It’s been two years since economic turmoil spooked your management and they shut down or pulled back your trade show program to conserve cash. But things are different now. The economy is looking up, shows are getting more attendees, and exhibitors are reporting increasing numbers of interested prospects visiting their trade show displays.

That resurgence has you itching to get back into trade shows, to get face-to-face with hundreds, even thousands of prospects. And since those prospects are also getting their budgets unfrozen, they’re eager to meet you, too.

But before you jump back in, don’t just dust off your 2008 plan. So much has happened since then to your customers, and in your company, your trade shows, your industry, and the economy. Instead, get a clean sheet of paper, grab a pencil, and consider these 6 points:

1. Revised Marketing Objectives
Check to see if the marketing objectives that drove your old trade show program are still appropriate. Are your marketing goals now focused on retaining clients, or were your clients so disproportionately hurt by the downturn that you’re targeting new customers now? Do you have to build distribution or increase awareness in a stronger market you’re now expanding into? Do you lack new products ready to launch, so you’ve got to take a different tack in your trade show booth? If any of this rings true with you, go back to square one. Huddle with your management team and determine your revamped goals for exhibiting, so you can adjust the rest of your trade show program.

2. Revamped Trade Show Selection
While adjusting to the downturn, your company may have remade itself. It could have retreated to its core market, or shifted its resources to focus on the stronger remaining markets. Thus, some shows on your old schedule are unnecessary, and perhaps some new shows should be sought out. Plus, the downturn affected show owners unequally. You need to determine which shows are still strong, and have the resources to invest in bringing in and engaging attendees. Also consider which shows you will choose if your budget is only partially restored. And finally, if you are in the United States, consider trying more international trade shows, because emerging markets are growing twice as fast as the U.S.

3. Reshaped Budget
Is your trade show budget completely restored, or only partially? Even if you get it all back, you may wish to adjust how it’s spent based on the shows you keep and add, the size booth you need to meet your marketing goals, how beat-up or off-message your current trade show exhibit is, and how you’ll invest in promotions in this new era of social media. And while you may be asked to bring fewer booth staffers, remember that you simply can’t take as many leads without the booth staffers to take them.

4. Reinvigorated Exhibit Design
Based on your updated marketing objectives, recalibrated show selection, and revised budget, you may need to change your booth’s size, its marketing message, and even its shape (so its architecture better supports your new goals). So pulling your old trade show display off the shelf may be counter-productive. It might be time to look at getting a new trade show exhibit that better represents the new company you have evolved into.

5. Rebuilt Booth Staffing
Take a look at the desks around yours. Is the entire crack team of booth staffers you once took to trade shows still intact? Or were some of your best booth staffers “right sized” right out the door? If so, you need to go on a recruiting mission to rebuild your team. Your best bet? Ask your remaining ace veterans who they’d choose. They’ll know the like-minded candidates who have the right attitude, knowledge, and work ethic to best represent you on the show floor.

6. Reshaped Promotions
In the last two years, social media has reshaped the marketing world. To what extent social media has taken hold in your target market will guide how much you need to shift your promotional activity into social media. You may find you can get the same results reaching out to show attendees via Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn than you can with emails, directory ads, and post card mailers. You won’t know until you try.

As marketers, we are not living in the same world we had before the downturn. So you can’t go back to the same old trade show program you used to run. I hope this gives you some ideas on how to not only restart, but even revitalize your trade show program as well.

How long has it been since you walked into a library?

With our current economic concerns, more people seem to be entering their local libraries.   Being able to “rent” books, movies & cd’s and having an resource for cost effective entertainment.

Why not “rent” your next trade show display?

Exhibit rental offers cost effective solutions for both small & larger companies.  Having a local Chicago Trade Show Display dealer that has the ability to work with you on pop-up exhibits, portable displays or custom trade show booths you can be creative and versatile when it comes to your trade show strategies.

Trade show exhibit rental offers a flexible solution, being able to choose the exhibit that fits your needs.   Rental packages are customizable and functional and can be utilized to gain a bigger presence with add on accessories as well as interchangeable visual graphics for a variety of messages and products.

Exhibit rental can be your library to cost effective trade show solutions.

If you are unsure of where to begin, start by teaming up with a Skyline Exhibits partner that is well versed in all the facets of trade show planning and preparation and success will follow.  Online exhibit management programs can track events, track results and can supply you with 24/7 access to your entire trade show program.

Leaving you with more time to focus on your face-to-face marketing strategies while at the tradeshow.  Contact your local Chicago Trade Show Displays dealer to find out more information on how a customized exhibit management program can help alleviate your biggest trade show obstacles.

With a dedicated and knowledgeable trade show service & asset management team, your registration and deadlines can be managed easily and flawlessly, with no need for worry when it comes to all the rules and regulations to exhibit at the upcoming Annual Midwinter Meeting for Dental Professionals.

There are many facets of Trade Show Asset Management & Services that require proper paperwork to be turned in, if you are still managing your own exhibit, do no forget to submit your requests with the proper documentation and trade show service forms for all the following elements that will make up your entire trade show display.

