Category: EXHIBITING ARTICLE

Most organisations who exhibit need to address the issue of pre-event mailings and ‘phone calls. It is an essential part of the exhibiting process and can make a large impact upon the success of your attendance and more importantly, the attendance of your would be visitors. If you think about it, most exhibition organisers spend a significant chunk of their promotional budget on attracting visitors through the doors to their event. Without an effective visitor promotion campaign there would be no show – at least not for the second year. So it follows that you too should take a lesson from their books.

The difficulty facing most exhibitors is that the sales person from the organising company waxes lyrical about how fantastic their own visitor promotion campaign is going and how their pre-registered visitor numbers are already swollen. . . The hapless exhibitor thinks, “In that case, why should I bother to generate my own traffic. The work has been done for me.” That is the first assumption to squash. Organisers generally attract visitors – your job is to attract the right type of visitors for you. In line with your objectives for exhibiting in the first place, you need to identify whom you wish to see and then think about what they would consider to be a suitable invitation. In some cases it may be simply that – an ‘invitation’, in others the promise of some hospitality or a ‘secret’ to be revealed on the day. The particular case study I am going to outline was typical of circumstances faced by many exhibitors. Xibex are an IT consultancy whose main offering was a service rather than a product. They wanted to get to speak with small businesses that ran between 5 and 30 computers. They offered certain products like broadband, web hosting and suchlike, but most of their revenue would come from a subscription to their support service. They knew that if they could engage visitors for more than a few seconds, they would be able to arrange an appointment to visit and sell to them. They had tried a gimmick on their stand previously, but it made visitors smile and then walk away.

They bought in a thousand pounds worth of promotional goodies (mouse mats, pens, stress balls and so on) and spent just under seven hundred pounds designing their mail shot. They photographed their promotional goodies (£500 photography fee) against a white floor and produced a colour photo, which was then enlarged and overlaid with a regular jigsaw pattern. This became the template, which filled the back wall of their stand. A second copy was made and made into card and was cut out along the jigsaw marks. Their mail shot contained a letter inviting them to attend the show and enclosed a piece of the jigsaw. Whatever the jigsaw piece matched on the day would be their prize. There were 1200 pieces sent out in the post, one hundred and seventy eight were ‘redeemed’ on the stand. That’s a staggering 15% response. Moreover sixty appointments were made, fifty-two were kept and 31 new customers signed up for the subscription service.

Makes you think.

The show is finally over, you have provisionally held your space for next year’s event and you are now wondering how well it worked for you. There are a number of factors to consider when evaluating your success most of which should relate to your original objectives for attending in the first place. Review your objectives and establish how many new clients you made contact with, how many existing and how much business on the day? Then quantify and evaluate your leads; were they the right sort or value or from the target market? What about your physical presence; did you have enough space for all your staff? Were you swamped or could you manage with fewer stand personnel? What did your stand look like? Did you generate any press and media attention? Which parts of your pre-show promotion worked well and what was less successful? Can you maintain the PR momentum by reporting show successes or newsworthy items?

It is well worth asking your staff for their views and perceptions. How did they view the event? Did they think they were successful? What suggestions for improvements would they offer? Remember they will have most likely walked the floor and seen their competitors in action. Ask them what they think you could do next year to ensure they had an even better time? Were there any gimmicks or crowd stoppers that they saw? Could you do something creative and different for the next event? How well did your graphics convey your message? Did you have enough stock, materials and promotional giveaways?

It is also worth contacting the organiser and finding out whether the numbers were up or down on forecast. Was there an explanation for this and what will be the prediction for next year? It is by asking questions like these that you can ensure you continue getting the right return on your investment.

All too often stand staff see the opportunity at an exhibition as a method to ‘show and tell’. Sadly it is a fact that there will be nothing more persuasive that you can do than ‘ask and solve’. No matter how good you are at showing and telling, asking and solving will always work better with visitors. Sometimes you get an attempt at asking, such as, “Can I help you?” Well now, let me think. . . There are really only two answers to this, and the most common is ‘NO!’

