Why Do Startups and Small Companies Need to Attend Trade Shows?
Many people who are running a one man show businesses or even a small business believe that exhibiting at a tradeshow is out of their league because of financial considerations, because the large companies have large marketing departments with large budgets, because a tradeshow booth is not affordable, because they just don’t have the vision on how to design a booth, how to transport and assemble one, how to work a tradeshow, etc.
Except for the budgetary considerations of actually renting space on the tradeshow floor, everything else is untrue. In this article, I will show you why are tradeshows so important. I am writing this from my own experience, as someone who worked on designing trade show booths, actually set up trade show displays, worked the tradeshow floors as an exhibitor and as a visitor.
Here are some of the reasons why it is important to attend and exhibit at trade shows, even if you are just starting your business or running a small company:
1. Get competitive intelligence
As an entrepreneur running a small company, it is very hard to get competitive intelligence, that is knowledge on how do you compare to your competitors, how do they do things, what makes them more successful that you or less successful than you. Don’t forget to put some focus on the less successful scenario also, because you also want to have a list of all the mistakes others make, so you can avoid them.
At a trade show, the easiest possible thing you can do is gather hands-on competitive intelligence. It really does not get more hands-on than that, as you have your competition at the tip of your finger. On the surface, they all seem to be extremely confident through their sales pitches and the flashiness of their marketing gimmicks, but they are in a tremendously vulnerable position, as they are giving everything they got and are also worried about *their* competition, which believe it or not… is you!
Take advantage of this incredible position. The best thing to do is to walk the trade show at the very beginning – that is, before everybody gets to know everybody among exhibitors – and ask questions, ask many, many questions.
Here are some of the things you can get from a simple walk around the exhibit hall:
- A four pound synopsis of your market that you can review at your leisure, from the comfort of your couch that most likely includes a sackful (literally) of literature on suppliers and distributors in your very targeted and unique field, the trade press.
- New market concepts.
- You can also have yourself put on mailing lists, participate in market surveys and earn complimentary subscriptions to a handful of journals.
- More coffee mugs, promotional mints, candy, pens, laminated business cards and free golf balls than you’ll ever need.
2. Learn about what your competition thinks about your product or service
Again, this is something to be done at the very beginning of a trade show and works best in larger exhibiting halls.
Introduce yourself as someone else, interested in the product or service offered by you and your competitors. This is a perfect time for you to use your flirting techniques. Get creative, remember you have nothing to lose, you’re in control and the ball is in your court.
Get a complete review of your competitor’s product line. You can then ask what they think of your company’s products and services. Since they don’t know who you really are, they’ll tell you what they really think. It’s actually quite enlightening to hear what your competition really says about you to prospects, remember you are acting as one of their prospects.
This is competitive research as its grittiest and the trade show floor is the best place for it. Studies show that companies are more eager to open up and talk about their competition at a trade show than in any other environment (sure you could just call, but you will not get the same effect).
At this point, if you are still reading this, you are probably wondering why, in the name of everything rational, I am talking about spying on your competition instead of the obvious reasons why trade shows exist, which is promoting a product or a service? Well, analysts and trade show gurus say that investigating the competition is what these shows are really about.
3. Meet your buyers
Show your product or service to people who are hyper-qualified as buyers. Why? Well, because these are the people who have gone through the trouble of attending the show and are really interested in your type of business. You also get to meet current and potential customers and get real feedback and a feel for how is your product or service perceived, how it is really performing and what you can do to make it better, that is, more appealing and more useful for your customers.
4. Meet the press
Meet with people from your industry’s trade press. They always attend those events and you will probably never get a better chance to speak one-on-one with the top editorial staff.
You also have a great opportunity to connect with distributors, with wholesalers, with brokers and others in your distribution channel.
5. Sell
You can also sell your product or service, right there, on the spot. Just make sure you have everything you need to do so in place.
Plan ahead and allow for the opportunity for serious business. Most people who come to your booth will be tire-kickers. They’ll grab a handful of pistachios, check out your promotional pens (or USB memory drives loaded with your marketing multimedia presentations – hint, hint), cherry pick your printed materials and move on to the next booth. But every once in a while, you’ll bag a live one. Know how and where you’ll talk to this person at length. Will it be a spot in the rear of the booth, a nearby conference room, a table in the concession area, a later meeting at your company suite? Folks, trust me on this, a wishy-washy “we’ll get back to you” attitude will lose the sale. You have to be prepared, if they see you are not ready to close the transaction right there, on the spot (even if in this day and age the trend continues to move away from on-the-spot order writing on trade show floors), they’ll leave.
6. Generate leads
This is actually the meat of attending a trade show – creating a follow up mailing list. This is what could (and should) potentially bring return on the major investment you made by attending the trade show. Whether you just collect business cards, write names down on a piece of paper or use the more modern trade show techniques such as scanning people’s tags, you must build your mailing list and actually follow up immediately after the show is over, while your marketing effort is still fresh in people’s minds.
