{"id":165,"date":"2024-04-08T21:40:07","date_gmt":"2024-04-08T21:40:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/?p=165"},"modified":"2024-04-08T21:40:07","modified_gmt":"2024-04-08T21:40:07","slug":"7-tradeshow-mistakes-to-avoid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/7-tradeshow-mistakes-to-avoid\/","title":{"rendered":"7 Tradeshow Mistakes and How to Avoid Them"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_65 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-662cc9564d04b\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-662cc9564d04b\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/7-tradeshow-mistakes-to-avoid\/#7_Things_Not_to_Do_at_a_Tradeshow\" title=\"7 Things Not to Do at a Tradeshow\">7 Things Not to Do at a Tradeshow<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-4' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/7-tradeshow-mistakes-to-avoid\/#Tradeshows_can_be_a_large_expense_for_many_event_planning_companies_A_tradeshow_is_also_an_ideal_opportunity_to_expose_your_product_and_service_to_a_targeted_audience_If_you_dont_take_the_time_to_plan_execute_and_follow-up_then_youve_probably_just_wasted_both_your_time_and_money\" title=\"Tradeshows can be a large expense for many event planning companies. A tradeshow is also an ideal opportunity to expose your product and service to a targeted audience. If you don\u2019t take the time to plan, execute and follow-up then you\u2019ve probably just wasted both your time and money.\">Tradeshows can be a large expense for many event planning companies. A tradeshow is also an ideal opportunity to expose your product and service to a targeted audience. If you don\u2019t take the time to plan, execute and follow-up then you\u2019ve probably just wasted both your time and money.<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n<p>Love them or hate them, a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210517170141\/http:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/glossary\/trade-show\/\">tradeshow<\/a>&nbsp;can be an effective way to get your product or service in front of a very targeted audience. Now that\u2019s not saying that you\u2019re guaranteed sales from your tradeshow efforts. Rather with the right approach, and the right staff, you do have an opportunity to gain quick exposure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the meetings and events industry tradeshows still play an important &nbsp;role. I\u2019ve been part of several tradeshows where I have to admit the audience didn\u2019t seem eager. Some trade associations try their best to increase tradeshow attendance. That in and of itself can be a hard sale. But many associations have taken unique approaches when incorporating tradeshows into their educational programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you approach tradeshows with a laissez-faire attitude well, as the saying goes, you get back what you put out. Here are seven things that you would be best to avoid if you\u2019re spending hard-earned dollars on your booth at a trade show.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"7_Things_Not_to_Do_at_a_Tradeshow\"><\/span>7 Things Not to Do at a Tradeshow<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Staff your booth with staff not trained (or staff that don\u2019t know your product\/service).<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You\u2019ve probably seen the good looking women and men manning those tradeshow booths who seemed more interested in themselves than in conversing with you. I get why some companies hire models to staff their booths. They get people\u2019s attention. But when it boils down to answering the questions that attendees have, good solid operational questions, there\u2019s little substance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Eating\/Drinking in the booth.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This one is a real pet peeve of mine. To me nothing looks more unprofessional than people standing in a booth shoving food into their mouths. Yes of course there\u2019s nothing wrong with quenching your thirst. Even that can be done discreetly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Schedule breaks and when it\u2019s necessary leave the booth to eat. Plain and simple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Talking negatively about the competition.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This one can be a real dealbreaker. While a potential customer may not like your competition, it\u2019s not your place to pile onto those opinions. I suggest that you simply reply with: \u201coh that\u2019s really too bad\u201d or \u201cI\u2019m sorry to hear that\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The best way to outshine your competition is to not slam them. Rather prove through your actions and your integrity why you would make a better choice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Having no specific goal or expectations from the tradeshow.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019ve often heard from industry colleagues about how ineffective tradeshows are to them. And oddly enough when I asked them what their expectations were they really didn\u2019t have specific goals. Well how can you expect success if you don\u2019t know what you\u2019re striving for in the first place? Simply attending a tradeshow and crossing your fingers that your phone will start ringing off the hook is not a recipe for success. If that\u2019s your approach do yourself and your company a favor \u2013 don\u2019t attend the tradeshow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If you know what your expectations are it\u2019s a lot easier to measure whether or not the event was a success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Behaviour outside of tradeshow hours.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We all like to socialize and have fun at industry events. And there\u2019s certainly nothing wrong with having a good time with colleagues. But you have to remember that at these events you are always representing your company. Having a few too many drinks along with over-the-top behavior will get you remembered. But probably for all the wrong reasons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Writing people off because they don\u2019t represent possible sales.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I really hate when the person I\u2019m talking with keeps looking over my shoulder. To me he or she is basically saying that I\u2019m boring them. That\u2019s usually my cue to get as far away from that individual as possible. Even if I wanted information about the service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>No follow up or system in place post tradeshow.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This point is similar to having no goals for the tradeshow. If you don\u2019t have a follow-up system in place then you\u2019re wasting your time and hard earned dollars. As the saying goes: success is in the follow-up. And do not wait too long before you start contacting those leads. They meet a lot of companies like yours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Tradeshows_can_be_a_large_expense_for_many_event_planning_companies_A_tradeshow_is_also_an_ideal_opportunity_to_expose_your_product_and_service_to_a_targeted_audience_If_you_dont_take_the_time_to_plan_execute_and_follow-up_then_youve_probably_just_wasted_both_your_time_and_money\"><\/span>Tradeshows can be a large expense for many event planning companies. A tradeshow is also an ideal opportunity to expose your product and service to a targeted audience. If you don\u2019t take the time to plan, execute and follow-up then you\u2019ve probably just wasted both your time and money.<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Love them or hate them, a&nbsp;tradeshow&nbsp;can be an effective way to get your product or service in front of a very targeted audience. Now that\u2019s not saying that you\u2019re guaranteed<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=165"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":166,"href":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165\/revisions\/166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mastertheevent.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}