It sounds obvious but if you do not think about questions to ask we tend to default to the ‘can I help’ version. Think up good opening lines (How are you enjoying the show?) or light hearted / cheeky ones (How’s the weather – I haven’t seen it for days! Or I’m gasping for a drink / fag and I can only do so with a client – do you fancy joining me?).

Give your team a refresher on Open and Closed questions so that they know why certain questions are better than others at starting a conversation. Open questions open up the conversation and are difficult to answer with a yes or no answer. These typically begin with Why, What, Who, When, Where and Why. Closed questions on the other hand, close the conversation and are most commonly answered with a yes or a no. These typically begin with a verb – Are, Do, Can, Is, Should, Could, Would etc. Closed questions are effective for confirming understanding and gaining commitment and they are very useful to signal that the conversation is at an end and it is time to go.

Reinforce these with proper body language and you are well on your way to making a difference.

Before you focus on your stand behaviour over the days of the show, spend a few moments considering two FAQs. Should we wear a uniform? Are gimmicks a good idea? Regarding a uniform, it is important that the visitor can readily and easily identify that you work on the stand. All in dark suits or all in sweatshirts is fine, but try to avoid inconsistency. The rationale is quite clear. Have you ever been in the position where you are in a shop looking for a particular product range and unable to find it? Having scoured all the obvious locations you look around in desperation and ask an assistant whether they still carry the range you are after. The ‘assistant’ winces as they are a fellow shopper that you have mistaken as an assistant and explains that they don’t work there. You follow this up with one of your own, apologising for thinking that they worked there! Neither of you sure who is the most embarrassed. The same can be said for stand staff. If a visitor is unsure whether you work on the stand or you are a visitor yourself, rather than put themselves in that position, they will often walk away. Wearing a visible name badge also helps this ‘uniform’.

In terms of the gimmick and how well they work, I think we need to understand what we are trying to achieve in the first place. If you have a business card draw for the chance to win a bottle of champagne, then you need to recognise that it is not a great way of generating leads. It is however a rather good way of establishing which visitors like champagne! Think about what you hope your gimmick to achieve then test it. At a recent event I deposited approximately six business cards on a rival stand, not because I was a prospect or was ever going to be. They were swapping business cards for crème eggs, and I am rather partial to those!

What would you rather have, a dirty weekend or an expensive piece of paper? When you put it like that it’s pretty obvious isn’t it? Most people do not buy what something is (i.e. an air ticket) rather they buy what the thing will do for them (dirty weekend and all that goes with it!)

The distinction is between what people refer to as ‘features’ and a ‘benefits’. A feature is a fact – something that is true about your product or service. A benefit is what that feature does for you the customer. When a visitor walks around a show, they are tuned in to what the exhibiting companies can do for them rather than what they do. The point to realise is that people do not buy features; they buy benefits.
If a visitor were to walk past your stand at the next show you attend, what will be their perception? Will they recognise what you can do for them or will they simply get an idea of what you do? One is more alluring than the other. A quick test is to see whether you can ask “so what?” following your statement. For example, ‘this computer has a Xenon IP6 Processor inside’. “So what?” Well that means it is very fast and can save you time. Aha! At last, the benefit (saving time).

So before you spend a not inconsiderable amount of time and money on three-dimensional re-useable environmentally friendly graphics, think about the message you are trying to convey with them. If you are displaying features it won’t do much for your visitor. Benefits on the other hand, will have them salivating at the prospect of nirvana on a beach, with a drink, in the sun, with a yoghurt pot, traffic warden’s uniform and a whip. . .

Do you really understand why visitors at a show buy from you? Or what you can do to seduce them and encourage them to spend with you? The key is to understand why people buy and make it easy for them to do so. There are three main buying motives – Profit, Prestige and Fear.

