specific show lead form include contact information - which can be a business card stapled to the form, business type and then a series of tick boxes for product interest, follow up process, timescale etc. 

The beauty of designing your own form is you can make it as specific as you need. Include a comments section for you to record exactly the nature of the enquiry and the specific needs of the visitor. This makes the follow up process easier. I also include the time the lead was taken and the stand staffer's name. This means you can always go back to the person who took the lead if anything is unclear. Classify the lead as you take it as this will make the follow up process more efficient. 

Make sure handwriting is neat. 

If you are using literature or promotional items try to get the contact details (even if it is just a business card) before you part with the item. 

Browsers
Making sure you don't miss anyone can be difficult particularly when you are low on staff numbers. You need to try to pre-empt this in the planning stage by designing your stand to hold their attention. 

Think about what pieces of information you can include in graphics or on/in a presentation to hold their attention. If you are all busy with other visitors, catch their eye and indicate you know they are there. 

An alternative strategy is to plan your stand staff so that you have one person catching browsers and qualifying them, leaving the other staff to handle the 'real' enquiries. The browsers can then be passed on accordingly or the 'qualifier' can politely get rid of them! If a visitor is that interested they will tend to hang around. 

Make sure you have enough stand staff. Your stand should be manned at all times which means you should have at least 2 stand staff, preferably 3. 

Hope this helps.

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11:24 - Suzie Walters writes in to ask:
"Do you have any special tips for attracting visitors to your stand? Also, what are the common mistakes that exhibitors make (so we know to avoid them)?"

Emma replies:

• Height - your stand design should include your branding or messaging above the standard 2.5m shell scheme height
• Light - always light your stand to enhance key products or messages
• Colour - use full colour imagery/graphics to attract attention (opt for large headlines or statements that attract the eye rather than lots of small copy)
• Movement - the big attractor - movement can come from moving objects on the stand, an av presentation or changing graphic but importantly movement comes from the stand staff.

Think about the times you have been to a show and seen stand staff sitting around looking really fed up. Bet you haven't wanted to talk to them! What makes us interact with a stand is the behaviour of the people on it.

Well motivated, friendly stand staff is the key to attracting visitors. Communication with the visitor starts 20 feet from the stand. In just a few seconds, the visitor will have taken in the look of the stand, the message, tried to understand what you are offering and seen how inviting and welcoming the stand staff are. 

Think about how your stand staff can attract more visitors - perhaps a demonstration or a presentation. Also think about what other 'crowd pullers' you could use - a sports/racing car, a magician, a Wii game - BUT, you can only use this kind of approach if you have enough well trained stand staff to interact with the visitors that are pulled in. No point in getting their attention if you can't infiltrate the crowd. 

Common Mistakes
Too many exhibitors do not PLAN for the show, they do not PROMOTE their presence, they do not TRAIN their stand staff and they do not FOLLOW UP their leads. Make sure you do all four! 

Write an exhibition plan and budget and start planning 4 - 6 months ahead including show objectives, stand design, logistics, stand staff, hotels, transport - everything!

Devise a promotional campaign for pre-show, at-show and post-show activity including pr, direct mail and/or email marketing, use your website to promote the show and include your stand number on all correspondence

Train your stand staff - don't choose the person perceived as the least busy to man the stand. They need to understand why you are exhibiting and what is expected of them

Follow up the leads - 80% of exhibitors do not follow up leads (shocking but true!) so what's the point in exhibiting. Make sure you have your follow up strategy in place before you go to the show.

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11:01 - The next question is:
"As a small business doing it's first exhibition, is it worthwhile spending money on promotional giveaways? If so, what can kind of promotional freebies work well & can you recommend any suppliers?”

Emma replies:
Whether you're a first-timer or a seasoned exhibitor, you must set yourself exhibiting objectives right from the outset.

• What will you use the promotional item for? Are you trying to build your brand - promotional items can work well for this as long as you have your contact details printed on them (name and telephone, email or web) - sounds obvious but some companies forget!
  
  
• Try to be more creative than the standard mug or pen. Depending on what your product/service is try to choose a product that 'fits' and is relevant. And try to use an item that is useful - pens are popular because everyone uses a pen, same with mugs but there is a much greater choice available. One of my clients sells water dispensing systems. For his first show we were demonstrating the system and giving the visitor water in a branded sports water bottle - this tied into the client's healthy lifestyle theme and the bottles were carried around the show promoting the brand and then used afterwards.
  
  
• Consider how YOU will make the visitor remember YOU - if you do a good job on the stand then using a free promotional item can reinforce the experience and get you remembered after the show. If you simply hand them out like sweets, you're no different to anyone else.
  
