EXHIBITIONS WORK

The statistics around the effectiveness basically have not changed in decades. They have literally moved a percentage point up and down but overall they have stayed the same. 50% of visitors will buy something they see at a show within 6mths*

Some people disagree. They feel they’ve given it a fair go and despite their efforts, it didn’t give them the return they need to make it worth their while.

 

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SO, WHAT’S CHANGED?
IT’S THE AUDIENCE NOT THE EXHIBITION

The crux of the problem is the increase in noise. Our subconscious blocks out unwanted noise to prevent overwhelm. If we stopped to pay attention to every message we would go mad (and never get anything done). To get attention of any kind you have to have a very compelling argument, and keep repeating it.

 

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EVERYBODY IS TIME POOR

How many times have you committed to something but life just got in the way? The secret to getting cut through and turning a diary entry into an actual attendance is persuasion and multiple touch points from a variety of sources.

The days of spending 1-2 days visiting a trade show have long gone. People just don’t have the time. Instead, they do their research to find out who’s exhibiting and create a “must see” list to ensure they do not miss anybody. After targeting their “must see” stands they systematically go up and down the aisles looking for what’s new.

Visitors are walking by at 6km/hr looking left and right so the message has to grab the visitor’s attention. Do a test next time you are in a shopping centre and see if you can remember what was on display in a typical shop front while walking past. You have only seconds to make someone want to stop.

It used to be quite common to reward staff for good service with an exhibition outing. These days it usually only happens when a business is looking for a competitive edge or if there is a conference attached that includes required learning or CPD points.

29% of visitors to a trade show do not see reps. Ever. *

In some industries it could be aid that while visitor numbers have gone down, the quality has improved.

Exhibitions aren’t changing. The way we connect with our audience has.

Face-to-face is king and there is no substitute. No amount of phone calls, internet research or webinars can ever replace the connection one human makes with another human when they shake hands and build trust.

I’m not saying other methods don’t work. Just that exhibition’s are unique in that you can start new relationships while building on existing ones.

 

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DO THE MATH

Total cost of the show divided by the number of hours it’s open by the number of people in the stand. You will get a greater understanding of the cost of a chat. Arrange to meet after the show closes, or organise a social event etc.

85% of an exhibitor’s success is dependent upon the exhibit staff*

It’s less about selling and more about helping. In an attempt to be savvy, many people end up very transactional. Or they go the other way and spend far too much time talking to one person. We need to re-introduce the human factor.

To make sure you don’t miss opportunities it’s important to implement staff training specific to exhibitions. It goes deeper than don’t sit, don’t talk to each other, don’t eat or answer your phone/emails.

 

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IF YOU FAIL TO PLAN,

YOU PLAN TO FAIL

Set KPI’s and make everybody aware of them. Track them, break them down into individual goals and monitor your progress on an hourly basis so you can change your course if necessary.

In a post show wrap up we had with a dental client they said that:

of the 10 things you recommended we do, we only managed 2, but the KPI competition we set up for our staff was such a success we made an outstanding 250% return on investment!

If your exhibit team are going to operate effectively as humans on the stand, they need to focus on being real. Lead tracking systems that are overly complicated will take away from the overall visitor experience and make them feel like a “lead” rather than a human. There are a number of options available and picking the right one can make a big difference.

 

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IT PAYS TO ASK FOR THE ORDER

Your business is not “different”.

A client of ours recently wrote $7M directly on their stand and their biggest mistake was not having an A4 printer on the stand so we could print out sales contracts!