To the Staff: "What can YOU do to ensure success?"

If your company has an upcoming trade show, what 3 things can you do to help assure its success?

I’m not talking to the Marketing gurus, those folks who spout brand equity objectives, I’m not talking to the Executives, strutting around the show to see how much bigger their (ahem) booth is than everyone else’s. I’m not even talking to the Trade Show Manager, the poor schmuck who schleps everything to and from the show, working like a dog, and getting paid about the same wages.

I’m talking to Joe Worker, Blue-Collar Bill, Sally Sales … really anybody selected to attend a trade show on behalf of their organization.

First of all, did you realize that your company’s success relies largely on what you do? It’s not the exhibit, the fancy multi-media demo, the stress balls, or any other swag your company brings to the show. The success of this endeavor, and the subsequent business created in the weeks and months following the show …. Is largely up to you to create.

I know, I know.

A lot of you are saying, “Bob, you’re full of crap.”

As evidence, I point to societal decline of the effectiveness of advertising in general. Who can doubt that since the advent of the Internet and the Social Media explosion, it’s much more difficult to craft and maintain a brand image through traditional means? If you don’t believe me, just ask the Penn State Football Program. No doubt their recruiting efforts will face lots more challenges this year than last.

The success of brands today, depends greatly on the ability of their brand ambassadors, their people, to build long term trusting relationships with their customers and prospects (see Penn State above), that fosters a loyalty and re-purchase.

As an ambassador of your organization, what can you do to assure your experience at the show adds to your brand’s strength, rather than destroying a lifetime of work through careless actions (see Penn State, again).

Three Simple Things

1.    Prepare Pre-Show
2.  Act Decisively At-Show
3.  Follow up Completely Post-Show

Prepare  Pre-Show

Preparing pre-show goes a little beyond booking your flights and hotel room. Let me suggest a method you can use to help you focus on creating great results.

I’d suggest you conduct the following exercise. Make a list of the five most important people you will need to see at the upcoming show to assure that your time has been productive. Shows are all about face-to-face contact. So ask yourself, “Who do I need to see?” Be specific. Name names. If you need help identifying these folks, speak with your Supervisor.

Once you have your “Top 5” list, go through it one-by-one, and ask, “What will I say to him/her if I find them?” This will help you distill your company’s plethora of messages down to one or two key things. Choose carefully. Make sure your message will be relevant to their needs.

Now ask yourself, “What else do I need to pull this off?”. You may require private, quiet time. You may need other people present. You might need specific samples or demo material. Whatever it may be, get them ready, so that this truly important message, to this truly important contact, can be delivered at full impact.

You now have a plan. If you’re able to get these five things done, it will have a great positive impact on your company’s direction. And best of all, you’re prepared for each important encounter.

Act Decisively At-Show

Not every encounter at the show will result in a qualified lead. Usually less than 30% of the overall attendance at a show will have any interest at all in what you selling. You need to adopt the mindset of a baseball hitter, who, while failing 7 out of 10 times, sits at the top of his profession.

It’s a little like finding needles in the haystack. You can expect to sift through lots of waste to find a single diamond in the rough.

However, this sifting process must take place quickly. That’s because the trade show is a very time-rationed environment. You need to get down to brass tacks and not waste time with dis-qualified visitors. Similarly, you need to spend quality time with your best prospects, to identify them, find out their issues, and set up future progress toward closing the sale.

Follow this simple 3 step process to do this with each visitor you encounter.

Ask these questions, in this order:

1. “What does your company do?”
2.  “What’s your role?”
3. “What are you working on now?”

After question #1, you’ll know whether there is any potential to do business. If not, dismiss the visitor politely, explaining why there’s no potential for further discussion.

After question #2, you’ll know if you got the right person. If not, ask for a referral and again politely dismiss.

After question #3, you‘ll know why they’ve come to the show.

If they pass all 3 questions, you’ve found somebody who works for the right kind of company, in the right job, with projects you can address. This is someone to spend time with. Deliver your message and take notes about their situation.

Be sure each of these conversations ends with a commitment for some type of action in the future, both by you and them. You must doggedly record these promises.  This will be the basis of future action, and represents the true value you’ll get from the show.

Follow Up Completely Post Show

“Everybody wants to design the exhibit. Nobody wants to follow the leads”.

It’s been an ongoing statistic for the past ten years that 75% of trade show leads are never followed up.

This is due to two factors: (1) taking too many bad leads; (2) not being committed to post-show follow up.

If you follow the 3-steps outlined earlier, you’ll eliminate or greatly reduce problem #1, problem #2 is simply a matter of will and committed resources.

However, if you’re looking for an edge to have over your competition – here it is.

You just had a detailed conversation with a targeted prospect who needs the solutions you provide. Yet once he returns from the show, chances are the best he’ll get, is a “form letter” response saying “thanks for stopping by our booth, be sure to visit our web site for more information”.  Guess what? He already did that. Don’t insult his intelligence or make him start the relationship over by treating him like a “window shopper”.

