Pick the Right Giveaways for Your Trade Show

Pick the Right Giveaways for Your Trade Show

Business, Trade Show

Giveaways are the sprinkles on a trade show – they are not needed but they make things more colorful and memorable. The question is what type of giveaways do you want to give out. Here are the three main questions to help you decide what to choose and some examples. 

What does your target market need/ what will they use?

You are not at the trade show to reach every person attending, you want to reach your target market – so pick a giveaway that will resonate with them. When you are having meetings with them – in person or virtual – take a look at what is on their desk or around them.

Example: Your target market is gardeners – giveaway nice gardening gloves or neck coolers. 

Your target market is busy moms – giveaway a mini quick spa kit that allows them to have “me” time in their busy schedule.

What is the reason for the giveaways?

You should have a reason for the giveaway. Is it to collect leads, draw people to your booth, or to increase brand awareness? Know what you want to do with the giveaway. There are always the people who walk around looking to fill up their bag (or even wagon) with as much stuff as possible. This happens more at consumer based shows verses professional shows. If you are at a consumer show candy is a great option to set out. This allows you to have a giveaway for everyone without having to put out a ton of money. 

Example: Are you looking to get social media interactions? Ask people to post a picture of them at the booth and tag you to get one of the giveaways. Here is how to use your promotions the right way.

Example: If you are looking to collect leads, make sure you scan everyone before you hand out the giveaways.

What is your budget?

Once you have the above questions, then you can start your search for items that fall within your budget. 

Some things to look for that are not included in the pricing on most sites. 

Logo cost – there is normally a one time fee for the company to take your logo and put it into the right format. This can be from $20 – $80. 

Shipping Cost – Shipping is almost always extra. Some places will estimate the shipping for you, others will wait until check out. 

If you cannot find an item that you like to give out to everyone – consider doing one or two large gifts that you raffle away to those who are in your lead system or give you their information. 

Example: If you are at a womens conference, you can give away a Coach purse. 

Example: If you are at a hunting show, giveaway a very nice cooler. 

Some items to consider when looking at giveaways

  • Some items have some assembly required.
    • I was at a booth that was giving away these great flashlights. They came individually wrapped and when I tried to turn them on in the packaging – none of them would turn on. I opened a package and discovered that each flashlight had a piece of plastic on top of the battery that had to be taken out for them to turn on. We had 250 of them. I spent at least 3 hours unpacking them, unscrewing the battery compartment, removing the plastic, and ensuring that they worked. 
  • Where will you place the items that are not on display?
    • If you get large items like water bottles, you need space in your booth to hide them, or you can pay for accessible storage. 
  • What are you doing with any leftovers?
    • I rarely suggest branding items for specific shows unless you know that you will give them all out. Having your company branding allows you to use items at many shows or even give to clients as gifts. 
Getting the Most Out of a Trade Show as an Attendee

Getting the Most Out of a Trade Show as an Attendee

Business, Non-Profit, Trade Show

Trade shows are an investment. Learn how to get the most out of them when attending with our 6 tips. 

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    When you are ready to speak at shows you can see my Tips for Speakers!

    Navigating Everyone’s Wishes while Event Planning

    Navigating Everyone’s Wishes while Event Planning

    Business, Events, Non-Profit, Trade Show

    Event planning in general is not easy, our goal is to make everyone enjoy the event if not feel genuinely happy – and you can never make everyone happy. It is a constant dichotomy that is at play. So how do you manage everyone’s competing wishes? 

    I set people and their wishes into different tiers and use that as my hierarchy of event needs. 

    Tier One: The Client

    The person who is hiring me is the person that I listen to the most. If I have been hired by an organization or committee, I have them appoint a point of contact and decision maker. I did an event recently where the CEO wanted to make some changes at the event (think 15 minutes before we started to serve food), and I still turned to my point of contact to approve those changes. I am happy to shift things on the fly and a good event planner can make miracles happen but I do not take direction from just anyone. 

    Tier Two: People with Major Allergies, Medical Accommodations, or Religious Restrictions

    I always bring up food allergies and ask if anyone will need any special accommodations. I want to make every one who is attending feel welcome and to enjoy the event. Vegetarian options are easy but knowing about major food allergies and conveying that to the caterer is crucial. Also, do you need a sign language interpreter? Do we need to make sure that we have wheel chair accessible spaces? Do we have people who cannot eat certain food due to their religion? I want the host to tell me about their guests and how we can make sure they all enjoy the event. Learn to avoid Event Food Pitfalls here. 

    Tier Three: The VIP’s

    Events often come with a VIP Tier and these people pay extra to be treated well. I am not changing the menu for them or having the caterer make special food, but I will bring out extra bread and ensure that they receive a higher level or service. 

    Tier Four: Everyone Else

    The guests at the event are there to enjoy, but we cannot please everyone. If you are serving soda, people will complain about the type. The key is apologizing for the inconvenience and then offering alternatives. You also get very good at seeing who just wants to complain, who is trying to flirt with the servers, and who has a genuine concern. 

    Their tier system allows you to know when to make major changes and when to just move on. Knowing who your main client and stakeholders are is the key. 

