My company is too small to do Trade Show PR is a remark often heard. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

The Media is interested in the products being displayed, not in the size of a company. They care not one bit how many employees you have, your business address or your company’s revenue.

What becomes a Trade Show PR success story is a great innovative product that interests their readers and viewers. The Media is looking for solutions for their audience at trade shows, because they’re relied upon to discover what the public is not there to see for themselves.

Finding what’s new and what’s next is part of the fun and having appropriate samples ready for the Trade Show Press to evaluate will give you an edge. Welcome them if they unexpectedly stop by your booth and devote your attention to their interest and needs. Your Booth back-up should be ready to step in if you’re dealing with a prospect or client. If you truly can’t break away, make certain you or your staff gets their card and try to make arrangements to meet up again to tell them all about your products.

This is a Trade Show PR opportunity–for any size company–not to be missed.

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Trade Show Event Producers and Suppliers are going Green. They are looking for ways to lighten the carbon footprint on their events. Event leaders will be meeting at the Green Event Summit, June 12-13, 2008 in San Francisco to define what it realistically means to be green.

Many corporations, as well as smaller businesses, have made these decisions and are following the guidelines of environmental agencies and independent groups. They are creating and exhibiting products with sustainability in mind.

Trade Show builders are creating booths now that are environmentally friendly alternatives. They are made from energy saving, socially responsible elements and are often re-cycled materials.

If you are an Exhibitor who is Green, and/or uses organic  sustainable elements in the manufacturing of your products, this is news you’ll want to share with prospects, customers and the Press.  It’s a Trade Show PR opportunity not to be missed.

Include your Company’s Green aspects in all your pre-show copy. Declare it on your Trade Show Web Pages, add it to your invitations and be sure to include it in your press releases.  If your exhibit itself is made from environmentally friendly materials, a separate press release focused on your exhibit is warranted. Likewise, if you and your staff are purchasing carbon offsets through the Better World Club.

The Media recognizes that people respect and favor socially responsible businesses and will very likely be interested not only on your products, but in the exhibit itself and your travel choices as well. Who would have thought that being good to the Earth could help deliver Trade Show ROI?

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Are trade shows worth it, is a question often asked by marketing bloggers? Well, with trade shows contributing a significant 56% to the business to business purchasing decision, we think the answer is a resounding yes—particularly when you add PR to the marketing mix.

According to the The Center For Exhibition Industry Research, CEIR, attendance was up 11.7% in the third quarter of 2007 from the previous year. With opportunity obviously there, turning leads into customers then becomes a function of follow-up—and keeping your company in the News.

Trade Show follow-up can take many forms. Sometimes a thank you note for stopping by the booth within the following week is just right. It can be also be some useful product tips with a referral link to your website. Of course, response should be speedy to any requests posed on the Event Floor as well.

Freshen your Trade Show Website after the event with additional company facts and figures not given out at the Show. Be sure to include trend insight gained at the Show that features your company favorably.

Media contacts must also be followed up. It’s important to provide additional industry perspective and utilize the opportunity to develop deeper relationships. They can turn into the chance to become a valued Media source to be contacted whenever News breaks. For more insight on how to turn these Press contacts into Trade Show ROI, download T&S Partners PR Group’s Five Ways To Parlay Trade Show Media Relationships.

Is follow-up a big part of your Trade Show strategy?

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Trade Show invitations can be tricky. If they aren’t handled in just the right way, they can leave a very bad impression before the Show even begins.

In addition to the branding opportunity that we wrote about before, it’s important to create the right copy that compels recipients to put you on their must-visit booth list. It should be an engaging teaser that grabs attention and makes you want to open the email that includes a special price or offer, to be collected at the booth. It’s the first of many PR trade show opportunities that introduces your Brand to new prospects and reminds customers of why they enjoy doing business with your company.

While some Trade Show producers are now offering to send invitations on Exhibitor’s behalf, that too can have its own risks.

Case in point.

During a casual conversation, I was asked if I would be attending a particular Trade Show. My no didn’t elicit the expected response of, “Sorry we won’t be seeing you there.” Instead, I was extended an invitation to the Show to hang out. Except when the so-called invitation arrived, it wasn’t an invitation with a ticket to the show, it was a calendar page with an email that mysteriously, and incorrectly, told me where to register on their website. It was totally misleading and rather funny as well, so I dismissed him, and most importantly, this very interesting company from my mind.

Except, of course, until I received a reminder two days before the Show, sent from the Show management. This was odd too because it was a Google Calendar page linking me to the wrong page on the Show’s website, while the first was a calendar page for my Mac software.

Out of curiosity, I pursued it with the very large Corporate Show Producer, because it appeared that I should have been led to a ticket. Two hours later, I received a call telling me that no, it was a series of mistakes that really was an invitation to visit their Booth.

As if.

Let us know your Trade Show invitation experiences.

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Trade Show Producers are missing the Media Moment, and depriving Exhibitors of brand building opportunities. According to a recent survey by EXPOweb News, the digital newsletter of Expo Magazine, only 21% of show organizers grant Press Credentials to bloggers.

This short sighted decision illustrates not only a lack of media savvy, but the potential to damage their own brands. It only takes one disgruntled, blogger to show their disdain for a particular Show and start the conversation that makes Exhibitors question if their marketing dollars could be better spent at a competing Trade Show.

Averting this potential PR Brand crisis is really quite simple. Show organizers need better media advice.

With newspapers, magazines, TV and radio stations blogging, the traditional Press has legitimized the medium. They should be welcoming the chance to extend their reach and have their Shows talked about all over the blogosphere. They will be doing their Exhibitors and themselves a great favor by allowing bloggers to find what’s new and next at their Shows—because their readers and subscribers have very specifically targeted interests.

Setting media standards for Press Credentials is fair practice. Just as they determine minimum requirements for journalists and TV production staff, blogging standards need to be created. Bloggers will have to meet certain journalistic and publishing practices before being universally accepted as part of the Press.

Heather Kirkwood, senior editor at EXPO Magazine weighs in on how Trade Show Press Credentials are issued:

It is customary at Trade Shows for show management to set the criteria for all media that attend the show (at least on the inside). Bloggers, being just another form of media, should also fall into that category. When I want to attend a trade show, I typically have to apply for press credentials. I have to demonstrate that I represent a media outlet that regularly covers the industry served by the show. It is in the show organizer’s interest to ensure that the most relevant media outlets are represented. Not only is it good for building the buzz around the show, but it gives great exposure to Exhibitors. The last thing you want is for someone to essentially waste an Exhibitor’s time because they’ll never be able to deliver exposure.

Bloggers might not be as well understood by everyone. So, they’ll need to prove that they are a legitimate media outlet with a readership and not just a guy in his den with an internet connection who waxes on about his opinions on his personal blog and now wants free registration to an event.

Heather also shares her predictions on how long it will take the Trade Show Industry to recognize bloggers:

I think certain segments of the industry have already recognized bloggers. Tech shows, for example, are a market where participants are familiar with bloggers and many attendees even have certain industry blogs they read on a regular basis. Some shows even go out of their way to provide bloggers with registration and a place to work. I can’t predict exactly when that trend will migrate to other segments of the industry, but like all things, it will be driven by demand. When bloggers in a given industry reach a certain critical mass so that show organizers feel the impact of their coverage, or exhibitors start to demand their presence, show organizers will respond.

Our thanks to Heather Kirkwood, senior editor at Expo Magazine for her insight. Let us know if you rely on blogs for your Trade Show coverage.

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