Individually follow up with each key contact (if you did your job well at the show, there won’t be an overwhelming number of them) with exactly and precisely the information they need/want. Don’t bother with en masse follow up. Personalize it. Individualize it. This will build trust, memorability, and move the prospect forward along the path toward purchase.

If all you needed was a list of contacts for cold calls, you could have obtained it without the trouble and expense of exhibiting.

Summary

Three Simple Things

1.  Prepare Pre-Show
2. Act Decisively At-Show
3. Follow up Completely Post-Show

Do these things, regardless of your position or role in your company, and you will add to your company’s trade show return on investment, and you’ll see that return immediately at your very next show.

Trade Show Bob

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Bob's Best Bites

Apple pie baked in a paper bag? Are you nuts? Doesn't it catch on fire? Actually -- no, it doesn't. In fact, it's the best apple pie I've ever had (sorry, Mom). You can get it at The Elegant Farmer in Mukwanago, WI, about 25 miles southwest of Milwaukee just off I-43. My favorite is the Caramel Apple Pie, followed closely by the Summer Berry Apple Pie. Followed closely by their other varieties. Each and every pie is actually baked inside a brown paper bag, which makes the crust unbelievably good. Somehow, the paper bag allows it to retain it's flakiness without drying out (I'm sure some of my Foodie friends could explain the process). When you couple this with a mountain of perfectly flavored and cooked fruit inside -- sorry, I had to stop and wipe the drool off my keyboard -- well, you get the idea.

If you're ever in the area, it's worth a stop. However, your mother may never forgive you.
What's the best pie you've ever had?

Trade Show Bob

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The Do's and Don'ts of Pop Up Booths

Today's blog entry was written and submitted by Kristen Olsson of Nomadic Display. Kristen covers the important "Do's" and "Don'ts" to follow when selecting and designing your next pop-up display.

As pop up displays continue to defy their very name and nature with custom enhancements such as: wide screen monitors, cascading product shelves, lockable storage units and semi private meeting areas, your presentation options seem to go on for miles. Although pop ups can get you the visual "Oomph" you need, treatment of visual elements in a pop up display are somewhat different than a full blown custom modular. So, follow our show smart tips for having an outSTANDing pop up display. 

Know your real estate 
With a pop up display you're working with significantly less visual real estate to communicate your brand and services than in a full blown custom modular.  You have to be more selective of the messaging that you are using and maximize the little space that you have. 

Keep it clean 
Since you're working with smaller amounts of hardware and graphics than a custom modular unit, maintaining your presentation is essential to your audience's perception of your brand. Wrinkled or dingy trade show display graphics will show and tell your brand in a bad light. So, Show Smart and switch out your trade show booth graphics from show to show so that it gives you ample time to perform any repairs or maintenance. Make sure to always bring a hand held steamer and cleaning supplies for un expected hiccups during set up. 

Watch For Wordiness 
Although communicating your value proposition is important to letting prospects know what services/products your company provides, anything that takes longer than 3 seconds to read is simply TOO long.  You want to be able to captivate your audience in 2-3 seconds using one seamless power packed presentation. Make sure that your messaging has corresponding graphics to ensure your pop up isn't too copy heavy. 

Stay Solid 
While stylistically, transparent typeface paired with bold print can add dimension to your messaging and graphics, it's challenging to see from a far and can overwhelm your viewers. A general rule of thumb taken straight from our free white paper, Graphics that Work, is that you should place your text on a contrasting back ground that's not too busy. 

Picture perfect 
In the world of exhibit design, less is more. Cluttering up your pop up with unnecessary imagery that you think will draw attendees to your trade show booth, will do the exact opposite, and send prospects straight to your competitors. 

Be Stand Offish 
Actually, stand-off trade show graphics can give your pop up display just the added lift and dimension that it needs. You can also switch the order of the stand-off graphics from show to show or even replace them with different stand-offs to accommodate your campaigns. 

Download the Nomadic Display corporate brochure today to see how they can make your display picture perfect. 


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Bob's Best Bites
Inside Houston's "Loop", just off the Katy Freeway at Shepherd, is a joint named Dirty's. there you will find a truly Texas-sized version of the classic southwestern staple -- the chicken fried steak. White gravy, mashed potatoes and corn round the traditional accompaniments to this dish, but at Dirty's, it's hard to notice them. The chicken fried steak is about the same size as a saddle, and drapes over all the edges of the platter at the same time. Seriously, it's enough to feed 4 normal people, or your average sized Texas A&M linebacker. The steak is a beautiful combination of ecstasy and greasiness, and gave me a meat hangover that lasted three days. you combine this absolute winner with big screen TV's, and a true Texas sports-bar atmosphere, and your football watching experience will never be the same. Next time you're in Houston, and feeling a little Dirty, give Dirty's a try. Yee-haw.


