Before coming to the Nigerian Irish Expo it is important that you understand the following:

Know your objectives
Know your visitors
Know your role

1a. Know Your Objectives
Before the exhibition everyone on the stand should have objectives to enable them to get the most out of the exhibition.

Examples include:
Why have we decided to take part in the exhibition?
What do we expect from it?
What is the part you are meant to play in the exhibition and what are your targets?

In addition to this you need to be aware of three other key factors:

1. Your Companies Objectives
2. Your Personal Targets
3. Follow up Systems

1. Your Companies Objectives
Some examples:
Opportunity to meet buyers not contacted or known about before.
Cost effective way to contact certain buyers.
Enhance company image.
Opportunity to show products directly.
High profile environment to launch a new product.
Selling 5,000 Euros worth of product X.

2. Your Personal Targets
What do you intend to gain from this exhibition?

3. Follow up Systems
Follow up is essential. Everyone in your team should be clear about this before the exhibition starts.
Leads from exhibitions cost money and time to produce, so when an exhibition lead comes through from a meeting or exhibition indicating that interest has been shown it is essential that it is followed up.
Even if you spoke to the prospect before the expo and they stated that they had no interest (there was enough interest for them to go onto the stand and have their details recorded).
In order to enable rapid and accurate follow up of leads an exhibition log or lead forms should be issued to everyone on the stand. This should contain prospect name, addresses, e-mails and qualified with details of their level of interest (i.e. urgent, hot lead, etc).

Lead information should be followed up urgently and further qualified after the exhibition.

1b. Know Your Visitors
Before the exhibition you need to make sure that the right people are there and that they visit your stand. This can be done in a variety of ways.

Direct mailings and invitations to all your clients and prospects.
Telephone invitations to all clients and prospects.
Personal invitations from your salespeople.
Adverts in the trade press letting your clients and prospects know that you will be attending this event.

If you have invited someone or know that they are attending the expo and you want them to visit your stand, telephone them before the expo to remind them or reinforce your wish to see them. Make sure that either you are there to see them or that your colleagues on the stand are briefed as to: Who they are; where they’re from and what they want to see
(remember: if the customer has special interests then members of your team should be informed before the expo starts). This then gives the impression to the client/prospect that you are running a professional outfit.

1c. Know Your Role
This is divided into the following:
Presenting at the Exhibition
Presenting Yourself
Present Your Companies Products

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Clearly the layout of the stand itself is important. It should be in keeping with the image of your company. It should be designed to attract attention and draw in potential customers, but from then on it’s up to how you and your team perform on the stand.

Visitors will be more impressed by your attention to their needs than by the stand itself. Therefore the most important items on any stand are you and your team and how you impress your future customers.

Remember the purpose of the exhibition stand is to attract potential prospects to come over and talk to you. The products/exhibits on the stand alone may not always sell themselves without your team’s sales activity.

With this in mind:-

The stand should have strong graphics and visuals on display – to attract attention.

Do not stand in front of displays

Do not create barriers which make it harder for customers to come on
to the stand.

Product literature should not be displayed in elaborate displays that the visitor won’t want to disturb.

A good stock of product literature should be available and its distribution paced so that it won’t run out. If necessary it can be taken in to the prospect later by yourself or a member of your sales team.

Product information and demonstrations should address the customer’s needs enough to gain interest for a follow up call, which goes into more detail.

If a special event is being arranged from the stand, (such as a video presentation) make sure you take the opportunity to speak to visitors booking in to this event about other products.

Do not let the exhibition get the “lived in look”:

No dirty cups on the stand
Nothing placed on exhibits
All rubbish cleared away
Personal belongings cleared away
Stand kept clear and tidy

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The most important thing on display is you!

3a. EXPO “DO’S”;

Smile – appear approachable and friendly

Ensure that you can see and be seen

Address visitors “face to face”

When busy acknowledge in some way other visitors who are not yet being attended to.

Always wear a company badge with your name on where it can be seen

Make sure you have a good stock of business cards

Make sure you have lead forms

Always carry a small notebook and spare pens/pencils

Work as a team

Look neat and tidy
hair your hair cut/styled beforehand
wear comfortable/practical shoes
make sure your shoes are clean and polished
clothes are clean and not creased, suit is pressed

During breaks stretch your legs and get some fresh air

Drink water to stop you dehydrating

Have breath fresheners or mints available

3b. EXPO “DO NOT’S”:

Yawn or look bored (even if you are!)

Hover, pounce or rush up to people saying “Can I Help You!”

Guard the entrance to the stand with arms folded looking like a soldier

Slouch all over the place

Smoke and drink on the stand

Eat on the stand

Let your feet get tired (make sure you wear comfortable shoes)

Sit and read newspapers on the stand because it’s a quiet period

Stand or sit in a corner and chat with colleagues

Have a late night before the exhibition

Drink too much alcohol the night before or during the exhibition

Eat too much rich food (the visitors won’t want to smell it)

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Why do people come to exhibitions?

To find solutions to known problems
To decide on or finalise which companies have the products that will fulfil a need for an upcoming purchase
To identify new methods or products
To meet industry experts
To make relevant contacts
To assess industry directions
To see what the products on display can do for them

4a. Product Presentations and Demonstrations
When a customer comes onto your stand he is expecting you to be able to tell him the information that he needs, and possibly show him in the form of a product demonstration.

