Trade Shows Post-Pandemic
By Beau Robinson
Event Coordinator
Flashback … where were you last March when the COVID-19 closures and lockdown began? If I would’ve told you then about everything that’s happened since, would you believe me? Probably not, right?
In March of last year, I was walking the trade show floor at the International Fluid Power Exhibition (IFPE) in Las Vegas when companies first began placing travel bans on their employees. As fast as some of the booths were set up, they were torn down and many empty spaces remained. The show continued as planned, but I thought the “no handshake” stickers on the chests of attendees were temporary. I even shared a chuckle with a few people as we gave a little wave or an elbow bump instead.
I’ve become accustomed to asking people if they are okay with a handshake, and things like patting my pockets, turning around and trotting back to my car after realizing I forgot my mask have become routine. Don’t forget … it’s “phone, wallet, keys, mask” in today’s world.
Now, as people are getting the vaccine and life is returning to normal, in-person events are coming back. As we enter a “new normal,” we want to keep you up to date on what that looks like for trade shows including the new mainstay virtual events, offer technology to get you ahead of the game and ways to dust off those business cards and ready for deal making again.
The Virtual Model Will Stay When In-Person Comes Back
Overall, look for elements of the virtual conference to stay. In fact, some conferences might go permanently virtual post-pandemic. After all, there are benefits to that model, including no floor space cost, and attracting more speakers and a broader audience — mostly because of the elimination of travel and hotel costs.
On top of that, the data that online conferences capture is extremely valuable. It allows you to know who is connected to the conference, who visited your booth, who clicked on your downloadable content and even how long they stayed on each page. The ease in the facilitation of online discussions and meet-ups that virtual conferences offer keeps the attention of attendees and avoids trade show fatigue from long exhibition hours at in-person events. Even the most extroverted people may run low on their social meter eventually!
On the other hand, I think we can all agree that Zoom fatigue is real as well. And, mentioning the positives of virtual events does not take away from the importance of in-person connection. Although COVID-19 has shown us we can adjust, but try our best without it, face-to-face interaction is still a vital part of relationship building. So, let’s get back out there!
Virtual events will stay, but in-person events are coming back. Many events will aim for the best of both worlds by using the hybrid model, giving an option to attendees to participate in-person or virtually.
Technology to Improve Your Experience
Our team is gearing up for a tremendously busy fall of in-person trade shows; and the Foster team loves to see it!
We’ve all seen the role technology such as Zoom has played during the pandemic. Anyone else’s ears still ringing with the phrase “send me a Zoom link?!” So, what role will technology play on the trade show floor once in-person events are back? The first step is getting people to your booth, and technology is a great way to do it. Here are a few things to look for:
Virtual Reality: VR can be used in multiple ways on the trade show floor:
- Training: You can give your end-user a unique experience by allowing them to use the actual product.
- Demonstration: You can use VR to show customers how a product works in a specific setting. For example, if you’re demonstrating how a piece of equipment works on an offshore rig, you can virtually place a person directly on the rig to see it in action.
- Doing more with less: You can incorporate all of your products (not just one) without having to spend the extra cost for a larger exhibit space and fees for bringing in big pieces of equipment.
VR will easily bring more traffic to your booth. Everyone will want to try it!
Gamification: Make your visitors excited to be in your booth. Let them try and putt a golf ball, play trivia or even ask them to participate in a social media contest to win a virtual prize!
Touch Screens: Give the prospect the power in the experience. Let them click around and explore for themselves. This will also help your salespeople during crowded times if they are busy with other visitors.
Video Wall: Go all out or go home! Ditch that one TV and put a bunch together to form a video wall. The busiest booth I’ve ever seen ended one of the exhibition days by playing a soccer game on their video wall.
Social Media: Everyone is on it, so leverage that. Encourage attendees to visit your booth and see if the conference account will reshare your post! Also, everyone loves a good video. Take a few seconds (or minutes) and film your expert talking about your product or service from the trade show floor.
Charging Station: One of the biggest issues at large events is dying cell phone batteries with no available plugs. Put a small seating area with a cell phone charging station and watch visitors flock to your booth.
Presentation Video: Can’t get your product onto the trade show floor? Film a product demo beforehand and run it on your video screen. Have you ever heard the saying “a picture is worth a thousand words?” Show them what your product does! It works the same if you want to highlight your facility, just film a facility tour.
Get Creative: Find other ways to incorporate technology in your booth. Have a piece of equipment that can fit a GoPro camera in it? That’s a perfect opportunity to live stream the inside of your equipment to allow visitors to look inside during a product demo.
Tips For Getting Back Into the Swing of Things
Just as we all had to learn to cope with the pandemic lifestyle, some of us may struggle to get back into the new normal. Here are some quick tips to get yourself back into the swing of things!
Have a post-pandemic (but still safe) checklist. Don’t forget the necessities … a mask, hand sanitizer, your vaccine card and, yes, an extra mask. The best part? You can brand the sanitizer and mask with your company name. We will take safe in-person events with precautions over only virtual any day!
Business cards. We’ve been on Zoom and there hasn’t been a huge need for them. … Carry around extra in your wallet just in case you forget your main stash.
Dress for success. I know you have not needed it in a while, but don’t forget to bring your favorite suit to the dry cleaners.
Do your research. Don’t be too antsy to get back out there. Make sure you’re still going to the best shows to reach your target audience.
Start small. Choose a few shows and see what the attendance rate looks like. Not every person feels 100% comfortable going out quite yet.
We are glass-half full folks at Foster Marketing, and thus, we’re excited for what the rest of 2021 holds for trade shows. Need help getting ready for your upcoming event schedule? Contact Foster Marketing! Whether virtual, hybrid or in-person events, we know how to get your product or service message to your target audience. Let’s get started! Call us today at 281-448-3435, contact us online or connect with us on LinkedIn.
BONUS TIP
Face-to-face communication isn’t only the best way to build a relationship, it is also gaining support as a more effective approach.
According to The Balance Careers, “A study at UCLA indicated that up to 93% of communication effectiveness is determined by nonverbal cues. Another study indicated that the impact of a performance was determined 7% by the words used, 38% by voice quality and 55% by the nonverbal cues.”
In other words, it is time to get face to face again!
NOW AVAILABLE: 2021 TRADE SHOW DIRECTORY
Check out Foster Marketing’s 2021 Trade Show Directory containing 85 trade shows in the oil and gas and industrial markets. Plan what you will attend and mark your calendar today!