It really makes a good second impression if you follow up promptly, whether by just a call or sending additional literature and information. Your handling of requests for additional information will show potential clients you value their time and provide quality customer service.
How to Be an A Plus Medical Transcription Trade Show Attendee
In the world of a medical transcription service owner, life can be hectic. From hiring and staffing transcribers to collecting from slow paying facilities; MTSO’s have enough on their plate to worry about while they are in the office, let alone when their work pulls them away from the office. The idea of leaving for a couple of days just to attend a trade show is usually the last thing on an owner’s mind.
Chances are you probably feel like you don’t have enough time to attend a trade show. Before you start listing all of the reasons why you can’t afford to go to a medical transcription trade show (monetary, geographical, logistical, etc.), I’d like to share with you all the reasons why you can’t afford to stay home!
One of the top concerns an MTSO may have about attending a trade show is getting there. Paying for flights, hotels and conference registrations can add up quickly-that is if you wait until the last minute to book everything. Rule number one: plan ahead. Contact the trade show organizers as soon as you think you might want to attend the show, and ask if discounted flights and hotels are available for medical transcription professionals. The answer will almost always be yes-unless you wait too long. Keep in mind that the prices often skyrocket a few weeks before the show begins, so a good rule of thumb is to book about three months in advance.
Something else to keep in mind is the possibility of not staying in the same hotel as the conference to save a little extra cash. Regardless of whether the preferred hotel is attached to the conference center or not, staying in it can sometimes be expensive, even with a discounted rate. So I would suggest looking into booking a room in a smaller hotel in proximity to the conference location. Staying at an alternative hotel can save you a bundle, while still being a short, convenient walk to the show.
It’s also a good idea to pre-register if you will be attending a medical transcription conference. Not only will you often save money by taking advantage of the pre-registering discount, it also saves you time once you’re at the show. Instead of waiting in long lines outside of the trade show, you can use that time to walk the floor, network with colleagues or attend a scheduled seminar.
If you haven’t decided ahead of time which classes you want to attend and which exhibitors you want to visit before you get to the show, it’s a good idea to look through the updated show guide provided when you arrive. Take the time to walk the floor once to familiarize yourself with the layout of the conference room as well as taking the time to note where the specific vendors you want to talk to are located. Note the companies’ booth locations on your copy of the floor map so that you can find them quickly in-between classes and networking activities.
Once you are ready to start talking to the vendors one-on-one, there are five things that no attendee should be without while you are in the exhibit hall.
- Lightweight clothes and comfortable walking shoes. Business casual is generally what you will see on the show floor. Just make sure that your clothing and shoes are professional and neat, but also comfortable enough to walk/stand in for long hours.
- Name badge. It not only allows you to get through the exhibit hall doors, it also allows others to identify you and your company quickly and easily.
- Business cards. You never know who you might meet at trade shows, so it’s good to have business cards handy for when you bump into someone important whom you want to remember. Make sure you bring a big enough stack that you won’t run out midway through the show. It’s always better to bring too many than not enough.
- Notebook and pen. Of course taking notes during the classes will help you tremendously when you get back in the office. Keeping a pen and paper handy while walking the floor is also helpful to jot down notes about each vendor you speak to about your company.
- Sturdy tote-bag. From giveaways and literature to books and brochures, attendees pick up a lot of items at trade shows. It’s really nice to bring some kind of tote bag to hold everything. (NOTE: Oftentimes, there will be at least one exhibitor who is handing out one of these types of bags, so make sure you visit their booth earlier on in the conference.)
Remember that new business relationships can also begin outside of the exhibit hall. Take advantage of the free networking events. You will find that everyone, medical transcription vendors included, is more laid back in these social settings, and not so pushy for a sale. Take the time to get to know your fellow attendees and vendors off of the sales floor. Just be sure to bring a handful of business cards when you attend these outside activities.
If you follow all of the above advice at the next trade show that you attend, I guarantee that it will be money well spent. Not only will you have the opportunity to rub elbows with some of the top vendors and leaders in the medical transcription industry, you will also have the opportunity to learn about market trends, network with fellow medical transcription professionals and learn how medical transcription products can help your business thrive. The contacts you can make and the information you can gather about competitors, suppliers, buyers and the overall medical transcription industry far outweighs the reservations you may have for leaving the office.
The Untapped Potential of Your Trade Show Network
When it comes to networking opportunities, trade shows provide one of the best venues. Here is the one place where everyone in your industry congregates for a few short days and is focused on one thing – business.
Over the last few years we have seen a significant drop in the number of people who attend shows while the quality of those who do come has risen. This is important news for an exhibitor or a visitor who wants to meet and greet those often inaccessible industry people.
These are the same people you have left countless unanswered telephone and e-mail messages for. These may be the same people who will ultimately decide on the purchase of your product or service. There will be the movers and shakers – people who have their finger on the pulse of your industry. All you need to do is be prepared.
