‘Trade shows & social media’ Articles
Written by Ken Newman on 10 May 2012
Last week we talked about previewing your trade show blockbuster. Now let’s figure out how to do it …
If you have a phone, you have a camera. If you have a laptop, you have a camera. And of course, if you have a decent camera … well, you have a camera! So there’s no excuse not to record something compelling.
So, when you have it, what do you do with it?
Last year, our client wanted us to preview their trade show presence with a pre-show video. They wanted something that could be posted on their YouTube channel and distributed to everyone in their database. The concept was that the hero of our short film was looking for love … and perhaps he could find it at an upcoming trade show. (Spoiler Alert: He did. He got the girl (well, the girl’s TECHNOLOGY, anyway).
Granted, this was a bit more over the top than some of you may feel comfortable with, but it proves that you can shoot a basic, effective video with virtually no production values. There’s simply no barrier to entry to say: “Hi, here’s who we are. Here’s where we’ll be. Here’s what we’re doing. Here’s why you should care. And here’s the free thing you’ll get just for stopping by to visit.” Put your company logo at the end, drop in the booth number and post it on YouTube. Then, distribute the link to your database, or make it part of your signature line in the weeks or months leading up to the show. (If you’d like, you can even create your own YouTube channel.)
Another option is to use something called BubbleComment. This is a small video that literally pops up on your Web page in a small circular bubble, then disappears. This can be produced on your own, again with a minimum of production value. You can read more about this and other trade show Twitter uses here.
If you want to go the extra mile and produce something highly professional, then use the professionals. Consider working with Andy Saks of Spark Presentations. He’s done tons of Bubble Comments for his clients and driven a lot of traffic to their booths.
What you can do with trade show video is only limited by your imagination. Next time, we’ll talk about using video as a “roving reporter” on the trade show floor. In the meantime, how would—or should—you use pre-show video?
Tags: booth buzz, booth traffic, Movie trailers, pre-show marketing, trade show opportunities
Posted in Booth staff, Lead generation & follow up, Trade show giveaways, Trade show news & trends, Trade show presentations, Trade shows & social media | No Comments »
Written by Ken Newman on 01 May 2012
Movie trailers are a part of our culture. We expect them. We anticipate them. And we even seek them out when word spreads. Movie trailers create buzz. They’re easily shared. And they frame what’s to come on their own strategic terms. They are, perhaps, the ultimate form of pre-show marketing.
And yet, we put on our (trade) shows each year without making use of this essential tool. Can you imagine moviegoers arriving at the theater—their minds blank—learning about films and deciding which to attend from the posters on the walls?
Can you imagine a studio that has staked its year on the success of a blockbuster, doing nothing more than sending a flyer to a few thousand past customers?
You have all the tools you need built right into your smartphone. Got a laptop with a camera in the lid? Then, you’re a producer.
Whatever you do, don’t think of your next trade show as anything less than a feature film.
———
Have you ever used video to promote your trade show presence? If so, I’d like to hear about it. What did you do? How did it work? Would you do it again? Next week, I’ll share a few amazing tools that will enable you to produce your own “preview of coming attractions.” Stay tuned!
Tags: Movie trailers, pre-show marketing, trade show opportunities
Posted in Lead generation & follow up, Trade show news & trends, Trade shows & social media | 2 Comments »
Written by Ken Newman on 11 January 2012
Frustrated on a customer service call that’s going nowhere? Shout as loud as you want. Only the intractable rep can hear you. Say the same thing on Twitter with an @reply to the company and mountains will move. Your message may be the same, but now there’s an army of observers looking over your shoulder. The company doesn’t care about the quality of your experience; it cares about the public perception of your experience.
At a trade show, does the perception of your company matter more than your message?
Tags: attendees, booth traffic, message, perception, Twitter
Posted in Booth staff, Trade show news & trends, Trade show presentations, Trade shows & social media | No Comments »
Written by Ken Newman on 22 August 2011
Many trade shows don’t allow children. But if you happen to be working one that does, you simply cannot afford to ignore that fact. When children are attendees too, all the rules change for the better. It’s easier to grab a group’s attention. It’s easier to start a conversation. And it’s easier to advance that conversation into rewarding territory. Now, your immediate reaction may be, “Hey, you can’t take advantage of the children!” I wouldn’t dream of it. No, my intention is to always captivate the children: Get them excited. Get them having fun. Get them paying attention. Because you know what? The parents will (and often must) follow.
