How To Choose The Right Trade Show For Your Brand

Selecting the right trade show for you and your brand can determine the success of the venture as a whole. No pressure, right? But no need to worry, we have it all taken care of. Here are a few things you need to consider.. 

SET GOALS

Before anything, set yourself and your brand goals and objectives that you want to achieve at the trade show. What do you want to get out of it? What do you want to accomplish? Are you looking to raise sales? Brand awareness? Or both? You get the gist... Only after clearly defining your objectives should you start looking into trade show options.

 

DEFINE YOUR AUDIENCE

You don't want to waste your time spend your days marketing to the wrong customer. Who is going to be attending the trade shows?  - Their audience and your brand’s target audience need to match up.

 

RESEARCH, RESEARCH, RESEARCH

The best thing you can do in preparation is research. It’s imperative to know your options. With so many types of trade show around, and to ensure success it's best to research every one to find the one (or two) that are best suited to you and your brand. For example, do you want to start small and keep it within a niche with a fewer amount of brands? Or do you want to get as much exposure as possible and go for a larger event?

CHECK THE HISTORY

Now you know what's out there and available to you, it's a good idea to start looking at the show's history; this is where you channel your inner Sherlock. Has it had good reviews from brands and customers who have attended previously? Has it been successful? Find everything you can from statistics to demographics, as well as footfall. Doing this will help you nit-pick and narrow down your choices. 

STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER

And finally... it's a good idea to act like the customer yourself, doing online research is only part of it and can only do so much. In order to get the real experience and get an honest feel of the show, why not go yourself and scoop it out? There’s no better way to find out if it’s the right trade show for you.

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