Here are a few tips on preparing your networking activities for your next trade show.
1. Define your objective. Be really clear about what you want to accomplish whether it’s meeting decision makers, product experts, industry guru’s, forecasters or people who work for your competitors. Ask yourself, “What do I want to accomplish with these people?” If you want to learn more about your industry for example, take this statement a step further and ask, “What specifically?”
2. Make a list of the people you want to meet and the most likely place to meet them. This will include such places as receptions, on the show floor, at participating hotels, during industry events such as meetings, banquets and sporting events or at a lecture.
3. Attempt to reach these people ahead of time to set up a pre-arranged meeting. This is a great idea because the people that you want to meet, just like you, are busy and have full schedules.
4. Develop a list of questions. Rather than leaving the meeting to chance it’s always better to spend a bit of time preparing the questions ahead of time. Questions like the one in Step 1 – “What specifically?”
5. Recording information. Bring a notebook, to record the information you are gathering.
6. Bring your business cards. Its simply good business etiquette to exchange business cards during a business meeting. Having this contact’s card also gives you their vital statistics so you can get in touch with them after the show in case you have additional questions or need some clarification on the information they gave you.
7. Thank them. Not only after the meeting is over but immediately after the show. It’s good business practice to send an e-mail or letter thanking them for the time they spent with you and the value their information had.
8. Look for opportunities to add information of your own. During your face to face meetings you may stumble across bits of information the person you are meeting with may be looking for. Here is a great chance to give something back to the conversation. But, be careful and avoid gossip. Keep the information you are sharing factual and positive.
Sometimes we get so focused on setting up an exhibit or planning a trip we neglect the power we can cultivate with a strong network. Put these eight simple steps to work at your next show and reap the rewards that come from adding networking to your show schedule.
Top 10 Trade Show Tips
1. Message
Is your message clear? Does it speak to your primary audience? Is it relevant? Does your message have an emotional attachment? Are you trying to say too much when you only have a few seconds to grab your audiences attention?
2. Pre-Show
Have you contacted attendees even with something as simple as a postcard asking them to come by your booth for a prize or gift? Are you in a good location? If not, what will you do about it?
3. Trade Show Display
Have you checked it recently? Does it say things that are no longer true or correct? Is the hardware intact and functional? Does it fit in the space you reserved (last you had a 10×10, this year you have a 20×20). Was your booth designed as an integrated component of your marketing strategy or a piece-meal production with various photos and logos? How will your booth compare to others at your trade show? Not to keep up with the Jones’, but you also do not want to stand out for having the least appealing booth either.
4. Accessories
Do you have the proper accessories? Shelving, Lighting (that works), Podiums (with your correct phone, logo, and web address), Literature Stands, Seating, Conference Room, Overhead Fabric Signage, Banner Stands, Fabric Displays, Lightboxes, Plasma/LCD Displays and Mounts, and Counters.
5. Literature and Giveaways
Do you have current literature in the proper quantity for your show? Do you have business cards as described before? Is your literature in alignment with your trade show display? Is your literature in alignment with the audience that will attend your show?
6. Events
Are you going to a very large trade show where a seperate event for your top clients and prospects will help people remember you? Will your top account executives or customer service staff be at the event? How will you reinforce your brand or message at the event so that it is memorable?
7. During the Trade Show I
When and how many people will staff your booth? Is everyone on the same page with regard to what to say about your company and its products? While your booth is being staffed are the employees out in the show meeting with prospects, clients, and vendors or strategic partners?
8. During the Trade Show II
While in the booth do your people know the basics, do not sit, do not eat, go out and meet people in the isle, do not stay behind a table or counter, smile smile smile, use breath mints, speak to people directly [do not act as though you are looking for the next hot prospect], and be honest.
9. During the Trade Show III
If it is clear you are speaking with someone who is a great prospect, suggest that you meet later for a drink or dinner, go to the cafe area of the show and sit and talk as long as your booth is covered, do not try to have a one hour conversation in your booth.
10. After the Trade Show
Follow up with prospects and customers, send everyone who visited your booth a note, postcard, or email thanking them for attending. Set meetings with your best prospects. Have a post-show meeting to discuss how you can exhibit better in the future.
Hi there!I'm Josh and welcome to my very own Trade Show blog.Here you will find the latest trade show ideas, event resources, contacts, exhibiting tips and articles to maximize tradeshow results.
Informational with useful tips on trade show exhibit marketing, with trade show exhibit strategy, and rental booth design ideas.It may also help for those exhibitors at trade shows conventions and expos. Tips and tricks for trade show displays are also in package.Trade shows have traditionally served as an opportunity for industry leaders to showcase their latest products and innovations.Hopefully you will get the latest trade show display advice and product reviews as well as exhibiting information nd expos and how to deal with it.Lastly,this blog aim for your success as well,let us help each other, your comments are very much appreciated.