As trade show season begins to really get under way next month, brands will be scrambling to get noticed amongst the masses. Here are some of the ways I help clients to maximise ROI on their event spend, based on my experience of supporting clients at foodservice industry events over many years.

It’s easy to exhibit at a trade show. You can book space, take along your products and spend three days engaging with anybody who happens to turn up on your stand. The more switched-on brands might offer some kind of competition or giveaway on stand to entice visitors, particularly if they’ve been before and suffered the indignity of watching swathes of potential customers walk on by without any hint of interest.

But there’s much more to a trade show than your own stand presence. Here are four ways that our services can help drive your return on trade show investment.

1. Media relations

From press packs prepared in advance, to coordinating journalist visits to your stand, maximising our relationships with the trade press will help to boost your presence before, during and after the show in key industry titles.

2. Sponsorships and speaking opportunities

Most trade shows offer a host of sponsorship opportunities, whether that means badging the main stage or sponsoring a particular section of a live demonstration area. We source sponsorship, speaker and demo opportunities to put your brand front and centre.

3. Complementary suppliers

The foodservice industry is awash with opportunities to provide products to complementary suppliers at trade shows – a toaster manufacturer will need bread, for example, to demonstrate the quality of its products on stand, while teapot suppliers will need…you guessed it, teabags. This is a chance to further amplify your brand throughout the show.

4. Awards

Being able to badge your product as ‘award-winning’ can be a great differentiator, but it doesn’t happen by accident. Identifying the awards, telling the story in an engaging way, presenting your products to the judges and communicating the win through press releases and social media all takes skill, time and expertise.

Next time you sign up to a trade show, ask yourself if you’re getting full ROI. If not, you might benefit from a conversation with Proactive about your specific needs. 

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