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Sometimes, You Must Think Sideways

We all get stuck in ruts sometimes. Doing the same things, the same way.

It worked last year.
This is how it's done.
We've always done it THIS way.

It's ingrained for us to think like this. When we find a "right answer", we like to stick with it. That's how were trained in school growing up. That's how we either earned good grades and approval/rewards, or got labeled as a "troublemaker" or a "wise guy".

But in today's exhibiting world, it's important to be different. We need to be memorable and stand out from the crowd. What drives approval and reward today is much different than when we were in school.

Finding a second and third right answer is imperative. We can't be content with our first right answer. But finding additional answers can be even tough, unless we train ourselves to be life observers and are able to make "sideways leaps" to find creative new solutions and ideas.

This becomes more imperative the more mature your industry is. Companies tend to settle into methods and metaphors that have worked in the past, and in time there is little distinction in the way things are done. Processes and methods are just accepted and not questioned -- that's just how it's done.

This is exactly the problem we faced a few years back at Kerry Ingredients. At food industry shows, you sample food --- by eating it. You might think, "wow, that's cool & different", but when everyone does it, there's nothing different about it. It's a little like walking through a large cocktail party, and every 10 feet there's another waiter with a tray of canapes (on toothpicks, of course) for you to taste. The waiter is trained to tell you why his canapes are better than everyone else's. After a while you become numb to whatever benefit is presented.

Our little MarCom group was discussing this dilemma one day at the airport, while waiting for our bags. We had just completed another lackluster show. Though our products were outstanding (of course), our exhibit well placed & designed, our people trained, and success predicted by our horoscopes -- it just didn't happen.
Our bags finally came, and we went home charged with finding a new way to stand out from the crowd.

Sometime that week, somebody saw a re-run of  "I Love Lucy" where Lucy & Ethel work in the chocolate factory, and we had a few laughs at work remembering it. We also had to make a visit to one of production facilities and saw a similar process (though not nearly as funny) in actual operation.

The "assembly line" is a very common and familiar process in food manufacturing. Then, somebody remembered our baggage claim experience ...

It wasn't long until our "sideways thinking" put A + B + C together, and we made a leap to something totally new.

Why not apply this familiar experience to our trade show products?
Could our products be presented in a new way using a baggage claim carousel?
Would this be enough to jolt attendees out their numbness and create memorability?

Here was our solution ...

Our conveyor belt slowly carried our samples from our preparation area behind the wall to our visitors in front. Samples were interspersed with short product message cards, and kept fresh by "Lucy & Ethel" in back. Fortunately, our conveyor belt never got up to "Lucy" speed.

This proved to be a huge hit with attendees, who gathered around our baggage claim to see what would come out next. They were invited to sample our products, which were explained by our exhibit staff, who had no trouble engaging people in conversation.

The result: a little bit of sideways thinking gave us the unique serving approach we needed to draw attention to ourselves.

How have you used "sideways thinking" to create uniqueness and memorability for your products and/or your brand?

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Bob's Best Bites
Great BBQ is a hotly debated subject all over the country. Whether it should be beef or pork, dry rubbed or slathered in sauce -- it's a matter of personal taste and local civic pride. Austin, TX is no exception. So here's my take on just one place that I like (I'm sure each of you has your own favorite - so please tell me about them, so I can try them out, too).

Rudy's looks like a 7-11, gas pumps and all. But the BBQ is the real deal. Started in Leon Springs, TX, Rudy's now has locations extending as far west as West Texas (otherwise known as Albuquerque, NM). What makes Rudy's unique is how they serve the BBQ (see how this fits with the blog subject -- cool huh?).
You order everything by weight - so you get exactly whatever your budget and appetite can afford. Brisket, turkey  pork, chicken, sausage, they've got it all. And be sure to let them know it's your first time when you visit. You get a little extra special treatment. I prefer the moist brisket, with lots of napkins.

Where do you go for your favorite BBQ -- or better yet -- what unique serving methods have you run across?

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Collaborative or Competitive?

What if you threw a party and nobody came?

Been there, done that. Then I learned one important principle.

I'll tell you about one epic failure as an example. Many years ago, when I was first working as the Trade Show Manager for Kerry Ingredients, we staged a piggy-back "party" event in Chicago to accompany an exhibit at a Snack Food Industry show.

We planned and executed all the logistics to perfection. We reserved the Bin 36 restaurant on the near North Side, and planned to have a paired wine and food tasting event where our products (Seasonings, in this case) would be incorporated into the hors d'oeuvres to be served. We had our sales team identify their top prospects, scrubbed the show attendee list and came up with a highly qualified list of 150 targets and 25 media people (trade publication writers and editors). We expected a crowd of 60-80 to show up for the free upscale paired wine and tapas-like dinner event. Our total attendance --- 6 people, all editors.


Our own people outnumbered them by about 4 to 1.


