PR and Social Media Optimize Trade Show Investment

by Jean Ban

According to the Convention Industry Council, trade show spending tops $130 billion a year and is expected to rise as the country emerges from the recession. People still want to meet personally, touch and taste new products, and hear about new services. If youve arranged for a booth, your company has a highly visible space at which sales people can engage prospects and customers. With or without a booth, company representatives can work the show to nurture existing relationships, prospect for new business and evaluate competition.

As important as all these are, being there is only a baseline platform for your engagement. You can amp up the value of your trade show commitment with some tactical public relations and social media, improving your return on investment (ROI) by adding exciting new touchpoints through a pre-show, at-the-show and post-show cycle.

Pump Up the Pre-Show

Go to a show with something new as a platform for messaging. Several months ahead, identify what this new thing will bea new product, new facility, brand extensions, a new corporate chef, even a new operational initiative around a hot topic like green, sustainable or better for you. It could be something as simple as a new contest or promotional event at your booth. Build this new message into pre-show announcements on your website, to your own distribution list, to press and with social media.

Get the maximum value from your exhibitor contract value adds. Let the show management know in plenty of time that you are planning to take advantage of the ups and extras in your show contract. The bigger your contract, the more you can negotiate. For example, some shows offer a free or low-cost email blast to attendees. You can use this to promote your booth. If you have something big to announce, do a press conference. Take advantage of having your materials in the press room. Make sure you get program mentions and inclusion in the shows special shout outs for new products. Ask for articles in the Show Daily publication. Line all this up well in advance of the show.

Sign up in advance for the shows social media platforms. They are becoming increasingly important as messaging and connecting channels. Be a follower of the shows Twitter feed, and like its Facebook page. LinkedIn groups may also be connected to the show. Join them. Check out the shows YouTube channel. These will be active months before the show begins, and they are fertile ground for pre-show networking and messaging.

Develop press materials in advance and post them to your website. Consider if they are worthy of wider distribution to trade press. Certainly a new product would merit a press release and press kit. To that end, update your media lists in plenty of time.

Submit a speaker proposal. Speaking engagements at trade events showcase your companys credentials and position you as a thought leader organization. Get these submissions in months aheadper the shows guidelines. Use its process and forms and target its audience with truly educational content. If you do not feel comfortable presenting solo, offer yourself or your execs as panel participants.

Buzz at the Booth

Make your booth a destination. Keep your booth traffic moving with a calendar of booth events that allows you to invite prospects and clients. Your objective is buzz-worthy activities throughout the show that bring attention to your products, services and people. Post these calendars on easels in front of your booth, Tweet about them, and send text messages to those prospects and clients for whom you have cell phone numbers and permission.

Use your own and the shows Twitter and Facebook platforms to enlarge the audience for your messaging. Tweet (using the shows hashtag) about your booth events and post on Facebook. Be sure to create some videos around whats happening at your boothand at the show itself. You dont need sophisticated equipment. Use an inexpensive flipcam or the video function on your phone. You can post these to your own YouTube channel, and submit them to the shows channel as well.

Here are some examples of buzz-worthy booth events that can be messaged, posted and tweeted:

The point is to create interesting reasons for prospects to visit your booth, stay there for a while, engage with your sales people and have a reason for coming back.

In addition, take lots of photos (yes, you can use your phone) of clients and prospects at your booth. Be sure to have press materials and press kits in the press room as well as at the booth. Schedule meetings with appropriate trade editors and reporters you would like to engage who will be at the show. If you have a noteworthy new product announcement, schedule a press conference. Keep things going throughout the show to generate interest throughout each day.

The Post-Show

The shows over; youre on the plane home, but there is still work to be done.

Continue to use the shows (and your own) Twitter, Facebook and YouTube channels to comment on your positive experiences at the show. On Twitter, keep using the shows hashtag; it will still be active.

Send those images you took at the booth of prospects and clients as part of your immediate follow-up an informal thank you message, a see you soon or well be getting back to you about those products you asked about. If you have video that includes a client or prospect, send that along as well. People love images.

Create photo albums and edit your videos of the show and post them to your companys Facebook, Twitter (use Flickr orTwitpic) and YouTube channels. Be sure to use the tagging function to name the people, companies and products in the photos. That will help with search engine optimization (SEO).

Send a branded email (create a template) a week or so post-show as a more corporate follow-up and as a last touchpoint with the customers you met and those prospects you want to nurture. If you dont have a branded email template, create one. Its an easy way to give your emails additional polish.

Ask people you want to remain in touch with to opt-in to receive a branded e-newsletter at least quarterly. If you dont have one, consider creating one. They are another great way to keep in touch by providing nuggets of useful and interesting data about your company or your industry.

Its now few weeks post-show and its time to get ready for the next one!

Jean Ban is vice president, public relations and social media at Colman Brohan Davis , a Chicago-based integrated marketing firm with a public relations practice serving a wide variety of clients, including food and ingredients companies and science-based organizations.