Create a ‘Buzz’ around Your Home Show Booth

Image courtesy of onehourairofwa.com

The home show season is coming quickly and already here for some. Shows are an ideal way to showcase your products to a large number of prospects at one time and one location. There will be thousands of people actually paying to see your product. The competition will be there. The objective is to make as many contacts as possible. So you want to be prominent and make the most of the opportunity. I have been doing some research about attracting potential customers to your booth and ultimately making the sale.

First, know the size and location of your booth. This will help in planning how you want to coordinate your display. Balloons, music, motion and lighting are all helpful in bringing attention to your booth. You will want to be in contact with the event’s coordinator to be within the guidelines.

Your booth should be an extension of who you are as a company, and you want to stand out from the crowd. Banners are lightweight, portable and easily displayed. Your banner should be clear and simple. You want to communicate who you are and your product. If attendees are unclear as to your offering, they will continue to walk. Feel free to use vertical space: place your banner above the crowd so it can be seen by attendees looking above those crowding around your booth.

Banners will bring people to your area; use posters or a big-screen TV to bring them closer. Have brochures with contact information and business cards available for prospects. Pens, magnets, pads or other appealing giveaways will keep you in front of them after the show. (Be sure to have enough.) A backdrop of a yard with your product would give people a visual application as to what you offer. Consider an instant sweepstakes promotion, like a dartboard, one-arm bandit, etc., to create a “buzz” around your booth. During the show, check out other booths. See where people gather and ask yourself what drew them there.

Your representatives must be on their “A” game. They need a good night’s rest and a good breakfast. There should be no food or drink, no reading material or chairs in the booth. They should be sharply dressed – one step above attendees. They need to be outgoing, able to make eye contact and smile. They represent your company, so they must be professional at all times. They need to be familiar with your product and company. The goal is to make contacts, so they want to get information quickly and in a relaxed manner. Give them breaks to keep them fresh.

A successful show is dependent on following up with leads. Research shows 70 percent of leads are not followed. The longer leads are left unattended, the colder they will become.

I hope this gives you ideas to create a commotion around your booth.