As we scratched our heads, and reviewed our failure, it was tough to figure out where we went wrong. But, boy, did we go wrong. We didn't just have a meager attendance, we created a ghost town. no prospects whatsoever.


So, being the troopers we had to be, we went on with the show. As it progressed, we took notice of how our Sales team was interacting with their prospects and clients. They were very careful not to broadcast too many of their most innovative ideas, preferring instead to share these in a more intimate, one-on-one setting.


That's when it became clear. Our customer base was highly competitive with each other. They did not typically share ideas among themselves. They were definitely not collaborative.


This was why our party idea fell so flat. Our prospects really didn't want to hang around with each other, or look across the room to see their #1 competitor having a good time with our company reps. They preferred to think that we were giving our very best service and innovation just to them -- which would create an edge for them over their competitors.


So here's something to consider when planning "piggy-back" events -- are your prospects collaborative or competitive? 


Here's some collaborative examples:

• Health care -- health care providers tend to be extremely collaborative, sharing their knowledge to promote their standing inside their communities. There is tremendous status created when new treatment procedures are "published" and acknowledged by their peers. My party would have worked great if we'd invited a bunch of doctors.
• Public safety, law enforcement -- very collaborative for many of the same reasons.
• Geographically limited businesses, territorial networks, government entities -- also are very collaborative because of the limited reach of their services and offerings.
• Short-lived business entities -- like those found supporting the entertainment industry, are also collaborative. These companies come and go as projects emerge and then die quickly - forcing people to shift allegiances rapidly, and develop extensive networks.
• Lone Rangers -- a single person filling a unique job function within a much larger company. This is exactly what we see at the EXHIBITOR Show each year.

On the competitive side:

• Mature industries -- like food manufacturing, where building business is all about stealing market share from each other.
• Emerging technologies - where companies are very protective of their intellectual property, and fearful of being "copied" right out of business.
• Any industry where "keeping a few secrets" is important to the success of a given company.

So, if your prospects are mainly competitive, focus on the one-on-one activities. If you've got a collaborative bunch, then party on, dude!! And let's hope your party is better attended than mine was.

If you've got other examples of competitive/collaborative relationships, please list them in the comments below.

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Bob's Best Bites

Whenever I'm in Anaheim for a show, I always try to make it out to Huntington Beach for a meal at Duke's. It's located right on the ocean at the Huntington Beach Pier, and features fresh seafood prepared and served Hawaiian style. Besides the unbelievable setting (which is hard to beat), what makes Duke's unique is how they offer their menu choices. You pair up a choice of seafood with a preparation method -- such as mahi mahi served parmesan and herb crusted, or firecracker, or baked "Duke style" in lemon garlic and basil. Each dish is prepared beautifully and tastes magnificent. Each species offered is only offered according to its season and sustainability, and their island ambiance and service is top notch. Then some "Hula Pie", followed by a stroll along the pier. It's the perfect way to breathe in the fresh sea air and do some interesting people watching.

When you're in Anaheim, where do you like to go?

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Simple & Organized

I love it when things are simple. I love it when peripheral tasks don't get in the way of what's most important & vital to our success.

In the world of trade shows, we can really muck things up. We write confusing booth duty schedules nobody follows anyway. We develop elaborate lead capture systems tied to our CRM's. We over-adjust our messages until both our staff and visitors are confused. We succumb to the chaos around us at the show, working ourselves to death and requiring lengthy therapy to recover.

But I really love it when people figure out how to keep things simple and organized. They understand that the focus of everything we develop, should facilitate face-to-face quality communication with our customers and prospects.

I recently found two examples of people doing exactly this, coincidentally exhibiting nearly side-by-side at the recent IFT Food Expo in New Orleans.

First, I want to tell you about my friend, Stacy Vandenheuvel, of TIC Gums. The folks at TIC Gums are experts in food texturization, adding the elements of texture to foods to make them "feel" right when we eat them. Their texture capabilities can be applied to hundreds of different kinds of foods. However, individual attendees at the IFT Food Expo are usually working on only one or two key projects at any given time. Stacy's challenge is to quickly identify their interests and focus discussions in that area.

Below is a picture of the "tool" she uses to do this. It's a simple peg board (actually one of a series she uses in her exhibit). Each peg holds a different information card, focusing on one specific textural application. There are cards for jelly beans, licorice, granola bars, marshmallows, jams, etc.

The simple, yet clearly organized array allows her staff to select a card, and move quickly into the appropriate discussion, while subtly building awareness of all the company's other product lines. I'm sure there are many other "techno whiz-bang" methods for doing this, but her's is elegant, simple, effective, and it doesn't get in the way -- no distractions here.

Almost nest door to Stacy's exhibit, I found Becky Rademacher of International Dehydrated Foods, a company that makes, well, dehydrated food ingredients of all kinds (no explanation required, I hope). Here's Becky standing next to her simple solution to a problem that plagues many exhibitors.

