The Right Brochures For Your Tradeshow Display

For all tradeshow displays, a brochure is a necessity. Brochures have been around for a long time, and are very effective marketing tools. You should always have a variety of brochures on hand to promote your business. Why should you have several different ones? Because there are five distinct types of brochures, each of which serves a different purpose.

Let us discuss the five different types, to guide you as you plan your next trade show exhibit display.

1. Support Brochures

You can still see these around, even though they are not as common as they used to be. Traditionally, this type of brochure was used by traveling salespeople for use during presentations. They are usually designed to allow presentation viewers to follow along with the salesperson as he is speaking.

2. Direct Mailing Brochures

If you design a brochure in preparation for sending it to customers through snail mail, then it is a direct mailing brochure. These continue to be some of the most effective marketing tools available to small businesses. With this method, you can design the brochures to attract a certain type of recipient, and then send them to those same types of people.

3. Response Brochures

Many businesses do not keep response brochures on hand, but they should. When a prospective customer shows interest in your company and wants to learn more, you hand them a response brochure. These brochures are not meant to excite interest in the customer, because the recipients of these brochures have already shown interest. Instead, these are designed to seal the deal and convince the customer that your business is worth investing in.

4. Check out Brochures

If you have a traditional brick and mortar store, you should invest in some check out brochures. These are the ones that you will place on the checkout register. When a customer is buying products, they will see the brochures and perhaps pick one up. Therefore, these brochures are designed to "upsell" the customer, and entice him to buy more products or more expensive products. If you have a website, check out brochures can drive traffic to it.

5. Drop Off Brochures

Drop off brochures are very similar to response brochures, but not quite the same. A response brochure is given to a customer that has shown interest in your company. A drop off brochure is also left with a customer that you have spoken to, but has not necessarily showed interest. Because of this, drop off brochures are designed with more of a "sales" approach, trying to create interest in the buyer. Hand these out to someone you have spoken to briefly, but did not have time to seal a deal.

Katie Marcus writes about the brochure printing technologies used by businesses for their marketing and advertising campaigns.

Also, remember to download your free version of The Tradeshow Checklist

Entertainment Serves As Ideal Trade Show Idea

Entertaining a crowd at a convention can work to your benefit. At the very root of this trade show idea, is a simple invitation to let visitors know when the entertainment starts. The invitations should include your company, the name of the event, the time of the event, and a picture of the entertainer. The entertainment can range from a comedy act, to a theatrical performance. Handing out the invitations to all your booth visitors increases the chances of them coming back to your booth a second time to see the entertainment.

To try and get inexpensive entertainers, ask people you already know that you believe are talented. Such people can be family, friends, or significant others. The last trade show idea includes printing coupons on the actual invitation that are redeemable once the show is over. It is best to allow such coupons to redeemed for free giveaways, therefore your booth visitors will remember the show and your brand for a very long time!

Six Tips to Publicize Your Trade Show Appearance

If you want to attract a crowd to your trade show booth, it might not be enough to have great giveaways, slick marketing materials, and a fancy new booth. Many trade show attendees arrive on the show floor with an idea of what booths they particularly want to see-and you want to be on that list. To achieve that, you'll need to start letting people know well in advance that you'll be there, and give them reasons to visit your booth. Here are six tried-and-true methods for promoting your trade show appearance.

Do a premailing. Most trade shows have a registration list you can purchase, or you can pay to have the show's administrators mail your information out to registered attendees. But you shouldn't stop there. Send a mailing to your in-house marketing lists, as well. It's important to let people know where to find you at the trade show. Include information on your booth number and possibly a map of the floor, with your booth marked.

Give people a reason to come. Don't just send an announcement that you'll be there. Give attendees a reason to see you. Let them know about any special live events or demonstrations going on at your booth. Send out a coupon that can be redeemed at the trade show for a special gift, and be especially kind to your past customers. If you single them out by offering a gift or coupon just for them, they're more likely to want to come visit you.

Announce it online. If you have a website, you should announce your appearance there-along with all the information you'd send in your mailer. This includes a printable map of the floor with the location of your booth marked, your booth number, and a coupon or free giveaway offer that attendees can print and bring to the show. You may want to offer a certain coupon only online, and advertise it in your premailings-this will bring more traffic to your site.