There is a fourth buying motive, which is comfort. Profit buyers will buy because it is a bargain, it will save money or time and represents good value for money. However, they will need to be convinced that they cannot easily source the same or similar product for less elsewhere and if they are getting a ‘deal’ all the better. Prestige buyers are after something special –the best, top of the range, exclusive and price is often at the bottom of their list. They are concerned about image, reputation and being made to feel special. The final group, the so-called fear buyers, rarely have a positive reason for buying. They actually do not want to buy. They buy often under duress or just in case. An example would be something like an insurance policy. You do not wake in the morning whooping with delight at the prospect of arranging insurance. Nor do you buy because it is a cheap policy. You do not buy because some prestigious merchant bank underwrites it. The main reason for buying the policy is not because you want it, but because of the security / safety aspect. Just in case and so forth.

Analyse your products and services and identify which buyer type(s) you appeal to most. By addressing these buying motives you can attract or repel the types of buyers you need with your proposition.

Using the FLY-BY Test involves pretending you were an imaginary visitor walking past your stand. In the few seconds it takes to walk past the stand, would you be able to instantly recall who was exhibiting and what was on show? If you use this as your starting point you can then create everything else around it. Considerations may be:

Venue Design Sponsorship Objectives
Budget Size Visitor
Preferences Theme
Demonstrations Ambience Location Type of Stand

Whether you opt for a space only stand (whereby you design a stand to fit the space) or a shell-scheme (fascia boards and walls provided in the price) many factors you need to consider remain similar.

In terms of design, for example, you can classify key areas into three:

MECHANICS VISUAL APPEAL VISITOR INTERACTION
Height, Width Graphics, Visuals Reception Areas
Storage, Housekeeping Staff Uniforms Seating
Lighting, Power Furniture, Equipment Data Capture
Flooring Floral Displays Entertainment

In terms of the venue, you may need to check available light, access and pillar location, and the amount of overhead space available as well. You may have needs governed by weight restrictions, power or water needs, or your immediate surroundings (neighbours, bars, visitor auditorium etc). The more information you have before you start planning your stand, the less waste and better impact you can create. You do not exhibit in a vacuum – you must consider location.

If you feel you need a better presence but are restricted by physical limitations, examine sponsorship opportunities. Everything from carpet tiles to toilet paper can be embellished with your message. Banners, ‘YOU ARE HERE’ boards, carrier bags, buses and walkways and reception desks are just a few opportunities than can be made to work for you – and this is before any catalogue entries or advertising are used. If it moves (or if it doesn’t) you can usually sponsor it!

Any good sex guide will outline and stress the importance of foreplay as a precursor to great sex. The message is simple – if you expect great sex, you need good foreplay. I repeat – if you expect a great show, you need good pre-show promotion. Whilst different organisers participate in different activities, there is a plethora of activities you can get involved with to maximise your results.

A review of your exhibitor manual will normally highlight opportunities available for your particular show, and is normally a good starting point. Show Guides, Show Catalogues and Show Preview Guides should all carry your news and company information. In the majority of instances these are non-chargeable and a good way to get your name out in advance of the show. Ask for invitations which you can sometimes overprint with your logo and post some, give some to your sales team / agents / distributors and keep more in your reception area. VIP tickets are often a valuable way to entice more visitors to your stand. In terms of advertising, find out the schedule (discounts) and titles the organisers are using – dovetail any advertising in the issues where they are running previews / features on the show. Use flashes and banners across you ad – “See us on stand no: 666”. Be creative – why not amend your franking machine with the same info?

Do the organisers use a PR agency – use their services and pick their professional brains (and contacts). Get a press list of contacts and deadlines. If you have a company newsletter, milk the opportunity. Do mail shots and e-shots to key clients, existing, potential and past customers. Remember also the power of the Internet and make sure you have information on your website and a hyperlink from the show site to yours.

Now you’re getting the hang of it. . .

Towards the tail end of last year I faced one of the most unusual situations to date. We were running a Client Facing Workshop to assist their reception staff deal with the general public. The organisation was a well known racecourse and the difficulty encountered revolved around how best to deal with particularly drunk and abusive / aggressive members of the public. And you thought your job was challenging!
This situation made me realise that in business most clients and prospects behave in a fairly predictable way. It would be a truism to predict that in a given situation, subject to certain stimuli, you would be 60-80 percent sure of the outcome. With a drunk this ability to predict drops through the floor. It struck me how simple selling was by comparison. Then you improve the odds ever more by selling ‘in the event industry’ where the variables are reduced still further so the outcome should be even more predictable.