Becky uses the back of the door to her storage closet as her internal communication hub. She has taped 15 plastic business card holders onto the door. She fills these with the business cards of her staff. When someone stops by looking to see someone specific --- who never seems to be in the booth at that time -- she has them write a brief note. She asks them to include their text or Twitter handle, email or cell phone on the note. She then places these in the appropriate card holder, turned sideways (you can can see examples in the photo). As staff come and go, they know right where to look for messages - and they replenish their business cards at the same time. Oh yeah, that's her booth schedule and important daily reminders attached to the clip bar below.

It's another simple, low-tech solution that keeps the details organized without creating a lot of work for anybody. I love this.

In both these examples, these two young ladies have successfully streamlined their exhibit operations. They've empowered their staff by removing obstacles to communication, and made their lives easier in the process.

What other great organizational tips do you have to share?

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Bob's Best Bites
In keeping with the theme of "simple", I offer you Moochie's of Salt Lake City, UT. Simply put, it's the best (and messiest) meatball sub I've ever had. It's simply meatballs, marinara, and provolone on french bread, but the homemade meatballs are juicy, huge and full of Italian flavor. This combination of juicy meatballs and messy marinara sauce make the Moochie's sub one of the most un-green sandwiches around. At least a tree's worth of napkins were required to finish my sandwich. Frankly, I should have followed my son-in-law's advice, and brought an extra shirt to change into after eating. Located at 232 East 800 South, in Salt Lake City, it's best not to visit Moochie's at lunch time -- it's too crowded. Go during the afternoon or for an early dinner. Preferably, schedule your visit so you don't have to return to work afterward -- or bring along a spare shirt.


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Unique & Appropriate

Unique & Appropriate. In my world of trade shows and exhibiting, this is a tough thing to achieve. I see many exhibits that can easily achieve half of this equation, but it's rare to find an exhibit that fulfills both parts.

It's easy to be appropriate. Simply follow the accepted "norms" of your given industry. You can see this demonstrated in almost any vertical industry trade show. Simply look around you and notice the recurring color palette, which goes something like this:

• Medical industry: royal blue, and white
• Financial services industry: stone, marble, granite (don't forget gold & silver)
• Natural & Organic Products: earth tone greens and browns - basically camouflage
• Manufacturing: stainless steel, grays and blues
• Entertainment: bold colors, bold lighting (think comic books)

Each of these schemes has grown out of the key drivers associated with their industry. For example, the medical industry values safety and purity, hence the widespread use of blue and white. If you want to "fit in" to any industry, simply copy these color schemes into your exhibit design.

It's also easy to be unique. Just do something crazy. Can you imagine a top Accounting Firm - with all the staff sporting satanic tattoos while wearing muscle shirts? --- ”watch how, when I flex my bicep, the numbers change from red to black!” (Thanks, Gwen, for that image). It would certainly be unique, and perhaps memorable, but hardly appropriate.

The difficult thing to create, is an exhibit that is both unique and appropriate.

I found a good example of an exhibitor whose graphics are doing exactly that. Recently at the IFT (Institute of Food Technologists) Food Expo 2011 in New Orleans, I had the chance to visit with Gwen Bargetzi, of Hilmar Ingredients, a dairy ingredients company from California.

Before I tell you about Gwen's exhibit, I need to tell you about the IFT Food Expo. The IFT is among the top 100 largest trade shows in the USA, and also among the 50 fastest growing. This despite being a show centered in a very mature industry (food manufacturing has been around almost as long as people have needed to eat). And, like other shows, it has a defining set of "norms" that manifests itself visually in two main ways: (1) beautiful food photography, and (2) healthy lifestyle photos. You can see examples of what I mean below:

Almost all the exhibitors in this show use either healthy beautiful food, healthy beautiful people (the result of eating the healthy beautiful food), or a combination of the two. After a while, it's gets very hard to distinguish one exhibitor from another.

That's what made Gwen's Hilmar Ingredients exhibit stand out. In designing her 10x30 exhibit, Gwen found a way to be BOTH unique AND appropriate.

Line illustration in bold colors (new graphics for 2011) provided a refreshing new take on Hilmar's communication. Is it some brand new, never-before-tried, flavor-of-the-month tactic? No. But it's different enough from most other exhibitors to make Gwen's exhibit memorable. Also, it appropriately conveys exactly how Hilmar fits into the picture. Using the simple line drawings, Hilmar exemplified a “concept” versus a finished “real picture” product, since they don't make finished beverages. Hilmar does supply many of the ingredients found in finished beverages, and they sell to beverage manufacturers. These simple, cartoon-like line drawings are totally appropriate to Hilmar's product positioning & benefits, totally appropriate to the Food Expo marketplace, yet completely unique in an interesting and refreshing way.

Take this challenge: If you can find that perfect middle ground that balances appropriateness and uniqueness, then you'll have as powerful an exhibit as Gwen Bargetzi's Hilmar Ingredients had at the IFT Food Expo.

