Ideas: 101 Great Ideas for Increasing Your Visibility, Credibility and Profitability by Matt Schoenherr - HTML preview

Ideas #96–101

When getting ready to host a booth at a trade show, once you know the size and area dimensions you'll be working with, the next step is deciding what information and content you want to display. Here are some tips:

#96: Your company name and logo must be visible. If visitors don't know who and what the display is about in a matter of five seconds or less, their interest will be lost. The company's name and logo should be easy to see. Remember: Always include your website address.

#97: Don't make the overall design too distracting. Too much information and clutter will create confusion. Neatness, simplicity, and visibility are some of the most important aspects. Images should be crisp and professional-looking—no low-resolution images. All content should be appropriate and pertain to the rest of the display.

#98: For maximum impact, use color to make a statement, and let your display pop out. Color schemes can help set a specific mood or tone. Pick colors that will correlate with your company's tone and theme.

#99: Successful trade show booths make it easy for visitors to retrieve information. Pass out flyers or business cards. Consider creating interactive displays, such as games, contests, drawings, or giveaways. Think of anything that will get the visitors intrigued and involved. This is a great way to add some flair to your display!

#100: Prior to a big day of participating in a local trade show, make sure you've emailed your customers and prospects to let them know 1. of the trade show (in case they hadn't heard) and 2. of your participation in it. A short e-mail broadcast is a quick, easy, and low-cost way of promoting both the trade show and yourself. The more people who turn out for the trade show, the greater its success; likewise, the more people who stop by your booth, the greater the chance for your success.

#101: Say thank you. Show your appreciation for those who have taken the time to stop by your booth and engage you (when they could have invested their time elsewhere among the hundreds of other booths). This should be viewed as a critical part of your follow-up strategy and can be done over the phone, via e-mail or direct mail, or through a face-to-face visit afterward— just do it. The most powerful showing of gratitude is delivered in person.

1 National Association of County & City Health Officials (2006). Writing a News Release. Retrieved August 29, 2010, from
http://www.naccho.org/advocacy/marketing/guide/news.cfm

2 National Association of County & City Health Officials (2006). Public Service Announcements Template. Retrieved August 29, 2010, from http://www.naccho.org/advocacy/marketing/upload/PSA_TEMPLATE. doc

Matthew J. Schoenherr is a husband, father of four, business owner, and marketing consultant. As the author of Ideas, he continues his work in supporting the worthy goals of service and commerce in the business and nonprofit communities. Matt crafted Ideas to help jump-start sales and branding efforts while improving marketing literacy through a format that is no-nonsense, easy to read and easy to implement.

Dreamscape Multimedia is a full-service web design and marketing clearinghouse offering web design, web hosting, branding and marketing services for small businesses and nonprofits.

Thank you to the following people who provided ideas, inspiration and correction along the way: Kelly Schoenherr-Gram, Chuck Gifford, Jack Pyle, John Meatte, Tom Donaldson, Dennis Wrobleski, Bob Parsons, Christopher Niem Henley and Yvonne LeFave.