Here’s an easy example: Try a magic trick at a trade show for a small group of adults. If it’s the right trick with some sort of natural segue to your product or technology, it may very well be a helpful mechanism to drive further discussion. But try that same magic trick for the kids, and woah! Now we’re on to something! Before you know it the kids are out of their minds with excitement. Next thing you know, you’re performing for a captive audience of 40—kids and adults—who have gathered around. It’s a simple mantra: Once you have the kids, you have the parents. And once you have the parents, you have everyone.
It’s the fundamental difference between trying to get the rapt attention of a businessperson fast-walking down the aisle staring at their Blackberry and getting the attention of a wide-eyed youngster in a stroller who can’t believe you just pulled ten thumb drives out of your left ear.
There’s a Child in Us All
Unless you’re in a specialized niche, the vast majority of your trade shows will likely NOT be kid-friendly. In those instances, they key is to find that inner child in the adults surrounding you. Your booth presence needs to feel kinetic— movement, sound, bright, visually appealing colors and a centerpiece that deserves and demands attention. And yes, that could even be a professional trade show presenter.
It’s going to take a lot to stop that Blackberry power-walker in their tracks. But we can all be distracted. Think of all those YouTube videos with a gazillion views. You think all those views happened after work hours and on weekends? No, my friend. Someone who was working productively got an email and got distracted. And then that person stayed because the content was compelling. A trade show booth has strong similarities. When looking for the inner child in adult trade show attendees, think Walt Disney. Think about not just creating a booth, but creating an attraction! What is the thing that will make the little kid in you put your hand on the stroller and say, “Daddy! Stop here!” When you’ve found that, you’ve found the heart of your trade show presence.
P.S.: When my son was in a stroller, he never ONCE asked me to take him to “PowerPoint World.”
Do you have an industry-related question you’d like answered on “Hey Newman”? Send him an e-mail and get your inquiry answered on the blog.
Tags: Booth design, crowd gathering, human behavior, inner child, kids
Posted in Booth design, Booth staff, Lead generation & follow up, Trade show giveaways, Trade show news & trends, Trade show presentations, Trade shows & social media | No Comments »
Written by Ken Newman on 07 July 2011
So they’re in your booth … now what?
So much money and time and creativity is spent getting trade show attendees into a booth. Yet a shockingly large percentage of those same exhibitors fail to put equal thought and resources behind what staff should do when people get there. It’s enough of a problem that there are expert consultants to fix it. My friend and colleague Andy Saks, Chief Sparkler at the presentation design and delivery agency Spark Presentations, is one of the finest. I sat down with Andy to discuss his booth staff performance training program, “Booth Brush-Up: How to Stand Out, Sell More, and Have Fun on the Show Floor.” From our conversation came the Top 10 Ways to Radically Transform Booth Staff Effectiveness, and I’m thrilled he ok’d publishing it for all of our benefit:
1. Tell Your Staff “WIIFM”: The most effective way to motivate your staff to adopt new behaviors that improve your booth is to answer the key question they’re silently asking: “What’s in it for me?” So start your training by teasing the instant, tangible benefits they’ll personally enjoy by following your suggestions. For example: “Show of hands: Who here would like your time in the booth to go by faster? Who wants to have more fun along the way? Who’d like to get better leads by talking less? Who’d like the chance to dramatically improve their prospects at this company in just a few days? Well, listen up folks, because if you follow a few simple suggestions, you’ll enjoy all those benefits.” Now that they like where you’re going, they’ll march eagerly in formation behind you.
2. Attract them with body language: This goes beyond basics like don’t talk on your phone” and “don’t stare at the floor.” It’s about understanding the dollar value of every single customer that walks (or doesn’t walk) into that booth and how your body language will impact that customer’s decision to approach you. What are you communicating with your facial expression, your posture, your location in the booth? How will that stranger perceive you from 30 feet away … and up close? Any customer could be a lifetime customer. Any account could be a multimillion-dollar account. You’ll never know if your body language deflects the attendee before he or she steps into your booth.
