Ep 92 - Getting ready to exhibit again??? Hear this first…

Getting back to in person live events has been an interesting journey. From the 3-4 trade shows I’ve attended recently there’s been a lot of change and uncertainty. But I definitely picked up on some great tricks along this short path so far. Tune in to this podcast to hear some tips and tricks you may not expect from going back to events.

1. Request a list before you head over. - Did you know you can request the attendee list? Especially if you are an exhibitor but you can also do it if you’re an attendee who is potentially interested in an expanded relationship down the line. If you don’t get the exact list, you can get a previous list or even take a stab at the exhibitor list that’s available online. Of course, if you are an exhibitor don’t forget to ask your Sales contact for the pre-registered media list in advance so that you can connect and share news with the media during the show.
2. Book meetings in advance if you can. - A best practice that I always preach is to plan ahead as much as possible, however, I did notice that booths weren’t as busy as they have been in the past, so you may want to hit up booths that you REALLY want on the first day and early if you weren’t able to get that appointment.
3. Announce news at the show. - Big fish, small fish and medium fish are all playing in a similar sized pool these days. Don’t shy away from getting media attention and making an announcement or even announcing trends relevant to the show.
4. Go for the big meetings and connect in the App. - You’d be surprised at who is accessible when there aren't many folks around. If your show has an app, download and connect and go for those big meetings. Since less people are on-site (at least for now) you may have a better chance of getting in front of some key players. We all need to eat at some point.
5. Take advantage of happy hours at the show for networking. - The last two tradeshows I went to were both major and both hurting for people to attend their happy hour networking events at the end of the day. Take advantage of this opportunity to turn on the charm, network and unwind all in one.
6. Follow up ASAP. - Attention spans are short and quality connections are few and far between. If you want them to remember you follow up and/or connect as soon as possible. While it’s always ok to reconnect the week that you return to the office, I noticed that the sooner I connect with new people, the more likely I am to remember what we talked about to send a detailed follow up and the more likely they are to remember my face.

If you have other questions we don’t answer in this pod, feel free to check out our website at www.thesilvertelegram.com or send us an email at ronjini@thesilvertelegram.com. Join us on Instagram live on Thursdays as we answer burning PR questions, give tips and talk about industry trends.