Let me explain further.  With us, the comforting thing to remember is that our clients will buy from us for one of three main reasons – and only three reasons.
Sure their motives may overlap, but nonetheless it makes life simple. The decision to exhibit, attend or sponsor an event is based upon (1) Profit, (2) Prestige and / or (3) Fear.  A profit buyer is calculating return on investment, cost per thousand and other metrics. They will see who attends, their likely budget, the depth of their pockets and the cost of attending. A positive sum will result in attendance and that’s about it in terms of the science. Reasons for not attending will include a better deal elsewhere, too expensive, can’t afford it, some other marketing medium cited as more cost-effective, someone doing a ‘deal’ or just about any cost / budget related issue. Prestige buyers on the other hand are more concerned with image, kudos and reputation. Whilst the recession has made them keep an eye on the fiscal side, their true interest lies in the best position / location, one-upmanship in terms of their competitors, your visitor profile, your media partners and the overall reputation of your event versus that of a rival event. Their reasons for not attending will include the wrong image, that they get all their business from recommendations, that everyone knows them (and that they know all their own customers anyway), or a failure to make them feel special. They feel awkward discussing money and consider it to be slightly vulgar but concede to their FD that they need to be seen to be trying. Fear buyers finally are a different kettle of fish. They are governed by risk. They do not actually want to participate in your event but may be concerned by the risk of missing out. They are so terrified of making the wrong decision that rather than risk that they would rather not make a decision at all. They will be concerned with numbers, quality, location, the ground opening up and the sky crashing down on their heads! They need reassurance and guidance and seek proof, something tested and something safe. They are also susceptible to peer-pressure in that if most of their competitors are on your floor plan it will carry considerable weight.

So there it is – to quote an infamous meerkat, “Simple”!

This month I thought I would share some thoughts and a couple of tips for those of us who exhibit at an ‘outdoor’ venue – or at a venue where they also use a part of the grounds for exhibits. Having attended many as a visitor I have a few hints which seem to apply whether it is a trade or consumer event. At the risk of stating the obvious (or unless you exhibit in Dubai) remember where we are – rain is likely if not a necessary part of the visitor experience! Even if the organisers arrange walkways (a la Hampton Court Flower Show or SED Rockingham) it is likely that mud will also be a factor. Not that this should concern you as an exhibitor, but think of it from a visitors’ point of view. I was aware of ‘loitering’ and hovering around a couple of stands where I would have interacted aside from the fact I did not want to be responsible for depositing the contents of my muddy boots onto their pristine stand floor. As a result I satisfied myself by walking around but never venturing directly onto their stand whilst enjoying the drizzle and lusting after the warm shelter that I was observing. Most offices and shop premises have coir matting or the equivalent so all fears can be wiped on the threshold. For those of you lucky enough to attend events in warmer climes, sand is less of a problem, although a fan and something cooling to drink would no doubt always be appreciated by visitors.
Another area that is possibly more important is that of the ‘fly-by’ test. The impression visitors get as they wander past glancing occasionally in your direction. If you have a large quantity of graphics do make sure they are suitable for a larger scale and often brighter location. Graphics designed for indoors with controlled lighting do not fare well once transplanted outside. The biggest benefit especially with island sites is that you can arrange your wares all the way around your stand to catch the interest of passing visitors from each compass point. Have more ‘curious’ items or more intriguing items around the outside it will encourage foraging toward the inner sanctum. It will also be easier for stand staff to spot facial expressions as interest levels are peaked in the visitor and assist with the interaction process. It also works well to have foliage arranged at the edges of your stand – it tricks the eye into blurring the divide between outside and in so more visitors should cross this fuzzy threshold.
My final tip concerns lighting. Rather than ordering the ‘standard’ package of two spots or two plus a fluorescent, can I suggest you have lighting arranged so you can increase or decrease levels of brightness as the outside conditions dictate? By controlling lumens on your stand you will always be welcoming to the visitor and not too bright one moment or plunged in darkness the next.