3. Shift your focus: Trade shows are about the prospects; not the products. This is your opportunity to learn about your prospects and leads to decide if it’s a good match for you and for them. It’s always about the customer—and how your products may help that customer get where they want to go. So where do they want to go? It’s much more useful to spend your time asking questions of a prospect and finding out about their challenges, needs and budget than to talk about your technology (which may not be a good fit). It shows you care more about your prospect than pitching your product. That generates trust, so it’s useful in both directions.
4. Stop showing off: Often when booth staff do demos, they’re very eager to show off their product and own level of knowledge of that product. The result is a dense, technical monologue. It’s almost certain that the person you’re talking to doesn’t know as much about the product and might not be as familiar with industry terms, so it’s very easy to talk over that person’s head by accident. They won’t tell you they don’t understand because it’s embarrassing to them. But inside they’re either panicking or mulling an exit strategy. Use the simplest language possible. Define terms and ask what needs to be defined. What do the letters in that acronym stand for? Care about making sure that person is “with you.” If they’re not with you, the conversation isn’t going anywhere.
5. Walk your staff up the “Benefit Ladder”: Customers buy benefits; not features. They’re in it for themselves. So the job of booth staff is to find the best and biggest benefits—life-changing benefits—and express them clearly and thoughtfully. They need to easily walk the attendee up that “Benefit Ladder.”
If your product has a feature that will save a customer time, that’s not the ultimate benefit, is it? What’s the benefit of saving time? More time for other projects. What the benefit of that? Getting more projects done quicker. And then? They’ll get noticed by their boss. Which results in what? They get a job promotion, leading to more money. Ultimately the top rung of this particular ladder is: “Better quality of life, overall satisfaction, more time with the family … happiness!” It’s not what this product will do for them tomorrow; it’s about what it means “in the big picture.” And in order for the prospect to really “get” that larger benefit, your booth staff must first understand the benefit of describing things in this way.
Next week, we’ll present the rest of our Top 10 Ways to Radically Transform Booth Staff Effectiveness. Until then, I leave you with this quote from Andy:
“The single most important element of any trade show booth is its people. Not the company name. Not the product. Not the signs. It’s the human beings. For any trade show presenter, it’s heartbreaking to make all that effort to bring in a large crowd, only to have them vanish moments later. It’s like running the ball 98 yards down the field and then sitting down to have a sandwich. Run those other 2 yards and spike the ball.” —Andy Saks, Spark Presentations
Tags: big benefits, body language, Booth staff, booth traffic, performance training
Posted in Booth staff, Lead generation & follow up, Trade show giveaways, Trade show news & trends, Trade show presentations, Trade shows & social media | 1 Comment »
Written by Ken Newman on 04 May 2011
Viewing estimates for the wedding ceremony of Prince William and Miss Catherine Middleton, at 11 a.m. British time on the dot, hovered in the three billion range, give or take 500 million. How could you possibly generate this kind of interest in your booth, short of having your Head of Marketing marry your Product Manager? Here are a few things you can do to take your trade show brand to new heights:
Generate interest. You may not have the built-in appeal of the royals, but you can still reveal what’s noble in your product or service.
Cultivate brand loyalty. Treat your subjects—your consumers—well and they’ll be there for you when you have something worthwhile to announce.
Write the fairy tale. Don’t give us a bunch of numbers. Don’t rattle on about facts and figures. Tell your story and give it a happy ending.
Create anticipation. Do your pre-wedding work. Build excitement BEFORE people start walking down the aisle.
Pick the right venue. Unless you anticipate tens of thousands of people storming your booth and helicopters flying overhead, you probably DON’T need to invest in the biggest booth you can.
Prepare. Events of this magnitude didn’t just get thrown together overnight. Be obsessive. Consider EVERY detail. Be a wedding planner.
Invite the right people. You know who they are. Contact them early. And give them a reason to show up, but don’t expect presents.
Don’t forget the ring. Have a checklist. Use it. The smallest details may turn out to be not all that small on the Big Day. (By the way, click here for a free checklist.)
Send thank you notes. Follow up, follow up, follow up. Consider a postcard or hand-written note. Although using a quill pen and sealing wax might be pushing it a bit.
Do you have an industry-related question you’d like answered on “Hey Newman”? Send him an e-mail and get your inquiry answered on the blog.