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Bob's Best Bites

American Fork, UT (OK, Google it if you've never heard of it) is home to my all time favorite Mexican Restaurant, Mi Ranchito. In many ways, it's just your average run-of-the-mill Mexican restaurant, except for one thing -- their tacos. They are unquestionably my favorite tacos ever (except for my wife's, of course). The beef is roasted and pulled (a la pulled pork) to form the filling inside a raw corn tortilla shell. Then the whole thing is deep fried. This is one secret to making a perfect taco (Jack in the Box comes to mind also - but that's another post), deep fry it with the meat already inside. This lends a chewy strength to the tortilla, which rarely cracks while eating it. Then they add cheese, lettuce and tomato --- AND --- drum roll for the secret ingredient --- a little Italian salad dressing. I KNOW -- sounds disgusting, doesn't it? It's an amazing addition to a taco, and makes your whole mouth water while eating it. Unbelievable. 

What other unexpected pleasures have you found in your culinary experiences? Please share them here.

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10 things Every Rookie Should Know About Trade Shows (Part 2)

Well, it didn't take long for me to discover the source of these excellent points. Mike Thimmesch of Skyline Exhibits had blogged about them  here. They're still as relevant as when I first read them. I'm especially fond of point #6 -- so true.



6.  Everybody wants to help you pick the exhibit color. No one wants to help you track the leads.  When it comes to exhibit design, everyone has an opinion. And in the time leading up to the show, they will all clamor to offer their ideas, making it harder to get the booth built on time without rush charges. Yet after the show, you will have a harder time getting similar participation in tracking the leads from the show – ostensibly the reason you designed your exhibit in the first place. Remind your colleagues that if you can’t prove the results from this year’s show, you won’t be exhibiting at the show next year.


7.  The 10 minutes after the show closes is when most damage happens to your exhibit materials.  The show ends with a voice booming over the loudspeakers saying, “The show is closed, see you next year.” But to impatient booth staffers, it’s as if they had actually shouted, “Drivers, start your engines!” Booth staffers hurry to win the race to the taxi stand, hotel, bar, restaurant, or parking lot. And if you have a portable display that your booth staffers pack up, this is when they break it, by shoving it in its case as fast as they can. Close that expensive window of time by getting a more durable display, getting better packaging, or just by having a frank conversation with your staffers before the closing bell. Or, if you’re the one who wants to win the race, take a deep breath and slow down before you make a costly mistake.

8.  Drayage is the most expensive way to move your exhibit the shortest distance.  As a trade show rookie, one of the biggest surprises is that you have to pay to have your exhibit moved from the shipping dock to your booth space. Even more shocking is just how much you’ll have to pay — about the same to move something across a convention center as it does to ship it across country. Drayage rates have risen by double-digit percentages in some of the last few years, probably because more exhibitors switched to lighter weight exhibits. To offset the lower weight of exhibit properties, drayage charges per pound have increased. If your exhibit is still made the old-fashioned way, it’s a double-whammy.

9.  It’s hard for booth staffers to take their very first lead at a trade show.  In our lives we go though various rites of passage: learning to ride a bike, going to your first day of school, getting a date to the prom. While all of these have been immortalized in film, no movie has yet to bring to the silver screen the epic tale of a first-time booth staffer engaging and writing up their first trade show lead. What would yours have been, a horror film? A comedy? A tragedy? Whatever kind of movie it would be, it would also be a drama, because you’re filled with nervous energy as you go out and ask a perfect stranger face to face if they’d like to do business with your company. Just remember that your booth visitors actually paid to visit the show, and many are shopping for solutions to their problems that your products can solve. Practice the process of engage, qualify, present, and close, and you’ll be more comfortable taking your first lead.

10.  Trade shows can be addictive.  With the hard work, long hours, and time away from home, some people can’t wait to return from their trade show. But for others, trade shows are a calling.  They get jazzed by the performance aspect, the blitz of direct client contact, and the relationships built before and during the show. They like the ability to create a successful marketing program in a medium built upon the value of face-to-face interactions. And that’s when trade shows really become addictive: when you master the medium and drive serious revenue to your company’s bottom line.


I'm sure there's many other things we all wished we knew when we started out. What are some of your favorite bits of wisdom we can pass along to those who will follow?


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Bob's Best Bites
The Lighthouse. That's what "El Faro" translates to. And frankly, it's best burrito I've ever had. Period. the original location is on Folsom St., between 19th & 20th St's., in San Francisco's Mission District. And it's still the very best. The Carne Asada Super Burrito is so massive it dwarfs your forearm. And inside is perfectly seasoned and roasted carne asada with just the right touch of guacamole added to enhance the rich smoky flavor. I've been coming here since the early sixties, because my Dad worked just a block away, and whenever we'd go into the city to meet him, we'd stop and get burritos from El Faro. Most of the side items you'd pay for at other burrito joints (sour cream, guacamole, etc. ) are already included in their offerings, so be sure to ask what's inside, and get exactly the stuff you want. el Faro is truly a lighthouse and beacon to burrito lovers the world over. Stop by and prove me wrong.