Exhibitor Certificate of Insurance
Exhibitor-Appointed Contractor Certificate of Insurance
Trade Show Display & Exhibit height variance requests
Requests to hold demonstrations within your trade show display
Sound Projection requests
Trade Show Entertainment & Celebrity requests for approval
Proposals for Trade Show Give-a-ways, prizes & raffles

Each of the above elements are necessities for a succesful trade show exhibit & display program, your local Chicago Skyline Exhibit Dealer can assist you with the details of your trade show program so that none of the requirements are overlooked.

Registration for 2009 National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show® and International Wine, Spirits & Beer Event Now Open

Special early online-only pricing offered through December 1, 2008

The National Restaurant Association today announced that attendee registration is now open for its 2009 Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Trade Show and International Wine, Spirits & Beer Event (IWSB). A special online-only discount is available for restaurant and hospitality industry professionals who register before December 1, 2008. NRA Show 2009 will be held May 16-19 at McCormick Place in Chicago, and is the largest industry trade event in the world. IWSB 2009 will be held in conjunction with the NRA Show on Sunday, May 17, and Monday, May 18, and is the only beverage alcohol event exclusively focused on the restaurant and hospitality industry. Attendees may register online at www.restaurant.org/show or www.winespiritsbeer.org.

“If restaurant and hospitality industry professionals could only attend one trade show next year, the NRA Show would be their absolute best choice,” said Lorna Donatone, Convention Chair for NRA Show 2009 and President of School Services, Sodexo, Inc. “The event gathers the best and the brightest of the industry in one place, among 2,200 exhibitors showcasing thousands of products and services. No other industry trade show offers more opportunities or more excitement, and we are pleased to provide special registration prices to committed individuals who want to get a head-start on the next business year.”

General attendees registering for IWSB will automatically be registered for the NRA Show. However, those registering for the NRA Show will not automatically be registered for IWSB; separate qualifications, registration and badges are required for IWSB.

Before December 1, 2008, registration for the NRA Show is $30, and IWSB registration is $85. Between December 2 and April 10, 2009, NRA Show registration is $40 and IWSB registration is $95. After April 10, 2009, registration fees increase to $80 for the NRA Show and $135 for IWSB.
National Restaurant Association members receive free registration for the NRA Show and the value-added discount rate of $55 for IWSB when registering any time.

The NRA Show attracts more than 71,500 industry professionals from 100+ countries and is the premier venue to find new products and services, build relationships and network, learn from experts and peers, as well as explore the latest trends in food and beverage, equipment, training and cooking techniques.

Now in its second year, IWSB is the industry’s first and only professional forum focused exclusively on restaurant and hospitality bar programs. Held in a separate exhibit area of McCormick Place, the event gathers brewers, vintners and distillers, leading beverage experts, beverage alcohol buyers and more in one exclusive area.

Registration for NRA Show 2009 and IWSB 2009 exhibitors and for news media will begin later this fall.

Celebrating its 90th year, the annual National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show is the largest single gathering of restaurant, food service and lodging professionals in the world. The 2009 Show will be held May 16-19, at McCormick Place in Chicago. The event attracts more than 2,200 exhibiting companies and 71,500 attendees and visitors from all 50 states and 100+ countries. For more information, visit the Show Web site at National Restaurant Show

Written by: Sue Hensley

Looking for more information on modular exhibits, or trying to find out just what is the right fit for your trade show needs? Request a brochure

www.youtube.com/watch?v=cugB2orJ9q8

Tradetec Skyline in Chicago, realizes there is a great potential to reach high quality attendees at trade shows, increasing your lead generation by exhibiting is one of the major reasons that companies should continue exhibiting.

Tradetec Skyline would like to help you get the exposure on the trade show floor, by helping minimizing some of the cost that goes into your trade show marketing. With dedication to customers and quality exhibit solutions Tradetec Skyline is willing to help minimize the cost and concerns when you are trying to make the decision and answer the question – Should I Exhibit at Trade Shows?

Offer valid upon signing up for Tradetec’s Blue Ribbon Service

Promo Details:

• 10′x10′ or 10′x 20′ Tube Ultra Hardware Rental – FREE OF CHARGE* – A $3,500 VALUE
• Choice of inline exhibit designs from 10′x10′ to
  10′ x 20′
• Design & Purchase the graphics to be applied to Tube Ultra Hardware

With the concern of fuel prices and economic uncertainty, your trade show marketing strategies may be in flux, any exhibit house can build you an exhibit booth, but what kind of Trade Show Services do they offer? Tradetec Skyline will never let SERVICE get lost in the sales process.

Tradetec Skyline is excited to offer their NEW Blue Ribbon Services. Designed to take the tedious work of show books, booth inventory and exhibit shipping off your hands, leaving you time for more important trade show planning, marketing and event preparation.

For immediate information on the Free Exhibit Booth Program:
Contact Tradetec Skyline via email or phone 630-629-9317