Tags: anticipation, booth buzz, crowd gathering, preparation, storytelling
Posted in Booth design, Booth staff, Lead generation & follow up, Trade show giveaways, Trade show news & trends, Trade show presentations, Trade shows & social media | 1 Comment »
Written by Ken Newman on 17 March 2011
What do your customers really want? If you hesitated for even a second before answering, we’ve got a problem. And what do your customers think about you in relation to that? If you don’t know, it can really hurt you.
Any trade show exhibitor should be able to instantly spit out 20 things that are driving their attendees (their potential leads and customers) crazy. I’m talking about real pain points, real needs and real solutions. It’s simple enough, but it’s shocking how difficult it is for many trade show exhibitors to respond.
The problem often is a disconnect between the people running the trade show and the sale personnel in the trenches who find out what people really want. Exhibitors know what the latest, greatest product on the floor does, but what is the relationship between that and the actual needs of the audience? And how can you know for sure?
The reality is, many companies’ trade show presentations never really get at what people are actually thinking.
What if every time a professional or product expert took to the trade show stage, they presented with the consumer instead of at the consumer? What if we dynamically gauged and engaged the audience to gain real knowledge and real market research data? What if we actually asked the important questions: Why are you here? What do you want? What do you really need? And what’s making your life miserable? What if we let the responses drive the presentation and post-show follow up?
It’s always more engaging to ask, “What do you think?” instead of “Here’s what we have.” People like to talk about themselves and express their needs. And the more you ask, the more you’ll be surprised by the answers. From there, you can begin to develop a marketing strategy that’s really based on what people want rather than what you’re trying to sell.
The bottom line is, attendees go to trade shows to find solutions for the things making their lives difficult. What better opportunity to really find out what they want!
Now, it’s not realistic to get up on stage and ask a million questions while taking notes and then go back to the office to tabulate it. But it’s very possible to take 3-4 key questions and get responses that will not only help you now, but also help you follow up later. Rather than cold calls and general pitches, you’re talking to consumers about their specific needs and offering specific solutions.
I have some ideas about how to do this in an affordable, elegant and fun way. In fact, the trade show world is my laboratory right now. I’ll have much more to say about this in the future. But for now, let me know what you think. Would you be interested in a process or technology that would help you poll or survey your audience in real-time from the trade show stage? Can you really be sure you know what your customers are thinking without one? I’ll be reading and responding to all your comments.
Tags: audience polling, lead follow up, needs, surverys, trade show opportunities
Posted in Booth staff, Going green at trade shows, Lead generation & follow up, Trade show news & trends, Trade show presentations, Trade shows & social media | No Comments »
Written by Ken Newman on 01 February 2011
The Sundance Film Festival is the largest independent film festival in the United States. But looked at another way, it’s one really big, really prestigious trade show laid out across a small ski city. Everyone is selling something. Every exhibitor has a dedicated space to present and promote what they’re selling. And there’s the widest possible range of presentations of those goods—from full sets and hired talent to over-eager personnel with little business savvy and no social skills.
Sound familiar?
Yes, Sundance is all about promoting and selling movies, but it’s also a microcosm for many of the things we regularly discuss on this trade show blog. This past month, I had the pleasure of attending Sundance along with director/writer Dan Pavlik, and a condo-full of fellow cast and crew members. We were there to promote our film, “Nominated.”
No, this post isn’t about boosting awareness for the movie; it’s about the adventure we had there … and how it relates to trade show success anywhere. (But, if you really want to see our movie, we’re not about to stop you.)
Let me start by admitting something: We weren’t invited. That’s right. Our film didn’t actually make it into Sundance. But we showed up anyway. We didn’t go to Park City, Utah, to “sell” our movie. We went there to enjoy ourselves—to have as much fun as we could squeeze into seven days. And, oh yes, to make a few contacts.
That was the best decision we could have made. And a big reason we were so successful.
Let me ask you something: Do you go to a cocktail party and immediately start handing out business cards to anyone with a pulse? Do you get on Twitter and immediately start hawking your “How to Get Five Million Followers Fast” webinar?
Not if you’re smart, you don’t.
You also don’t stand at the corner of your trade show booth, run up to every attendee you see and scream, “Get in here and BUY MY STUFF!”
In the same vein, you don’t go to Sundance and try to force your DVD down producers’ throats or project your film on a snow bank. Yes it’s been done, and generally, it won’t get you any love.
