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The Importance of Exhibitor Marketing

Exhibitor Marketing is a surefire way to generate quality leads and increase brand awareness if done effectively. These industry-specific events allow you to showcase and promote your products to an audience that may have little knowledge of your services. Our industry experts at eShow offer a strategic guide on how to make your next exhibitor marketing campaign one of success.

Lead Retrieval

Lead retrieval is one of the most effective ways to share contact information and network on the event floor that in turn, transitions into qualifying leads. We recommend using a fully integrated lead retrieval system that offers both exhibitors and attendees a universal experience. Our on-the-ground experts equip you with all you need to know for attendee detail tracking, Excel reporting, CEU verification, and more. Self-powered and easy to use, our compact and portable units will help you take entrepreneurship to the next level. 

Show Organizers

Set your next tradeshow up for success with a show organizer designed to optimize your tech stack. Lay the groundwork for long-term growth and expansion by developing a comprehensive strategy and plan of action. Look for a show organizer that provides you with the necessary tools to promote, sell, and manage your next exhibition or trade show. Utilize services like partnership outreach, market research, and more.

Exhibit Sales Management
Exhibitors want technology services that are straightforward and set them apart from the competition. With Exhibit Sales Management, users can easily select booths, add sponsors, and smoothly manage all functions of shopping and finances; they even get access to VEM Exhibitor Analytics for a smart, enhanced experience. Utilize our administrative tools to manage your exhibitors financially (and beyond) with reporting, eBlasts, invoicing, and more.

Attendees

Connecting to your target audience has become more crucial than ever. Engagement and exposure are at the forefront of exhibitor marketing, and we want to help you incorporate new opportunities for growth and ROI. Gamification has become more prominent over the last few years, and we don’t see it going away anytime soon. Gamification is known to spark engagement and increase lead capture more so than exhibiting booths that do not have activation or gaming features. Get ahead of the curve and integrate SmartMatch technology that will ‘wow’ your audience.

A few steps to ensure success from both exhibitor marketing expenditures and sales success:

  • To ensure your company’s business objectives are incorporated into your trade show sales messages, collateral, product positioning, etc., it’s essential to establish specific, quantifiable goals that you want to achieve. Whether the show is online, in-person, or hybrid, the goals should be measurable and achievable.
  • Once you have established your goals, write and design product and company brochures as well as any other necessary collateral. However, hold off on printing them for now as you may need to update them before the show.
  • Create a pre-show email marketing campaign to inform prospects and customers that you will be exhibiting. Offer them a discount registration code if you have one, and let them know what products or services you will be showcasing at the event. This will help generate interest before the event even starts.
  • After the show, create a post-show email marketing campaign to thank participants for attending and provide them with additional information on your company and products. This is an excellent opportunity to convert leads into customers by offering promotions, discounts or free trials.
  • You should work with your sales team to determine what constitutes a qualified lead and come to an agreement on how the leads will be turned over to sales for immediate follow-up after the show.
  •  Establish clear protocols on how and when leads will be distributed to each salesperson as well as the follow-up process. By doing so, you will ensure that your sales team can effectively convert leads from prospects to customers.

Learn more about how eShow can help level up your exhibitor marketing with a personal demo. Our expert team is ready to find a customizable solution that fits your needs and ensures success at your next show.

For additional helpful resources, check out some industry partners we highly reccomend!

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Audio, Visual and Lighting Tips For your Next Hybrid Event

Let’s face it. COVID-19 has created a profound change in the way we meet and exchange ideas. Event organizers and managers are now faced with a sink-or-swim challenge – creating imaginative new ways to hold events or bust.

Out of necessity, but accustomed to always having a ‘Plan B,’ event organizers quickly pivot to a whole new world of challenges. Now the hybrid event, a combination of in-person and virtual experiences, is becoming the hottest trend in planning and holding events.

Organizing registrations, boosting virtual engagement, and networking for the hybrid option now propels your responsibilities to new heights. No less daunting is the task of ensuring that the technical aspects of hybrid events roll out without a hitch. Requirements for the audio, visual, and lighting aspects of a hybrid event have become doubly important.

Here are some tips to help you take on these technical challenges while considering attendees’ two different experiences during a hybrid event.