  
• What will you get in return for giving a visitor a free item? - always get something back in return. If one of your objectives is to build a contact database then you can use a promotional item to get the visitor contact details or perhaps use a free prize draw (it will probably cost you less and has a greater perceived value).
  
  
• Also consider WHO will receive the item. Is your strategy to give it to everyone who passes your stand or to carefully selected individuals who you have spoken to, qualified and who meet your target audience profile?
  
  
• Also consider that 90% of visitors to trade shows state it is the interaction with the stand staff that wins them over - not the free item.
  
  
• Consider what other options are available to you for self-promotion. Will you make use of pr opportunities before and at the show? Will you conduct any direct mail or email marketing to your database? What message are you going to project at the show that will grab the attention of the visitor (in 3 - 5 seconds). 

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10:14 - the next question has been sent in by Linda Croose-Smith & Linda Garside:
"Hello Emma, my friend and I have only just graduated from Derby University in Photography. We have decided to put on an exhibition in November to catch the Christmas shopping season. We are hoping to sell work with the title 'Derbyshire Landscapes'. This will be digitally enhanced work to give it a contemporary feel and will be sold as sets or singles.

My question to you is, should I have a selection of images ready to sell, or can I take orders and post to the customer? Which would appeal to the customer?

Also does the customer expect frames with the work, or can we get away with just the image allowing the customer to choose the frame? I have heard that we will need to have public liability insurance. Who would you suggest to get this policy and how much should I be insured?

Emma replies:
Hi Linda and Linda, thanks for your question.  

• Display your work in frames and without frames so that you are showing the customer the different looks.
• Consider how much storage space you will need, how convenient or otherwise it will be to carry the stock and whether you can be certain of selling the made-up stock
• It may be easier to have unframed items to sell on the day (less labour intensive and more cost-controlled)
• Have a selection of frames on display for customers to choose the type of frame they want
• Consider that customers may want to display the photograph in their own frames
• Consider your turn around time for completing orders and know in advice how long it will take from order to delivery - you must be able to guarantee pre-Christmas delivery - this may effect your choice of exhibition date
• You will need a returns policy
• Check with your venue about their public liability insurance. If it is a venue that is regularly used for exhibitions they may have a policy in place. If you need to organise it yourself you could start with Leicester Chamber of Commerce - they can put you in touch with many insurance companies

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10:04 - Pratibha has emailed in today's first question:
"I at looking at developing an idea of organising a health & vitality show in Leicester sometime next year.  I wonder if you can give me any tips on what makes a show like this successful."

Emma replies: 
Pratibha - thanks for your question.
 
Whether you are exhibiting at a show or choosing to organise one yourself, first and foremost you must establish your objectives. In the case of organising a show I would suggest the following:

• Market research - understand what your market place needs and wants and identify your target audience of exhibitors and visitors
  
  
• Objective setting - establish what you what to achieve from organising the show in terms of personal goals and business goals. What will this show give the exhibitor and the visitor that they can't get from going to another show?
  
  
• Venue - choose a venue that is known, easy to find and with good facilities. You will need a venue that has good access for exhibitors depending on the size of exhibits and one with sufficient power capability.
  
  
• Stand space - when you choose your venue consider what type of stand space you will be selling to exhibitors and how many exhibitors and visitors you need to make the show successful. There are several options including selling space only for larger exhibition stands or providing the exhibitor with a shell scheme area to exhibit within or indeed providing very small exhibiting space to display a graphic banner. You will need a minimum ceiling height of 2.5m which will allow banner stands and pop-up displays to be used but I would suggest you try to find a venue with a ceiling height in excess of 2.5m.
  
  
• Content - decide what type of exhibition you want to create. It might be showcasing exhibitors products and/or holding educational seminars. It might include a demonstration area where visitors can try out products or a relaxation area. You need the show to interact with the visitor. Encourage exhibitors to interact with visitors by using free demonstrations, free samples or using an incentive prize draw.
  
  
• Exhibitors - consider what potential exhibitors will get from exhibiting at your show. What's the visitor profile and demographics? How are you going to sell the show to your exhibitors?
  
  
• Visitors - why should they visit your show? What will they take away with them? Who will they meet there?
  
  
• Promotion - as the organiser it is your responsibility to get visitors to the show. Use a combination of marketing strategies including pr, advertising, direct mail and email promotion to spread the word and make signing up to exhibit/visit simple and easy. You should have a website promoting the show where exhibitors and visits can find all the information they need to make the decision to exhibit or visit. You may also want to consider what promotional support you can give exhibitors in their efforts to get visitors.
  
  
• Measurement - Consider in your planning and objective setting phase how you will measure the success of the show. How will you record the number of visitors, how will you get visitor and exhibitor feedback? This information is important in benchmarking the performance of the show against your original objectives and for setting your future objectives.

I hope this gives you some guidance and areas to think about. Good luck with your venture.

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