Building the anticipation

Skyline Exhibits of Central Ohio hosted a great seminar on Sept 16, 2010.  It covered the marketing insights and ideas for a good tradeshow booth.  Here are my notes:

SESSION #1: MARKETING AT TRADE-SHOWS
Kim Allen, Sudden Impact Marketing 

Pre-show Message:
Build the whole presentation around the message
Make it easy to understand
Concise
Help people get to the show - send them tickets, tell them where your booth is located,
Buy a database or use your current list. If you are exhibiting you might have access to attendee names.
Promote your booth well in advance via multiple channels (online, direct mail, print, radio, email, etc.)
A phone campaign can go a long way.
Consider sponsoring the show, your name can then be more visible

At the show
Explore opportunities for having your name to be more than just at your booth.
The large hotels near the show might have sponsor options
get a list of attendees that are staying at the hotel
hang a banner in the hotel
sponsor doorknob hang tags
closed circuit ads

Follow-up
phone/email/visits
take notes during your conversations so when you follow-up the conversation can continue
Nurture the leads with visits and a planned follow-up schedule
Put your company name right in the subject line 

SESSION #2: LEAD MANAGEMENT
Fred Tuzzi, TriComB2B

You need a system that allows leads to come in, qualify, follow-ups

Paying for a badge scanner is a good idea

Suggested timeline:
Show
post-show email with link to micro site with mini survey.
*call them, identify if hot, cold, or non-lead
hot leads go to sales
cold leads get email a month later
Repeat*
hot to sales
cold to trash

BOOTH DESIGN
Kyle Hickman, Cult Marketing

Discover- ethnography quality trumps quantity
Develop- take info from D1 and create a brand strategy (operations, products, marketing)
Deliver- brand roadmap

Plan of attack - Establish your goals
why are you there?
what results do you want?
a plan that leads your audience towards your goal
goal options- traffic and leads, awareness, show/demo product

Message
know your audience
persuade through emotion
convince them rationally

Attract from a distance
even before they are at your booth they should want to find your booth
create visual interest

Get them inside your booth
popcorn
consider the traffic flow - there needs to be an in/out and a pit stop

Show them the way to your goal
[Christine - painting girls on hillside barn, sun in sky]
Dominant, subdominant, subordinate

Deliver the goods
Staff appropriately
make an impression
hand out efficient materials

Research
hire a third party to call your target clients and ask them who they plan to see and why
ask your clients what they liked about your booth and adjust

And to top it off, I won the raffle prize of a lunch bag from TriComB2B

The need to help

Pawan Murthy spoke at the October 5, 2010 Columbus Young Professionals networking breakfast, here are my notes.

Psychological Egoism - there is no deed that is unselfish (selfless)

I am ok with this theory. If everyone did this and realized it was beneficial, it would happen a lot more often.

Steve Geyer, Founder Shadowbox

The people who know you denots the currency of your success (quality  and quantity, ex: 1M pesos vs 10USD)

Dont put all your emotional eggs in one basket. If you spread things out when something fails all is not lost.

Guard your reputation with you life.

What struggles have you overcome?
What struggles are you working to overcome?

Consider helping others out.  A good way to decide how you want to help is by reviewing the needs of persons.  Maslow's hierarchy is a framework of an individuals needs.

I wonder, is there a group hierarchy of needs framework?
Where do you help?