IT’S FROM THEIR PERSPECTIVE, NOT YOURS.
TELL A STORY – THE FULL STORY.
I often say walk in the shoes of your clients. So when a visitor is walking a show floor, think about it from their perspective.
Normally there is plenty of light, colour and movement, and in order to get their attention so they engage with you, answer the following questions with whatever comes to mind first then visualise it. If you can marry them up you will greatly increase the chances attendees will not only process your stand but will stop!
USE OF GRAPHICS…The more attention grabbing the graphics, the greater the impact.
Which of the following does NOT belong?
(click on a, b, c, or d)
Effective graphics should:
- Announce the benefits of your product or service
- Outline product applications
- Reinforce your product and company identity
- Look busy and include as many product/service images as possible
Level playing Field
With the news the Federal Government is looking to introduce a GST for online purchases from overseas, this should strengthen the situation of Australians selling at exhibitions, and should also very much level the playing field.
For some time I have advocated that buying online has changed, and companies need to use online differently, such as through education and newsletter updates
The internet will always allow purchasers to research and price check, but it will become more challenging for buyers to bypass the local market.
So while this bill still needs to be passed, it’s a good time to start changing your online presence – to meet the needs of what buyers are looking for. It also plays into the hands of companies at an exhibition with even more face-to-face contact being experienced – and this of course should lead to more sales!
Gary Fitz-Roy
- Who are you?
This is an interesting question. When you are looking at your stand at a show, the stand needs to reflect who you are, and too often exhibitors become fixated on what they think their competitors want them to be.
- What do you do?
It needs to be simple and focused and shouldn’t be left to the imagination. Make sure what your company does is crystal clear. You need to think ‘billboard on the highway’. You have maximum 3-5 seconds to deliver that message.
- Who are your current clients?
Don’t forget them. While you want new clients, you don’t want to throw the baby out with the bath water! Have something that acknowledges them.
- What impression do you want to leave about your company?
If you want people to think you’re high end, service driven, or customer focused etc., this needs to come through.
- Is your branding message clear?
You need to be clear on whether your company name is stronger than the brand name you’re selling or vice versa. Too often business owners are more emotionally attached to their company name when no one really knows it, or it’s known about as well as the brand of the product/service they sell. Whatever is the stronger, that is what needs to lead and be the focal point of your stand.
- Do customers really know what your company does?
Do they really know you, what products you manufacture, how you work with the community, or what charities or associations you are involved with? These are all important factors that help tell your business story.
- What message do you want to get across?
You need to be the solution to everything they want.- Use key words that work including: NEW, SAVE/CHEAPER, BETTER, EFFECTIVE, SOLUTION, FASTER, SAFER, FRIENDLY.
- Engage them, stop them and get them to enter your stand. Whether it’s big or small, stop people in their tracks with words like LEARN, DEMONSTRATION, SAVE, WIN.
- Ask a question that you know is a common problem so they will relate to you.
- Use bold graphics. They don’t have to tell a whole story but they need to be easily seen and quickly understood. One suggestion is to use one big hero image as the back drop to the message.
Exhibiting is essentially bringing your company and product to life in a three dimensional manner, and if you can connect using the seven points above it will make all the difference to what, and how, they think about you.
See you on the floor.
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