equipment for cleaning the carpet. This is a list of things we find helpful to
bring with us to a show:
Change. Scissors.
Clipboards. Scotch tape.
Cover for tables when exhibit hall Shimmery fabric for tabletop (gold
is closed. and metallic blue are good).
Lead-generation information cards. Stapler.
Lights with extra lightbulb. Staple remover.
Pens. Vacuum for cleaning carpet.
Pins. Velcro.
Posters for display. Wastebasket.
Products for display. Wastebasket liners.
Receipt book.
LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
It is very important to have a good location in the exhibit hall. Study the
traffic plan and decide what the flow of attendees will be. We have found a
highly visible location close to the entrance and toward the center of the
hall usually has a good flow of people. We also like corner booths if the
cost is not prohibitive, as this location gives you traffic from several direc-
tions at once. We try to not be next to a direct competitor. And if you know
someone who has a great deal of traffic to their area, locating next to them
is fabulous.
Part of the success for any show is getting people to your booth. Some
statistics suggest that between 50 and 80 percent of the attendees know
which booths they will see before they arrive at the show. Creating ideas to
make your booth a stop on their exhibit hall rounds will increase your
traffic. Contact potential attendees at least three times prior to the show
to generate traffic to your booth. We always do two mailings; we offer a
show special and a free gift for stopping by our booth. We mail this to
leads we received from previous shows. Our first mailing is a letter about
the show special, including our booth number. We enclose a business card,
requesting they bring it to the booth for their free gift. Our second mailing
is a postcard with our booth number and a reminder to stop by for their
free gift.
234 THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO NETWORK MARKETING