But what you CAN do is be the life of the party and create such a fun and memorable scene for everyone around you that they flock to your side and eventually ask—on their own—“What brings you here?” That’s what we all did … and did … and did. We used trade show tricks and magic. We used humor and intrigue. We even used Rock Band. And when the festival ended, those producers had our DVDs and business cards. Those celebrities were wearing our buttons. Those attendees knew our film’s name and assumed we had a featured spot in the festival. It was a rousing success—all because we figured out a way to make people come to us.
I’m going to let Dan tell you the story in his own words (complete with a little name-dropping) on this blog later in the week. In the meantime, think about other social situations you’ve been in that might provide a good lesson on “how to behave” at trade shows.
—Ken Newman
Tags: human behavior, Nominated, Rock Band, Sundance Film Festival, trade shows
Posted in Booth design, Booth staff, Lead generation & follow up, Trade show giveaways, Trade show news & trends, Trade show presentations, Trade shows & social media | 3 Comments »
Written by Ken Newman on 11 January 2011
In Part I of a new “green” series, Newman interviews Interpretive Exhibits’ Tim Patterson, a social media whiz and expert in sustainable booth building.
In the vast majority of the posts on this blog, you pose a question and I do my best to give a coherent answer. This week, I’ve decided to switch it up by asking the questions of friend and colleague Tim Patterson — better known by many as the Trade Show Guy. Tim is Interpretive Exhibits’ VP of Sales and Marketing, which means he knows how to build a better booth.
Newman: How do you bring sustainability into your trade show presence while still being successful?
Patterson: When people come to us and want sustainability, we can offer them anything and everything that’s out there. The main question that really gets answered before anyone moves ahead is: “What does it cost?” We did a booth for a company in Eugene that was very green-conscious, and they wanted to use wheat board and a whole host of other sustainable materials. But for them, the cost was more than their budget could handle. So, we went back to other good, largely sustainable materials. It was just not quite what they originally envisioned. A lot of the times, the choice comes down to cost vs. budget — as well as new booth vs. refurbished.
Newman: I have also heard you talk in the past about utilizing found objects and materials. Could you go into that more?
Patterson: A year and a half ago I was at Outdoor Retailer Summer Market. It’s an amazing show packed with outdoor retailers of all kinds. Because of the relatively low cost of booths at this particular show, you see very large and highly creative booth design. These booths incorporated the outdoors and outdoor lifestyle in a very effective way. Some booths used tree limbs, bike frames, and all sorts of fascinating stuff to create a visually interesting backdrop. And, of course, it was all recycled.
Keen Shoes had an amazing booth that was almost entirely made out of recycled materials. I got a tour of their corporate headquarters a couple of months ago and virtually everything in there is repurposed and reused. Even their gathering place for lunches and client meetings utilizes a row of bleachers that was saved from an old high school that was being torn down. They had old car seats on pallets with wheels on them, and they’d take these contraptions to trade shows and use them. So, they didn’t have to spend money on a brand-new booth and they successfully repurposed things that would otherwise be thrown away. They’re very environmentally conscious, and their headquarters speaks to that attitude of reduce, reuse, and recycle.
One of the biggest things a company can do is have that attitude: What can we do, starting from scratch? How can we utilize what’s out there to not have to spend money on a new booth? But it’s not only attitude; it takes a company that’s willing to shift from ideas to action—and spend some money. You have to look around and find things. You have to pay people to design and cut and build. But if your materials are reused or rescued, not only does it save money; it presents a great image to your audience. And the people at Keen obviously know their audience really, really well.
Newman: If you have a company — perhaps in the tech field — that is going to be totally new to this attitude and this green trade show approach, what would you say to them about going down this road?
Patterson: What it really boils down to is the image of the company. If you have a really high-tech company, does it fit for you to have a booth that’s made of a lot of repurposed wood from an old barn, for instance? Maybe. Maybe not. It depends on what your company is promoting. If you have software that fits in that market — if there’s a relationship between the technology and sustainability — then that might be appropriate.
It can be done, but it really has to be driven by what management wants, and then that has to filter down the management chain and compose a viable approach. Once those decisions have been made on how to approach the objectives, then you start talking to trade show companies that can execute that vision in a realistic manner: Do those designs, help source the materials. Obviously, it’s a collaborative effort. The client may bring materials or even have a designer on hand, but they might not have the skill to actually build something in their trade show space.