Choose A Venue That Can Support Technical Needs

For the in-person piece of your hybrid event, you have many new boxes to check when choosing a venue. Everything from a schedule to sanitize surfaces, to room airflow and physical distancing is now on your list. Audio, visual, and lighting capabilities should also be on your list when narrowing down the venue choices. But more on that below. First, let’s look at the factors affecting the streaming of your event.

High-Speed Internet + Loads of Bandwidth is A Must!

Maybe you’re planning a large-scale hybrid event that includes online learning applications, streaming audio/video, and the ability to download brochures or other digital materials. You’re going to need the highest speed internet and bandwidth possible. This is true, not only for online participants. In-person attendees also need uninterrupted access to their email and any streaming or virtual elements needed to connect with the remote participants.

Imagine a  couple hundred people using mobile devices and laptops simultaneously to participate in online polls, attend virtual lounges, and consume streaming audio/video. That’s going to take a lot of bandwidth! The more attendees you have, the higher the demand.

Inadequate speed and bandwidth can ruin your audio and video with remote participants experiencing lag time, or even worse – seeing a frozen screen and leaving the event thinking they’ve lost their own connection.

Ask the venue for their upload/download speeds. If your venue can’t support the demand or the cost is prohibitive, investigate purchasing an internet package from an ISP that provides wireless service for major events. You might even arrange for your own private network, which means you won’t have to worry about outsiders in the same venue gobbling up bandwidth.

Audio

What is the most common phrase you’ve heard online over the past year?

“You’re on mute.” 

“We can’t hear you.” 

“Sorry, we’re having technical difficulties.” 

Audio problems are one of the most common reasons people get frustrated in a virtual setting and leave, so you must get this aspect of your event right.

For crystal clear audio, include a quality microphone on the checklist for remote presenters. Ask them to ensure that they have a quiet room with no pets or children demanding attention. A good P.A. system is a must at the live venue, and presenters who move around will need lavalier microphones.

As for your web-based system, make sure you’re using an advanced online platform that includes reliable audio technology. For example, consider a Webinar Event Management platform that provides high-end customer support.

To avoid lag when remote participants interact with live presenters, ensure your audio streaming does not automatically include a delay.

Visuals

You’ve become a master of curating content at your events, packing them with fascinating guests, images, slides, and videos. At a hybrid event, you need to boost the engagement of virtual attendees who need extra attention to detail. For example, try adjusting your camera angles to show the presenters’ faces and expressions more clearly for remote viewers.

If you plan to show a remote guest on screen interacting with an in-person presenter, position a screen at the presenter’s side. When not used for conversation, this screen can be turned on to display remote attendees, connecting the two audiences. The live presenter can then turn to the remote guest and interact in a traditional in-person conversation.

For video and slide presentations, do tests to check if all visual elements can be easily seen when viewed on a laptop. You’ll need a high-resolution video feed to ensure your content is clear and legible, especially if the text appears on slides. Recorded videos should be shot with high-definition cameras for a crisp look, and screens should be big enough for both in-person and remote attendees to see the content.

Lighting

At a hybrid event, you need to heighten the immersive experience for your virtual attendees. Good lighting is crucial to ensure remote viewers feel like they really are a part of it all. Your expensive cameras and screens will be wasted without proper lighting.

One way to help remote viewers have the best experience is to include shots of the live audience during the action to ensure that lighting covers both the stage and the audience. In addition, lighting may need to cover specific audience locations, for example, where mics are set up for Q&A sessions.

Ask remote presenters to ensure a clean background with no distractions behind them and request they purchase a video conference lighting kit. These affordable video kits can include a stand, a phone holder, and an LED ring light that clips onto their laptop to soft light their face.

When looking for the best lighting options at the venue, consider brightness, adjustability, and durability. It would be best to choose durable LED floodlights for longer distances or a softer ring light for closeups of the talent.

Enlist Support

Even if you’ve thought of everything, minor and sometimes major mishaps can happen during any event.

If you want extra insurance for a smooth program, ensure technical support is dedicated to troubleshooting at the event. Internet connections, network, visual, audio, and lighting need constant vigilance to prevent and fix any issues.

Hold a rehearsal with support and include a team of testers viewing remotely on laptops to report any concerns. Keep a list of mobile phone numbers for each of your support contacts to quickly troubleshoot any problem that may arise.

The big day is coming! With eShow’s web-based products and services, rest assured you’ll have customer support helping you master the technical challenges of your hybrid event.

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