We all know of the traditional forms of marketing, such as print and television advertisements. In addition to these, recent technology has made digital marketing such as SEO, social media, and paid media extremely important. However, trade show marketing is often overlooked when creating a marketing plan.
Trade show marketing offers a great opportunity to interact with customers in a personal setting and even show off new products. Unfortunately, these benefits don’t come without a cost, as attending trade shows can cost a massive amount of money. That being said, do the benefits of trade shows outweigh the costs? Is trade show marketing actually effective and worth these massive costs?
Benefits
There are many benefits to attending trade shows and using them to market your products. To start, trade shows typically focus on your particular industry, allowing you many opportunities. For example, you could unveil a new product or service at a trade show in order to generate an increased amount of hype and buzz. In addition, you could take a look at what your competitors in the industry are doing and offering, and you can take their successes and apply them to your own business.
Finally, trade shows offer a great opportunity to get up close and personal with your consumers. It is not uncommon for consumers to come to your booth and have one-on-one conversations, allowing you to deliver personalized sales pitches and acquire new customers.
Costs
The biggest drawback to trade show marketing is the massive costs that are associated with them. Trade shows usually require a large fee in order to acquire a spot on the trade show floor. The better the spot, the more money you will have to pay. This means that if you want a prime location, you will need to shell out large amounts of cash. This isn’t the only cost associated with trade shows, as you also need to factor in travel costs and hotel accommodations for your trade show employees.
In addition, you will need to use valuable resources to create a booth and design a presentation for trade show attendees, valuable resources that could be used in other areas. In addition, you may need to turn to trade show companies for help in constructing your trade show booth and presentation, something that only adds to your costs.
Effectiveness
When determining the effectiveness of trade show marketing, it all depends on your ability to maximize the benefits while limiting the costs. For example, if you come up with a great presentation and booth and secure many new customers, then the benefits will likely outweigh the costs. If you’re trying to reduce costs, then try booking your trade show location months in advance, as most trade shows usually offer an “early-bird” discount.
In addition, booking trade shows early allows you to get better rates on airfare and hotel accommodations as well. When it comes to trade show marketing, its effectiveness boils down to getting the most out of its benefits and mitigating costs as much as possible.
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