Blog about it. Do you have a company blog? If so, write about your appearance well in advance. It may be a good idea to write a series on your appearance so that visitors are continually reminded of it. Document your planning process, do a write-up on the employees who will staff your booth, or write about the entertainment, demonstrations, and new products people can find there. When you're at the exhibit, assign an employee to "cover" the event on your blog. Do a podcast or streaming video post live from the floor. Not only will this let your visitors know about your appearance; it could also boost your traffic.

Send an email blast. If you do any email marketing, your trade show appearance should be included in your regular emails. Add a tagline at the end of unrelated marketing emails; something like "Visit us at Booth 132 at the Green Media Expo!" You should also write special reminder emails letting visitors know specifically about your appearance. It's also good to include a promotional coupon or giveaway especially for people on your email list. Advertise it on your site in advance, and you could see a boost in email signups.

Write press releases. It's easier than ever to distribute press releases thanks to online services like PRWeb. You can put out a press release about your appearance at the trade show, but you shouldn't stop there. Add a line at the end of each press release you send out mentioning your appearance similar to the one you'd add in marketing emails. This way, you can get the word out about your trade show appearance even on press releases that aren't specifically related to that topic.

The key to getting the word out about your appearance is to start early and let people know often. Use all resources at your disposal, including direct mail, press releases, and online marketing methods to let people know when and where to come see you. Give people a reason to come with coupons, prizes, giveaways, and information about the exciting events and product demonstrations you have planned. With a strong marketing plan, your trade show booth is sure to attract a crowd.

G. Green works for http://www.justdisplays.co.uk a UK supplier of exhibition supplies. For more information on Signage and banner stands visit: http://www.justdisplays.co.uk/

Trade Show Selection Tips 3/3

7. Evaluate the timing of the trade show. Avoid conflicts with events or business activities that may draw your target audience away from the tradeshow (i.e. Super Bowl Sunday, corporate annual meetings, holidays, etc.).

8. Be wary of first-time tradeshows. Even though a heavily promoted first-time event may sound like a winner, without a proven history it may be a risk for your company’s initial tradeshow appearance.

9. Pick your trade show booth space wisely. Get familiar with the floor plan of the tradeshow exhibit space. Consider how close you want to be to industry leaders, main attractions, competitors, restrooms, food stations, entrances, exits, escalators, elevators, stairs, windows and seminar sites. Avoid low ceilings, obstructing columns, dead-end aisles, loading docks, freight doors, dark spaces and ceiling water pipes.

Dick Wheeler is President of Professional Exhibits & Graphics headquartered in Sunnyvale, California. His firm is a full-service premiere trade show exhibit, graphics and management services company. Go to http://www.proexhibits.com for more information on excellent full service trade show display, graphics and management services.

Trade Show Selection Tips 2/3

4. Do your homework. Double check tradeshow management statistics to confirm participant demographics. Obtain audited information, if available. Talk to former tradeshow exhibitors and attendees about their trade show booth experience.

5. Visit the tradeshows that you are considering. Evaluate educational seminars and supporting events for other opportunities for appearances by your company personnel.

6. Consider the location of the trade show. Since 40%–60% of tradeshow attendance usually lives within a 200-mile radius of the show, you may want to match your company’s distribution area and target market with the geographic source of tradeshow attendees.

Trade Show Selection Tips Part 1/3

1. Work with a trade show planning team or key personnel to decide who your target market is and what your objectives are.

2. Identify the trade shows that appeal to your market and offer the greatest exposure for your message. Research the target market and your competitors to determine which trade shows they frequently attend.

3. Time your trade show exhibit appearance to meet prospects at the beginning of their buying cycle-not after purchasing decisions have been made.

Getting the most out of your trade shows

Looking for trade show ideas and ways to boost trade show traffic?

How to Get the Most Out of Trade Shows

Birthdays Serve As Relationship Building Idea

If you are collecting information from your booth guests for a raffle or draw, consider asking them for their birthday for new exciting trade show idea.

Once you have that information, consider sending out electronic birthday cards to the people that came by your booth. In the birthday card, offer your best wishes and a special discount or coupon redeemable for the entire month.

