Participating in Trade Shows
Your company can participate in trade shows and use them to your advantage in three different ways:
1. Set up a trade show booth.
2. Provide sponsorship for the show.
3. Participate in speaking opportunities.
Ironically, the value of each of these three methods is inversely proportional to their order in the list. Speaking opportunities are the most valuable, followed by sponsorships, and then trade show booths.
However, these three methods build on each other. If you can use two or even all three to your advantage, it will provide more exposure for your company. For example, if your CEO gives a speech at the trade show, it will prompt more people to stop by your booth. Likewise, if you provide sponsorship, your company will get brand exposure at the show, which will bring people to your booth and prompt people to attend your CEO’s speech. The more you actively participate, the more visible your company will be to show attendees, and the more they will come to see what you have to offer. This, in turn, may give you a better ROMI from the show.