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10 things Every Trade Show Rookie Should Know (Part 1)

I'm not sure where I got this information, but I sure wish I had written it. I came across it in an old file from 2005, so I'm not sure of the real source. If any of you know who originally penned these, please let me know so I can give proper credit. I'm happy to present them here - Part 1 today, the rest of it later this week. Enjoy.


1.  You won’t succeed at trade shows if you just show up.  A trade show first-timer may think that because they’ve paid a couple of grand to rent a 10 x 10 space for a few days, they automatically will reap leads and sales from the show’s attendees. If only. Surprise: you’ve actually only paid for access to this great audience of buyers. Now you have to do your part - train your staffers, create a promotion that attracts qualified prospects, and design your display to entice the right visitors to your booth.


2.  Trade shows are not as glamorous as they looked from the outside.  To the uninitiated, this is what trade show marketing looks like from the outside: Flying around the country to sunny or metropolitan locations, staying in top-tier hotels and meals on the company dime, and access to top-level company execs. But seen from the inside, trade shows are not so glamorous. Trade shows themselves are very hard work with a lot of stressful moments before, during, and after exhibit hours. There are so many details to master, and so many vendors you are depending on. You can sweat more during exhibit set-up than a month of work outs. And travel gets old fast when you are repeatedly away from home and your family. 


3.  Inertia determined much of your company’s show schedule.  In the many years before you were handed the reins to your company’s trade show marketing, your company cobbled together quite a list of shows. But are they all still worth it?  Were some trade shows chosen because your target market was there, or because your competitors were? Has your client base evolved away from the demographics of some of the shows you exhibit at? Have some shows eroded their attendee base by not reinvesting in strong marketing and educational content? Are there new vertical markets that you have yet to find good shows to market to? It’s up to you to break the inertia — and create some new momentum.


4.  Trade show labor is way more expensive than you think, and sometimes it’s even worth it.  It’s a eye-opener to find out how much you will pay someone else to set up your booth, hook up your lights, or rig that hanging sign, especially if it’s on a weekend, or God forbid, on a Sunday. The union rules in most venues require that you pay labor a wage that adds up in a hurry. You can minimize labor costs by getting easier to set up displays, trying to schedule your set up for straight-time labor, and by lining up dependable contractors


5.  You will blow your trade show budget if you don’t plan well.  You can never plan too far ahead, especially for overseas shows. Your budget was likely set with the best-case scenario for your trade show expenses, without room to pay for late fees and rush charges. That’s powerful incentive to quickly master show planning. Good trade show planning software will pay for itself within one or two shows.


It never hurts, even for trade show veterans, to review and ponder this information every once in a while.


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Bob's Best Bites
"What'll ya have?" - It's more of a command than a question. Nevertheless, that's how you're welcomed to the Varsity Drive In, a huge throw-back hot dog stand in downtown Atlanta, not far from the campus of Georgia Tech. The place takes up an entire city block and even has its own double deck parking garage. Hot dogs and chili dogs are the order of the day, fixed in a myriad of ways. Be sure to order the fresh cut fries, which are every bit as good as those served by the "Five Guys" chain. Then, wash it all down with a Frosted Orange, a drink sure to give you at least one brain freeze, as you slurp down memories of childhood Creamsicles.


The Varsity is a one-of-a-kind experience, so be sure to soak it all in --- just be ready when they ask "What'll ya have?" or you might be asked to step out of line and wait until you're really ready to order.


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Three "Myths" about Trade Show Success

The factors that are most critical to your success as an exhibitor are not always what many folks spend a lot of their time worrying about. Contrary to popular belief, these three "myths" just aren’t that important to your success … 

1. Overall show attendance – Of course, show attendance is declining. It’s been declining since 9/11, and declines have intensified since the onset of the recession. But look more closely. In the B2B world, the declines are the result of the shrinking size of the entourage companies send. The actual number of companies who send at least one buying rep to walk a show is actually increasing. Instead of sending a team of 10, companies now send 2 or 3. But guess what, these 2 or 3 must uncover the same amount of solutions as 10 did previously. They’re focused, they’re buying, and they’re at your show. Will you be able to find them? Instead of worrying about the overall attendance at a show, focus on understanding the details about the potential audience that is a perfect match for your products/services.
2. Your booth location on the floor – Coupled with trend above, buyers are now very organized when they hit the exhibit floor. They no longer wander around like kids at a carnival. Having an exhibit in the most prominent spot in the exhibit hall might make your Executives feel important, but it really doesn't contribute all that much to your show's success. Remember. most buyers now attend shows with pre-set agendas of companies who they need to see. As long as you’re on that list, they’ll find you. The key is -- get on their list. And do it before they arrive at the show. A successful trade show campaign needs to incorporate integrated elements of pre-show marketing to make sure you get on your key buyers' agendas.
3. A booth must be busy to be successful – This is only true if your key prospects represent the majority of overall attendees at a given show. Busy booths tire out your staff, but, this "busy-ness" will make them feel successful, “we’re tired, therefore we had a good show”. However, at most shows, your key buyers will likely be only a tiny percentage of the overall attendance. Did you see all of those key buyers, and convey your brand messages fully and completely to these VIP’s? Did you walk away from the show with enough actionable results to support your overall business goals?

