B-to-B Events

Television has Nielsen ratings. Print ads circulation numbers. Even billboards in the middle of South Dakota can look to traffic patterns to help illustrate their value. None of these tracking units are a perfect science of course. (No matter what they tell you.) But based on sheer market maturity these disciplines have historically enjoyed more perceived measurability—and therefore more dedicated budgets—than word-of-mouth and experiential marketing programs. That is until now.

The demo in your trade show exhibit draws a crowd. Customers and prospects are mesmerized by what they see. They’re doing exactly what you want them to do: thinking about what your innovation could do for their business. Now what?

Too many trade show demos stop short. “You have to use the demo to segue to the next step or you’ve wasted your money ” says Emil Mellow visual merchandising and trade show director at Armstrong World Industries. Use these five tips to help your demo close the deal:

Choosing the right crowd to hang out with is as crucial in marketing as it was in high school. Co-marketing is making more and more sense to a lot of companies with pinched budgets and a desire to reach a wider audience.

What’s behind all this kumbaya? It could be the dragging economy that is making combined budgets more appealing to marketers. Or it could be that multiple p.r. departments spread the word to more people and create more media impressions. And let’s not forget the increased audience.

For software company SAP’s retail division the annual National Retail Federation Convention is among the biggest in its trade show portfolio. Held in January at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City the show is a kickoff event of sorts for the brand which operates on a business schedule based on the calendar year.