This unique trade show idea will help you build lasting valuable relationships.

Trade Show Ideas Preview

The Tradeshow Mentor, is presently working on a free guide called "The Tradeshow Checklist". It will help exhibitors prepare for success during a convention. The book will rely heavily on the A.I.D.A. model. Although a planned release date is not yet set, it was decided to introduce our reader to the major concept of the book.

When preparing for your next convention use the following model:

Awareness: Attract the attention of the customer : how does my booth stand out? what is it about my booth that will grab people's attention?

Interest: Demonstrate advantages, benefits : what is the best way to present benefits my product or service offers? flyer's? catalogs? banners? or should the people working at the booth be up for that task?

Desire: Convince people your product will satisfy their needs : how do we figure out the needs of people that stop by the booth? what method do we use to present solution to their needs?

Action: lead customers into taking action : what action would I like visitors to take? purchase? contact information trade? refer their friends?

Using the back of your business card leads to great tradeshow ideas

Using the back of your business card as a clever marketing tool can help your card and brand stand out!


For example, you can turn your business card into a coupon by writing: "Mention this card for 10% off your next order".  You can also help brighten up a person's day by making them laugh, for example "We don't give out our business card to just anybody, but hey its you!".  Some business cards are also used to promote future events.  For example, if you are hosting a seminar, or podcast then the back of your business card can be used to advertise those dates.  Another route is providing your potential customer some information by placing "The Top 5 most helpful hints." 


Using the above ideas will not only help in promotions during the show, but will also help with visitors recalling your brand after the trade show.

Update your business card for traffic surge!

Business cards traditionally serve as a personal ad for business people.  Although they are valuable pieces of information, adding an extra piece of functionality can catapult them to powerful marketing pieces.

Placing a calling card function on your business card adds that extra piece of function that is bound to promote your brand via word of mouth. 

Since conventions are ideal places to meet people from out of town, these business cards will  help extend your relationship far past the convention, as they use the card to call family and friends back home.

See this website for business calling cards.

Free Long Distance Contest

Contests are not only a great way to attract traffic to your booth, but is also a great way to establish a source of "power prospects" for the rest of the year!

The trick to running an effective contest is to have a grand prize that almost everybody wants! No matter what year, or your location people are always going to want to 1) Save money 2) Make more money 3) Get a luxury item. If your grand prize falls under any of the 3 categories, then you are on the way to having an effective contest.

The next key is gathering everyone's information quickly! Nobody really likes filling out a ballot, it takes time! One of the best ways for people to enter the ballot is by having a place for people to drop off their business card. This method is fast, easy, and inexpensive to maintain! Believe it or not, having a business card drop off will help boost tradeshow traffic because of the quickness and ease, as opposed to a ballot entry!

Lastly, for a great tradeshow idea, or contest idea...give away free long distance for a year as a grand prize! The magic jack is a USB device that allows you to plug in a telephone to your computer and make calls via the internet. On another note, your grand prize winner will also be thrilled once he or she realizes the free long distance also comes with free voice mail, free call waiting, and free caller ID!

If you really want this product as a grand prize go to: www.magicjack.com

Your cost for the entire contest is $25.00 ($20.00 for one year service of free long distance + one ballot box)

Create A Buzz At Any Tradeshow!

A client of mine called me in search of a promotional product idea for an upcoming tradeshow. At that very moment, we made a great discovery! Creating a buzz at a tradeshow is flexible enough to meet any company’s budget!

Here is the idea…purchase two kinds of hats, one saying “Somebody at Your Company Name Here enjoyed our conversation ”, the other set of hats saying “Your Company Name Here loves me”. The key here is to give out these hats only to those who actually visit your booth and spend time asking questions, and not people that are simply passing by. If you can’t afford hats then replace them with tote bags, balloons or clip-on buttons.

Some booths I have visited do give away hats, however I have not seen many people wearing the hats they received at the tradeshow itself. If you are concerned about people not wearing hats or buttons you give away, then have your co-workers walk around the tradeshow and hand out prizes to those wearing your promotional product. If that idea is not feasible then simply show the item to your visitor and ask if you can put it on them.