What other myths and legends have you come across in our industry that people still cling to?

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Bob's Best Bites

In my home town of San Bruno, California (just South of San Francisco - near the airport), is the pizza place I grew up with, Toto's Pizzeria. To this day, it remains my all-time favorite pizza. This could be due to my nostalgic memories of watching their Pizza-Magicians hand toss the sourdough crusts while yelling at each other and cursing in Italian, or it could be the incredible textures and flavors or the New York style pizzas they make. Either way, it's pure heaven.

The pizza's at Toto's are traditional, no New Age ingredients. The mozzarella cheese is sliced thin, not shredded, the Italian sausage is raw, and stored in bulk. The mushrooms are fresh, and sliced on site. Ingredients are added to each pizza without the use of a portioning scale. The sauce is ladled onto each pizza then spread with the back of the ladle. And they've been doing it the same way since 1932, nearly 80 years.

I have two co-favorite pizzas at Toto's, first - a simple plain cheese pizza. To truly appreciate and savor the nuances of the pizza maker's art, I think it's best not to clutter up the amazing flavor and textures of cheese/sauce/crust -- but only when they're executed to absolute perfection and balance. But, when I'm in the mood for something more, I always choose the sausage/salami/mushroom combination. Fresh mushrooms, juicy sausage perfectly seasoned, combined with Italian hard salami (a far superior pizza topping to pepperoni, in my opinion) make for a feast of unbounded joy.

If you're ever on the Peninsula, with a hankering for pizza, you could do a lot worse than Toto's. What's your favorite pizza place of all time --- and more importantly, why?

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Dynamic Demos: The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly

A couple weeks ago, I blogged about a great demo I loved, called "The Dissolve-A-Way Derby". If you haven't read about it yet, you can still access it here. Today I want to show you two other "activities" I've seen --- and continue to see --- at trade shows all over the place. They're not so good.

It seems so rare to come across a really great activity, one that hits home, gets its brand message across, has some fun, and appeals directly to its target audience. Usually, I see activities that are too much like the two examples below.

I'm sure you've seen many like these: a putting green; a pop-a-shot contest; a wheel of fortune; a cash booth (where you step inside a clear plastic box and money flies around you like mosquitoes in a Louisiana swamp). 

Now I'm sure activities like these have their place (a grade school carnival comes to mind), and they definitely attract a specific target audience (just look at the participants in the two photos above). But really folks, can't we do better than this.

In my opinion, a good exhibit activity needs to at least have the following elements:

Reinforce the brand message. The activity should not be some random carnival game, but rather spring directly from the brand attributes of the key message being delivered by your trade show presence. The Dissolve-A-Way Derby did exactly this by demonstrating the product's key benefit, dissolve-ability.

Engage the target audience in a memorable way. When I worked at Viewpoint Datalabs (many moons ago) for our Siggraph show, we created a twist on the "Guess the number of Jellybeans in the Jar" contest. Instead of beans, we asked visitors to guess the number of "polygons" (the basic 3D modeling unit of measure) in a 3D model of a mountain bike. Our target audience was "3D Animators" who were using polygon based models like the one below in their everyday work. We challenged their primary skill set, namely, to look at the model and guess its complexity. The winner rode home on the bike. By honing in on their passion for models and animation, we engaged them immediately and deeply, and winning our contest became a matter of personal and professional pride.

Be fun & interactive. This is the easy part. Today, there's no shortage of choices when it come to making things fun and engaging. But, beware the slippery slope of "coolness". Don't sacrifice your brand message and your target audience's key drivers for the sake of "the latest thing".

I'm sure there's many other important attributes that a good booth activity should have. What's tops on your list?

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Bob's Best Bites

I'm heading to New Orleans soon, and that means a stop at my favorite condemned bar & grill, The Corporation (I don't know if it's really condemned, but it could be). It's one block from the Convention Center next to the Hilton Garden Inn. It's the kind of place where you have to wear long sleeves so your arms don't stick to the tables. But, boy oh boy, are their po-boys good -- and CHEAP.You'll spend between $5-$10 for lunch, and it's just terrific. This is where a lot of the work force eats while setting up shows. Get there before 12:00 noon if you can, otherwise it's tough to get into the place. Shrimp, catfish, roast beef, ham, oyster and even gator po-boys are served along with great muffalettas. However, if you go there during a rainstorm, bring your umbrella inside, cause the roof leaks a bit.

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