Newman: My natural next question is: If you have a company that’s tech-based that has determined that what might work for Keen isn’t going to work for them, what else can be done on the sustainability front? But let’s hold off and pick this back up in Part II.
In Parts II and III, we’ll discuss green trade show booth materials, sustainable packaging and graphic production and green face-to-face meetings (a fascinating topic that deserves more attention). You can learn much more from Tim Patterson in his two new e-books: “Twittering Your Way to Tradeshow Success” and “101 Rules of Tradeshow Marketing,” which are both available at http://tradeshowguyblog.com.
Tags: Booth design, going green, recycling, sustainability, trade show trends
Posted in Booth design, Booth staff, Going green at trade shows, Trade show giveaways, Trade show news & trends, Trade shows & social media | 1 Comment »
Written by Ken Newman on 20 July 2010
Hey Newman: I just got back from attending a trade show in Vegas and from the look of things, it seemed that most of the people staffing the booths just didn’t want to be there. Don’t you think there’s a much cheaper way to have a lousy time? —Gail from New York
This is a message for trade show vendors: At your next show, sneak up on your own booth. That’s right, pop out from around a corner about 10 yards back and take a good, honest look at your investment.
Do your booth staffers look like sad little wallflowers?
Do they look like kids at a high school social afraid to ask someone to dance?
Is there a guy sitting expressionless in front of a glass bowl of Hershey’s Kisses, wondering why no one is coming up to talk to him?
This “condition” is more common then you might think, especially with the smaller booths. At one recent show, I walked around and paid particular attention to the 5 x10 and 10 x10 booths. Often they’re manned by just two or three people who are so uncomfortable they’re burying their heads in books or dabbling with smartphones — just sitting there waiting for it all to be over.
I looked at these people and found myself thinking about Neil Strauss, a contributing editor at Rolling Stone best known for penning a book called, The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists. This was the inside story of guys who despite NOT being the most attractive males out there, pick up women with absolute ease. Strauss not only researched this “secret society,” he became arguably one of the top pickup artists in the world and actually started conducting workshops for the undesirable and uninitiated.
At the heart of this book is a philosophy about “how to engage people.” He argues that if you’re going to try to pick up a woman in a bar, you don’t say, “Can I buy you a drink?” You don’t ask anything that could elicit a “no” response. Instead, you “engage” her. You contrive a story seemingly playing out before her eyes and ask, “What do you think?” Yes, it’s an opening line. But it’s an opening line that’s not clichéd or overwrought; it’s a question that pulls this woman into a story with you through her advice or involvement.
Strauss’ philosophy is hardly limited to the world of pickup artists. “Engagement” is something that most certainly can be applied to trade show marketing. I was observing the booth staff at this recent trade show, and they weren’t engaging anyone. First of all, they’re sitting. Rule No. 1: No sitting! Secondly, even when standing, they look positively miserable. If you’re spending that kind of money at a trade show and you’re planning to go there with the attitude that you’d rather be anywhere else, then don’t go! And before you say a couple of staffers don’t represent the “enthusiasm of the company,” remember that these faces are your company for the purposes of these crucial three trade show days. They are the representative image of you and the images that attendees will remember.
Honestly, if I had some sort of magisterial banishment power, King Newman would have sent home half the people working this particular trade show. If you’re going to look bored — if you’re going to feel miserable — find another way to market your services.
Here’s the ironic thing: A lot of these same people will spend a fortune on search engine optimization, which is designed to drive traffic to their site. But they don’t spend any energy driving traffic into their booth. And that doesn’t necessarily mean hiring a trade show presenter like me but perhaps a crowd gatherer — at least someone with people skills! If the person in your booth is not the type who can go up to a perfect stranger and strike up a conversation, then they’re the wrong person to be at the show.
You need to find someone who is not just a technical expert; you also need your company’s best pickup artist.
Have an industry-related question? Send “Newman” an e-mail and get your inquiry answered on the blog.
Tags: Booth staff, booth traffic, engagement, passion, pickup artists
Posted in Booth design, Booth staff, Trade show giveaways, Trade show news & trends, Trade show presentations, Trade shows & social media | 2 Comments »