    Remember that not even an ice cream shop can make everyone happy – some people don’t like ice cream, others will want a flavor that isn’t offered, and others will be angry about where the milk came from. 

    Your job when planning an event is to make the client happy and as many of the guests as possible. 

    After Trade Show Hours – Your Job Isn’t Done When the Floor Closes

    After Trade Show Hours – Your Job Isn’t Done When the Floor Closes

    Business, Events, Trade Show

    A trade show is not done until everything is packed up and you are on your way home. If it is a multi day show, your job and marketing lasts long after the trade show floor hours. The hours after the trade show floor closes are precious and you need to use them. Here are the ways you can. 

    Breakfast Meetings

    Grabbing a cup or coffee with a prospect or customers is an underused opportunity. 30 minutes can help to close a deal, understand pain points, or clear up a misunderstanding. 

    People often drop their guard more during a breakfast also. Breakfast is often a personal or family time so people are more relaxed. You need to use this time to your advantage. 

    Group Outings/ Activities

    If you have a smaller budget, skip the expensive dinners and unlimited bar tabs. Consider taking a mixed group of prospects and customers to go carts, on an exclusive tour, or any other activities. 

    You will stand out from the crowd, mingle more than a sit down dinner, and save money. To learn more about help planning out of town events read here. 

    After Hours Party

    If you have the budget and the team to work it. After hours parties for clients and prospects can have a great ROI. You keep people away from your competitors and your sales people can get to know your guests in a less formal environment. 

    Limiting the type and level of liquor can help keep you on budget. Offer signature cocktails to give the event a more branded feel.

    Hang Out at the Bar

    Those chance meetings while relaxing after the show in the bar can turn into great conversations and opportunities. 

    For the money you are spending at trade shows, you need to take advantage of every opportunity to talk to your customers and prospects. 

    After Trade Show Checklist

    After Trade Show Checklist

    Business, Events, Trade Show

    Once your booth is packed up and you are safely back home from a trade show, it feels like a huge relief. But you are not done yet. Take a deep breath, get a good nights rest, and then finish off the trade show. Here is the after show checklist that I go through. 

    1. Unpack Trade Show Boxes and Restock

    It is important to unpack between shows when possible. You can check your supplies, remove any trash, and restock as needed. I learned this the hard way. I didn’t unpack between shows and sent lead cards to another show – lead cards we needed to do give aways. 

    Also like to count the zip ties, pens, etc. to make sure that I have enough for the next show. See what you should keep in your trade show box here. 

    2. Follow Up with Leads

    Following up with the people you spoke with is one of the most important steps you can take for a trade show. Send an email to the basic leads, call those that were hot. You can read about following up here. 

    3. Check Your Invoices

    Trade shows are large operations and mistakes can happen. Double check your final invoices for any errors. Most show management and operators are more than happy to correct any issues that you bring to their attention if you do so respectfully. 

    Always check any hours that you have to pay for services and installs. This is where the biggest issues can happen – especially around over time and gold time. 

    4. Do a Wrap Up Meeting

    Bring together the people from your company that were at the show. Talk about what went well, what could have gone better, and any ideas that can be used for the next show. Use the trade show survey. 

    Trade Shows are not done when you walk off the floor with your packed boxes. You need to complete the four steps above to make sure you get the greatest return on your investment.

    Bringing Traffic to Your Booth

    Bringing Traffic to Your Booth

    Business, Events, Trade Show

    Trade shows are about how many peoples you can see if a very short amount of time. You have 4 – 8 seconds for your booth design to grab people attention and make them stop to speak with you. So how do you bring people to your booth?

    Traffic Starts Before the Show

    Bringing traffic to your booth starts with your pre-show marketing. Emails, social media, and direct mailers are all great ways to drive up interest. 

    A great way that a company did this was that they sent everyone a dollar and if you brought that dollar by their booth to match it with the serial number, you then got $100. Another time, I was sent a chemical test strip, if it turned a certain color you won a prize and were entered into the grand prize. 

    For the larger shows, work on finding your target market. You can set up appointments ahead of time, or offer a giveaway that will draw in that target market.

    Traffic In Your Booth

    First thing to do in your booth is smile and look at the passing crowd. Do not spend money on your booth and then sit behind a table and look at your phone or laptop. I ban phones and any computers not being used for demos in my booths. I also remove chairs. You can read about that here. 

    One of my favorite designs is a business that could do small batch runs for bottling and they put up a big banner in their booth that stated the exact run size they could do. This was a huge show, after they left, they had contracts to run for the next two months with leads that would book them out of the year. They had their larger competitors sending people to them and they sent larger orders to their competitors – ensuring the customer received the service that they needed. 

    Tying your booth design, major offerings, and marketing together, will bring people to your booth.

    People are here to engage, so you need to show your willingness to be engaged. 

    The second part of engaging is knowing when someone is not a good fit for your company and how to move them on so you can talk to those who are a good fit. This needs to be done with tact and each person will require different approaches. Practice makes perfect with this. 

    You cannot speak with everyone at a trade show – and you don’t want to. Bring the right people to your booth and drive the ROI of your trade shows through the roof.