Why should you exhibit at a trade show?

Exhibiting at a trade show is a great way to reach new customers, promote your brand and products, and make connections with potential partners. But, if you’re on the fence about exhibiting, here are some other benefits you may not have considered.

Trade shows may appear time consuming, since they require planning and travel, but they can actually save you quite a bit of time. Compared to recruiting new customers and setting up individual time with them, trade shows enable you to meet with many people at once. Additionally, face-to-face interactions give you the chance to provide further information than a sales call will. At a trade show, you’ll not only reach many customers, but you’ll also be introduced to new segments of your industry.

Staying up-to-date on your industry is essential to successful marketing. Trade shows expose you to your competitors and other members of your industry. You’ll learn where your industry is going and what trends you should be capitalizing on.  This also means that you’ll have access to all of the influential players in your industry, who might be interested in adapting your product or service.

Attending a trade show is an investment in your company’s future.  If you approach exhibiting with a measurable goal in mind, it’s a great opportunity to be involved in your industry. Your sales team will be able to reach new customers and have more meaningful interactions with those customers. Trade show exhibiting is a chance to make your company, brand, and products shine.

You can also combine exhibiting at a trade show with sponsoring the event. This combination will increase your company’s profile at the event and make your brand stand out above the competition. Whatever your exhibiting and sponsoring goals, Ticket Summit® has a number of packages that are suited to fit your needs. Prices are going up January 1, though, so you’ll want to act soon. To learn more, visit www.ticketsummit.org or call 860-416-5767.

Webinar Recap—Publicity: Boost Your Profile!

This Wednesday, publicist and media strategist Carrol Van Stone shared some tips and tricks for using media coverage to boost your company’s profile in her Ticket Summit® Plus webinar! Van Stone works to position small business brands for media coverage to have a dramatic influence on awareness and growth. Her work with a ticketing industry company has led to profiles in Forbes and regular appearances on Fox News Live, Yahoo Post Game, and ESPN Radio.

In the webinar, Van Stone said it is important to know how you WON’T get publicity. She has a few hard and fast rules: never call the media to say how great you are, never read the company brochure to a reporter, and never ask why they have quoted your competitor and not you. Remember that reporters and editors work for their company, not yours. Your mention or quote will be the result of your assistance to them, not theirs to you.

You can keep a PR representative on retainer, Van Stone suggested, or you can have a pay per placement arrangement. However, you should never expect any media coverage guarantees. Van Stone offered the old adage: “Advertising is what you pay for, media coverage is what you pray for.” Instead, Van Stone recommends gauging the media efforts of the PR rep you are working with.

Van Stone also discussed unusual or underused methods of boosting your company profile, such as paid editorial or op-ed pieces. Paid editorial will guarantee your coverage, but might be obvious to viewers/readers that you have paid for the opportunity. Op-Ed pieces and letters to the editor can provide extra coverage, but must cover timely and relevant topics.

Be sure to follow Van Stone on Twitter at @VanStonePublic for more tips! The Fall 2013 Ticket Summit® Plus webinar series continues on Wed., October 23 at 1 PM ET with How to Prevent Online Fraud. Register now for FREE!

Get your Swag on at Trade Shows and Conferences

Exhibiting at trade shows is an important way to network and build professional relationships within any industry. It is an effective way to establish and extend your company's brand and services. Consider the hustle and bustle of the conference environment and the competition to stand out from the crowd, as you take the time to prepare a booth that will tell your company's story and highlight your capabilities.

Swag items are the little give-away items you'll take away from a trade show display.  Your choice of swag can go a long way to help you attract foot traffic during a trade show, and also create lasting impressions over time. Careful thought should be given to selecting the swag items to represent your business.

Flashy swag items at your booth are great to attract people, but if these items aren't useful over time, they will fail to support your efforts to create lasting connections with the conference attendees. People may be more impressed with the swag than with your business. Think of sensible items with enough pizazz to bring people to your booth so you have the opportunity to engage them and sell your services.

The ideal swag item should be something your contacts and potential customers will use over time, but also something relevant to your industry. For example, if you are a technology company, a useful high-tech device would be logical; if you are an agricultural company, perhaps a gardening tool, or even a pen that is designed with images or shapes of agricultural symbols.

Remember to brand your swag with your company logo and a means of contact. Printing your company website or a QR code on your swag will support communication and interaction over time. Even if your contact loses your business card, that really cool pen or flash drive with your web address will be a handy reminder of who to contact long after the show.

Stay Connected Year-Round with Ticket Summit® Plus!

Ticket Summit® may be over, but you can stay connected year-round with Ticket Summit® Plus. Ticket Summit® Plus is a series of educational webinars hosted by industry experts. These  experts will provide you with an inside look into the ticketing and live entertainment industry. They will also discuss development strategies to help you grow your business. The Fall 2013 webinar series features these webinars:

·         Social Media Marketing Demystified: Tuesday, August 20 at 1 PM ET—Ron Cates of Constant will pull back the veil on social media marketing, and provide practical tips and tricks for promoting your business across a variety of platforms.

·         Publicity: Boost Your Profile!: Wednesday, September 18 at 1 PM ET—Join publicist and media strategist Carrol Van Stone for this informative session on using publicity and media coverage to boost your company’s profile.

·         Inside Sports: In October 2013, Tickets.com’s Doug Lyons will provide an insider’s look at sports team and venue management and how markets have evolved.

·         How to Prevent Online Fraud: In November 2013, Cresta Pillsbury of Trust Guard will discuss tactics for decreasing fraud and ensuring customer confidence.

Register now for Ticket Summit® Plus for just $99 per webinar, and stay up-to-date on the ticketing and live entertainment industry all year long!