Don"t leave it to chance
Planning in advance and setting achievable goals for your first exhibition is essential and can have a massive impact on the experiences and knowledge gathered. It is advisable to begin planning approximately 8 months before the exhibition begins as a well planned exhibition is a successful exhibition.
Think of your audience
When planning for your exhibition, bare in mind that every exhibition is different to every exhibitor, right down to the exhibition display used. Regardless of experience and budget, everyone is in the same boat trying to attract the larger audience and it is always important to consider your audience and think about what they are looking for. What are their objectives from coming to an exhibition? What will they be looking for? How can you leave an impression? All this can drive what you need to prepare for, such as product demonstrations, knowledge of your team and the literature you need to have available.
Goals and targets
Regardless of whether it is your first exhibition or your hundredth, it is important that you go to an exhibition knowing the goals and targets you are aiming for. The types of goals and targets you are aiming for will differ depending on the product or service you are providing. A target might be the amount of sales leads you need in the day by each team member attending or the various levels of commitment you need from contacts, from committed meeting to actual orders Developing a means to measure your expected and actual goals and achievements is a must as this is the only way to ensure progression from day one. Identifying the ideal exhibition to display at, having goals to work towards and planning expenditure are all key for examining pre and post exhibition performance.
Get your design right
Having exhibition displays and plinths that frame and promote your products perfectly are a must. An exhibition display that is organised and tidy is just as important as the products that are on display. It is important to remember to have a correct visual weight of products on display, usually the larger and heavier items are placed at the bottom with the smaller lighter items placed above. In doing this it creates a sense of order and much like at a supermarket, having things correctly displayed can be a sign of quality and professionalism which encourages visitors to purchase. It is possible to hire or buy the necessary exhibition display to fit your requirements, but each of these has their own pitfalls to look out for. To make a more educated decision on hiring or buying your exhibition stand, it might be worth noting a recent hire Vs buy article currently online (http://www.displaysense.co.uk/press-releases/25/exhibition-displays---hire-or-buy?).
Draw people to your stand
Being open and creative with exhibition displays and display stands can give you an edge over the competition and can instantly setup a positive reputation if the display is memorable enough. Promoting your presence at an exhibition well in advance using press releases, articles and email marketing tools can attract even more attention to your exhibition stands and products you are promoting. Attracting visitors with competitions, leaflets and a bit of flare is another sure fire way to attract attention, hire some event performers and purchase a suggestion box in order to attract visitors in and collect valuable details which you can then use as potential sales leads in the future.
Start on your journey of exhibition success
Before taking part at an exhibition for the first time, ensure that you have the right exhibition displays on hand to promote your products or service effectively such as a portable literature holder, plinths, lecterns and banner stands. There are a number of companies such as Displaysense who sell a variety of exhibition stands(http://www.displaysense.co.uk/exhibition-displays-and-plinths).
To ensure you have a successful exhibition, make sure you follow these basic rules as it"s never too late to begin on the road to exhibition success.