Quick Tips

How to have a good tradeshow

• Preparation, preparation, preparation
• Communicate, communicate, communicate
• Make sure people know that you’re going to be there, and why – internal and external
• People will go to your website first – not phone you, not e-mail you, not Skype you
• Keep your website updated to reflect your position, message and offering
• Don’t miss deadlines – exhibition organisers, graphic generation, media, partners, etc.
• Ensure online product directories/catalogue entries are up-to-date and maintained
• Use the facilities of the tradeshow available to you, be that a customer appointment system, pre-registered media or complimentary visitor passes
• Research co-operative advertising/marketing with partners to greater enhance visibility
• Utilise facilities offered to you through membership of organisations, i.e. IABM, IEEE, etc.
• Generate PRs that are relevant, i.e. new products, mergers, acquisitions and distribute them
• Follow-up, follow-up, follow-up

Press Releases

• Make sure a topic is PR-worthy
• Ensure that you have a full understanding of why it was purchased; precisely how it’s going to be used and get a customer quote whenever possible
• Determine the use of the press release; be it for print media, web, or internal consumption
• Highlight the business/commercial aspect of a sale, not just the technology
• Establish additional uses of the information used to generate a press release; possibilities include a user story, web feature or opinion piece
• Consider the likely audience for each release
• Always, always get approval from all relevant parties

Articles

• Confirm topic and use for article – be it for a trade publication, spotlight on website or conference/speaking opportunity
• Always adhere to the guidelines and word count
• Don’t miss a deadline
• Images/diagrams are very important to visually illustrate an article and should be included whenever possible