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RISING WOMEN EXPERT
ADVICE...
At the last tradeshow I exhibited at I found that
people would steer clear of my booth. What am I doing wrong?
At the last tradeshow I exhibited at I found that people would steer clear
of my booth. What am I doing wrong?
Without actually seeing a good visual of how your booth was set up and how
you presented yourself, this is a difficult question to answer. I will
however offer some general “food for thought” for all our readers on
creating an approachable presence within your booth environment.
- Floor Plan - If you have invested in a 10’ x10’ space, which is the
size of an average booth, then treat it as if you have just purchased a new
home, and decorate it as such. There is nothing more unappealing than an
barren slab of cement housing a poorly draped 8’ table and two grey, fold-up
metal chairs, unevenly spaced among a “barely-there” sign adjacent to a pile
of storage boxes. Whew! Need I go on?
- Layout - Unless you have product that needs to be demonstrated or
monitored for theft (such as jewellery), placing table(s) between you and
the tradeshow attendees can often create a communication barrier. The most
effective booth layouts are ones that allow guests to walk right in to your
space.
- Positioning - Where you and your staff position yourselves within
your booth space can either make or break guests from entering. If you are
sitting in a far corner aimlessly starring into the distance (or eating,
yuck!), your body language is screaming “stay away!” If you are standing
right in the center of your “entrance”, people will feel uncomfortable about
invading that personal space barrier. Unless you are engaging with guest
within your booth, stand either to the far right or left and smile like you
have just won the lottery!
- Conversation - Attacking people with insincere sales pitches,
particularity if you are standing outside your booth, is the best way to
make guests advert their eyes and run for the hills. I am sure most of us
relate these poor communication attempts to creepy pick-up lines. Loose the
“used car salesman” approach and get genuine. Make eye contact and if the
guest shows some response, invite them into your booth. It’s as simple as
saying, “Would you like to come in?” or “Would you like to learn more about
XYZ.”
- Attire - Dress your brand! If your product/service is high-end,
fun, cheeky...dress like it is everyday. I often notice that on the last day
of a show, the quality of dress screams “I need to pack this all up and get
the heck outta here!” Bathrooms are included within your costs; bring a
change of clothes!
Written by Illiki Rai, owner of Rising Women magazine. For more tradeshow marketing advice, email your questions to
media@risingwomen.com
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