Beau Robinson, Event Coordinator

Whether exhibiting or walking, trade shows are a valuable tool for companies to gain business, but are YOU utilizing them to your best advantage? Foster Marketing has put together “Tips for the Trade Show Floor” to ensure that companies get maximum value from every show.

Trade shows are an easy way to get you face-to-face with your target audience, but can also be costly and a waste of time if you aren’t selective in choosing which shows to exhibit at and attend. Look for these signs at your next trade show to see if you should be walking the show floor, exhibiting at the show or if you should leave the show completely out of your budget for the next year.

Is there a line at registration?

Waiting in long lines can be a pain, but a busy registration desk upon arrival indicates that there will be a lot of traffic at the show. Our tip is to pre-register so badge pickup is much quicker. And, some shows will send you your badge if you register early enough.

Who is at the show?

Exhibitors: Are they potential customers, partners or competitors? If you’re going to be walking the floor, check out the floor plan online, map out your route, and HAVE A PLAN before you go. For your competitors, walk by their booth, take notes on their booth presentation, promotion and foot traffic.

Attendees: Are the attendees walking the show potential customers for you? If you’re exhibiting, what is your plan to entice them into your booth?

If you’re walking the show and see potential customers doing the same, you might want to consider exhibiting next year.

Double-check your plan.

No matter how much planning goes into preparing for a show, that plan is bound to change. Make sure you have a Plan B going into the event.

Show guide: Grab a show guide as soon as you arrive. Is the show guide well put together?

Make sure that all the exhibiting hours and presentation times are still on schedule. Sometimes presentations or panel discussions change.

Floor plan: Look at the floor plan in the show guide. Chances are, companies might have backed out and new companies might have decided to exhibit. Looking at the floor plan also gives you an opportunity to see how many booths weren’t purchased. A show with a lot of empty booths is NOT a good sign.

How is the show traffic?

Busy or dead? The second day of the trade show is typically the busiest, and is normally a good indicator on the success of a show.

Quality over quantity?

Before judging a trade show based solely on attendance numbers, get a feel for who is actually on the show floor. A crowded trade show does no good if the right people aren’t there. Sometimes shows value quality attendees and exhibitors over quantity.

Style of show?

Is the show more about the exhibition or technical presentations? If exhibiting, make sure that there is a good balance between the technical and exhibition schedule, ensuring enough time for business to be done. Make sure the exhibit times make sense.

Booth designs?

Know the type of show you are attending and where your booth is located. Is it a show in a hotel or a convention center? Are you an inline booth or an island booth? These are key questions when designing and managing your booth space to determine structure height, TV placement and in-booth staff.

If you’re walking a show and considering exhibiting next year, check out the companies with the most traffic and note what they are doing to get people into their booth.

How are the presenters?

Look at the quality of the presenters and their presentations. Make sure that the show wasn’t just trying to fill time slots at the last minute with presenters. If a show has quality presenters and presentations, it is normally a sign of a quality show.

Are sponsorships noticeable?

Are the sponsorships noticeable? Companies are paying for sponsorships, and at a good show, sponsorships will be reasonably priced and sponsors will get their money’s worth. If a company pays for a sponsorship, it could also mean that they have money to spend, so you might want to make it a point to stop by their booth.

Another tip is that if you are planning to exhibit and are not in a great location, sponsorships often come in conjunction with “priority” space assignments.

What members of the media are there?

The quickest way to get your information and brand out to the most potential customers – especially in a new market – is through the media.

What media are at the show? Is their audience who you are trying to target? Introduce yourself to members of the media and begin building a relationship with them. They can get your brand out there.

Does the show organizer offer promotional opportunities?

Many organizers offer show apps that make it easy for exhibitors to promote and share information with attendees – from press releases to product features. Take advantage of all the help you can get from the show organizers.

What are the exhibitors saying?

Too often, companies only go to shows because their competitors are there. The point of trade shows is to showcase your products or services… not to stand there with your company name on the back wall.

At a good show, people will be there shaking hands, doing business.

Exhibitors should be engaged.

Prep your booth staff to “work” the show. Exhibitors engaged with the attendees and other exhibitors and interacting in conversation is a sign of business being done, and quality leads being generated.

Those who get business done will be back at the show the following year.

Look at the badge titles.

Are the employees in the booth the right people to talk to? Name badges provided by the show typically list job titles. Are salespeople in the booth? A decision maker? Someone with purchasing power?

Are meetings happening on and off the show floor?

Scheduled meetings mean the right people are being put in front of each other. Whether there is a meeting room inside of the booth itself, or people are meeting in the common area of the show… keep your ears open… meetings are a good sign that business is being done.

Does the show location make sense?

Good shows have good organization. Does the floor plan make sense? Do the lodging choices for the show make sense in comparison to the location of the show? Layout and organization of a show can indicate whether or not the organizers know what they’re doing.

Talk to other exhibitors.

The easiest way to figure out if a show is successful is to talk to exhibitors. They have a front row seat to traffic at the show, and the show overall.

Overall experience?

The point of a trade show is to get leads, build relationships, gain brand recognition and, hopefully, do business. If none of those are happening, there is no point in wasting time or money by being there.