People get tired of the same old trade show booth ideas, especially if you’re in a somewhat sleepy industry. Why not grab some ideas from other conferences like E3? The exhibitors in these shows don’t just innovate in their products; they also introduce new concepts in their marketing via their booths.
But don’t innovate just for the sake of audience engagement. Keep in mind that you also need to give exhibitors a good ROI. Also, don’t forget your own employees. They need to stay engaged and happy as well.
We talk about trade show booth ideas and more in this week’s roundup. Let’s jump in!
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The Fine Line between Value and Gimmickry
In an effort to stand out in the marketplace, too many event professionals resort to doing gimmickry instead of adding real value for their customers. A classic example is creating an exhibit that engages the crowd on a visceral level (usually using shock or any other strong emotion) while not having anything to do with what the brand offers. This is really frustrating, and people will feel like they are being led on. Another example is giving away obviously cheap items that people will relate to the brand. On the other end of the spectrum is giving away highly valuable prizes that are not related to your brand, attracting freebie-seekers instead. This guide will help you find the fine line between real value and gimmickry so you can truly, authentically stand out.
Give Your Meeting Audience a Pleasant Surprise
In a meeting, anything that hits home can be easily remembered as the defining moment for that particular event. Unfortunately, that moment can produce both good and bad memories. As an event planner, it’s up to you to make sure the meeting’s surprises do not form lasting negative impressions. In the same vein, it’s also important to create positive surprises that will leave your audience genuinely wowed. You can cultivate these experiences by choosing a good venue and by brainstorming in such a way that out-of-the-box learning is stimulated.
Getting Business Done in B2B Trade Shows
In any trade show, the only end game is to create a lasting relationship with potential customers that ends up with them buying your product or service. This is doubly true for B2Bs, since every purchase tends to be a long-term contract. Hence, it’s extremely important you understand what really motivates your buyers, including what personalized solutions you should offer to them. It is also vital to establish a line of communication so deals can be closed later on, while also discovering the “hidden” motivations of buyers when they approach your booth. For that last part, you only have one recourse: listen to them and find out what drives them.
Too many event professionals resort to doing gimmickry instead of adding real value for their customers. Share on X
Do More With A Small Event Budget
Among the event professional’s endless tasks is making sure the event doesn’t go over budget. That means squeezing out as much wow as possible from your available funds. That means knowing the non-negotiables like audiovisual, food and beverage, security, etc., and the places where you can splurge like when creating first impressions. Going green and choosing a practical but meaningful location is also key, along with an ensuring the proceedings of your event are as closely aligned to your goals as possible.
The Many Uses of Live Polling
Icebreakers are nice, but not all people are into all that extroverted activity. What about creating an activity that breaks the ice in all possible ways while not forcing people into possible awkward situations? This is possible using live polls, which can be configured to both engage people and encourage interaction. As a plus, it also helps you gather relevant data that could help in planning and improving future events. There are a dozen ways you could use live polls to stir up the audience, so check out this guide for a few examples.
Now Is The Time for Employee Loyalty
There are companies that focus too much on their customers so that their own employees only seem like second-class citizens. This shouldn’t be the case as your employees are your best and most loyal ambassadors. That means it’s also important to keep your team engaged and impressed just as much as your event attendees. This guide sums up a few ways to make sure your employees have fun at their jobs, which will, of course, carry over to the customers they are serving. Finally, creating a sense of belonging to the brand ensures that your attendees will be greeted by warm and genuine smiles.
SaaStr’s Dayna Rothman, and The Biggest B2B Event in the World
Dayna is the Chief Revenue Officer at the SaaStr, the world’s largest community of SaaS entrepreneurs, founders, and executives. In this interview with the Bizzabo Blog, Dayna discusses the nitty-gritty about how this event grew to be one of the biggest brands in the B2B universe. This includes handling various marketing challenges and inculcating best practices. The insightful interview also reveals the content strategies SaaStr is using, along with event growth techniques that could be valuable to your business.
In any trade show, the only end game is to create a lasting relationship with potential customers that ends up with them buying your product or service. Share on X
Standout Booth Ideas From E3 2018
Los Angeles played host to one of the biggest gaming events of the year, and various titles had a field day showcasing their stunning booth designs to nearly 70,000 video game people. Fortnite capitalized on an immersive space with a custom bus, and a green screen that puts you in-game with 3D mapping. This led them to winning the Best Booth Design award. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Take-Two Interactive designed their space to be an oasis of calm amidst the chaos of E3, with landscaped greens, a simulated sky, and a cafe. Check out more stunning examples of booths in this slideshow.
Building Attendance through Social Media Influence
Influencers have become a very important part of the social media and marketing landscape, and they are an effective means to boost event returns. Thanks to the innate tendency for people to trust peer recommendations, influencer marketing can create a snowball effect to your benefit. A new automation app called snöball capitalizes on this, allowing you to send email campaigns to each influencer on your list while also letting you track conversion rates. This gives you more control over the process of influencer marketing, providing a way to measure its effects.
Get Better Event Search Results with Google
Structured data allows you to help search engines like Google understand your page more. Using this, your website could place itself better within search engine rankings. Understanding how to build structured data and use Google’s event tag can help you get more exposure. Existing event marketing tools such as eventScribe also have support for structured data built in. They allow you to generate rich widgets that pulls data from other Google services like Maps.
This week, we’ve discussed both an old staple of digital marketing: SEO. We also touched on the newer trend on the block of utilizing influencers.
How about you, which technique do you prefer: SEO or influencer marketing? Which worked better for you?
