How To: 22 Exhibitor Trade-Show Tips

mike lewis

• October 02 2009
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• 5 comments

The mantra of doing more with less was definitely evident at this fall’s trade-shows. And while budget cuts are one way to plan for this winter’s upcoming round of shows, perhaps a better way of gearing up is examining what you are going to do more than what you’re going to cut out. Jason Calacanis, founder of Silicon Alley Reporter and mahalo.com, was recently featured in Business Week breaking down points about getting the most out of a trade-show booth. For an in-depth look at the tips check out the full article. While some of the tips are duhs, and some are a bit hokey, there are some gems in there and great examples.

Here are the highlights of how to plan for your next show:

1. Define your goal

2. Pick the right event

3. Develop a strategy and time line

4. Budget properly

5. Run your budget against your key metrics

6. Who should work your booth

7. Getting people into your booth

8. How to demo your product

9. Do assume the Internet will be down

10. Do offer swag

11. Do have a raffle

12. Have a fascinating business card

13. Wear a professional made name tag

14. Have appropriate signage

15. Don’t hire booth babes or strippers

16. Ask the conference producers for a discounted “introductory rate”

17. Have a big dish of candy next to your computers

18. Have three times the number of staff for your booth as you need at one time

19. Have your staff circulate through the show giving out swag, candy, or party invites (if allowed)

20. Dress your staff in the company color scheme and with the company’s logo on their front and back

21. Consider having a game of chance (spin the wheel, blackjack, etc.) at your booth

21. Hold a post-conference recap with your team to evaluate how you did

22. Hold a post-conference recap with the conference producers and tell them your pros and con