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How to Find the Best Trade Shows to Exhibit Your Products
Last Updated on: September 6th, 2023
Exhibiting at the best trade shows can help generate new leads and more sales. It is also an opportunity to meet potential partners. Whether it is the Offshore Technology Show (OTC) in Houston or the Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the goal should be to make the most out of it.
Best trade shows are an investment. They require time, effort, commitment, and money. But attending a show is not enough. To reap the full benefits of trade shows, you need to choose which trade shows to attend carefully.
Participating in the right exhibition means adding value to your business as well as generating new leads. Attending the wrong show, on the other hand, means your efforts, time, and money will not pay off.
How to Find the Best Trade Shows to Exhibit Your Products:
Here you?ll find tips to help you in choosing the best trade show to participate. Read on and learn more.
Define Your Objectives:
Before you start looking for a trade show to participate, you need to determine your objectives and strategy. Figure out what you want to achieve by attending trade shows. Here are some reasons that make organizations participate in trade shows.
- To raise awareness about the company
- Launch new products or services.
- Increase sales
- Strengthen their relationship with clients
After highlighting your goals and objectives, you can now start searching for the best trade shows that are relevant to your industry.
Look into Their History:
New trades are continually coming up across the world. After you?ve identified some trade shows to attend, dig deeper into their history so you can narrow the list down.
Check whether it is a new trade show or it has been happening for many years. The longevity of a trade show is a positive indication but it isn?t enough.
Check how they have been handling the event in the past and the reputation of the show organizers. Speaking to business owners who have attended in the past can also be an excellent place to start.
Establish a Budget:
No matter how a trade show looks on paper, if you can?t afford to exhibit, it will remain a dream. You need to plan your budget carefully before booking your trade show space.
Apart from the cost of renting the space and your custom exhibit, which can be sorted by exploring trade show exhibit rentals, factor in travel, hotel, creating custom promotional materials, and the cost of hiring sales executives.
Trade show costs can change very quickly and so be sure to plan in advance to avoid surprises.
Understand Your Audience:
A trade show can have the largest number of attendees every year, but if they don?t align with your target audience it may not mean much. You?ll, therefore, need to make sure that the trade show you choose to attend has the right audience for you. You should also tailor your booth, and how you present your trade, to fit the audience which will be present at the show. For example, if the show has a focus on eco-friendliness and carbon neutrality, it might be worth investing in a sustainable Eco Systems Display rather than a traditional display so that even the way you present your business will appeal to a majority of the visitors.
You can know this by researching what kind of shows your target market are attending. Most people make the mistake of thinking that people attend only big events. But this is not entirely the truth.
Trade events at your locality can be a great place to gain exposure as well as bigger ROI. You can ask some of your customers which shows they like attending.
Studies show that half of those who attend a trade show comes from a 200-mile radius. So do your research to get a rough idea of what percentage of attendees fits your target audience. Knowing what percentage of your current clients and prospects are planning to attend is also important.
Check Space Availability:
Once you?ve narrowed down the trade shows that you want to participate in, you need to confirm what booth spaces are available. You?ll surely want your booth to be located in a place where it can attract huge foot traffic, as this will directly influence the success rate of your trade show participation.
Remember that booth spaces are not created the same. Therefore, you should confirm whether the space available can accommodate your booth layout. If not, you should be prepared to build a new design. Luckily you can easily find custom exhibit design for trade shows that match almost any booth layout.
Consider Timing:
When choosing which best trade shows to attend, remember to look if they conflict with other scheduled events. Running concurrent trade shows can be costly because you have to rent or build another trade show exhibit.
It is also important to consider other events that will be taking place in that city at that time of the year. Even if they are not related to trade shows, they might affect the flow of people and in turn, affect the number of trade show attendees.
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