You need to make sure that you are completely familiar with all the products on display and are able to answer most questions and handle all common objections.

For both a product presentation and a demonstration the same format needs to be adopted.

4b. Why Demonstrate Your Product?
A good product presentation in the form of a demonstration is extremely powerful as it couples together the verbal description with the visual reinforcement of actually seeing the product.

4c. The Demonstration
The demonstration itself should be brief enough to rapidly show the benefits of your product or service to the prospect and arouse their interest. The presentation should be designed to fit the prospects needs.

It is also a good opportunity to briefly detail some of your Unique Selling Point’s (USP’s). Make them aware of the advantages that you can offer that your competitors can not and that they may not have been aware of.

4d. Close
This should include:
Agreeing the outcome of the demonstration (i.e. your product/service fulfils their criteria)
Agreeing that you or a member of your team can contact them and follow up.
And finally,
Get commitment that your product/service is ideal for their requirement.

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Now that you have booked your stand with Nigerian Irish Expo it is important that you decide exactly what you are going to do with your space. Nigerian Irish Expo would have sold you either a shell scheme or space only. It is important that you are clear about which option you have chosen.

A shell scheme – is a basic unit which is generally comprised of walls, a fascia board with electrics, lighting table and chairs. You will be able to walk into the expo hall and start to display your products and posters.

Space only – is exactly that. You will walk in the hall and have a carpeted floor to work with. Space only is generally chosen if you are intending to design and build a stand yourself or you intend to use a pop-up or mobile exhibition system.

Once you have chosen your space you will have to decide what you are going to display on the stand and how you can make it attractive to visitors.
This is when the creative mind can run wild and when you can be left with the most fantastic stand in the world…which just doesn’t work to sell your product.

The primary aim of any stand design must be to make it work for the salespeople using it and to attract visitors by displaying products more effectively. Everyone wants to have the best stand in the show and if, at the end of the day, your stand looks great and does an effective job too, then you will have achieved the best of both worlds. However, many of the prettiest and most spectacular stands built at exhibitions have been designed to please the designer and not necessarily to sell the product or service.

Most exhibition visitors are happy to plod along around an exhibition, only stepping onto what they consider to be your territory when they have seen something that really makes it worth their while. They know that as soon as they step onto your stand they could be met by a hungry salesperson, asking them questions and trying to sell them something. Anything that prevents them from moving out of their “comfort zone”(the aisle) will, therefore, have to be very effective.

5a. Creating that ‘Instant Impact’

Generally speaking, the message should be to keep it simple. You have very little time to make an impact when a visitor first glances at your stand – seconds almost, so you will want to make sure that in those few vital seconds you are able to form an image in your potential prospects mind, one that will make him want to investigate further.

When you have the stand size the next two elements to consider are the products and the graphics/posters. Let’s take the products first.

Products
Don’t simply try to fill the space with as much product(s) as you can. You may feel that you have to have a lot of product(s) around to justify the cost of the space, but, unless you are looking to sell off the stand and need the stock, you should limit your display to the few products you think will create the maximum interest. If not, you are in danger of making your overall message less clear.

Whatever product(s) you are bringing to the show make sure that they are working before the show starts. There is nothing more frustrating than to find out that a product doesn’t work or has a piece broken off on the morning of the show, so check each item again when you have set it up on the stand.

5b. Making the Headlines…

Having made your decision about products on the stand, you now need to think about the graphics or signage you need to help to get your message across. Obviously you will want to feature the name of your company, but just as important is easy-to-display signage that will immediately attract your customers and leave them in no doubt that they should step onto your stand and take a look at what you have to offer.

To make an impact don’t make the visitor try to read lots of tiny signs or, even worse, a wall full of leaflets pinned up in no particular order. This is a common mistake amongst new exhibitors, usually due to the fact that they believe they don’t have the budget to produce more professional material. Signage doesn’t have to be expensive to look effective and can, if you treat it properly, be used time after time – so you‘ll get value for money.

5c. Find the Hook, Find the Customer…

In the sometimes hectic world of an exhibition, visitors are searching for keys to trigger their interest. In most cases they are looking for a solution to a particular problem that they may be facing or looking for an item which will improve some aspect of their lives. All you have to do is find the hook that will generate the interest and highlight it on your stand. Some key hook words worth using on your stand are:

NEW
FREE
JUST ARRIVED
SPECIAL SHOW OFFER
DON’T MISS THIS

5d. Adding Interest to Your Stand…

Should you run a special exhibition offer or other promotion at the show? An offer will attract visitors and can help you to monitor sales from the show, letting you form an opinion of its success.

If you aren’t sure what type of offer you could run, why not take a trip out to another exhibition to see just what other companies are doing? It doesn’t matter that they may not be in your industry or market; you’ll be able to get plenty of ideas from the promotions you see. Going to other shows is a great way of learning more about how to and how not to approach exhibitions, so call one of the larger exhibition centres, (Earls Court, Wembley, Alexandra Palace etc.) and find out what’s on and make a date to drop in for some free inspiration.

5e. Making the Stand Really Work For You…

A number of different elements will combine to ensure that you enjoy an effective show. One of them is the use of literature.

How you use literature at an exhibition really depends on what type of event you are attending and what you are trying to achieve at the show. The two extremes are:

A. Give no information out at all or
B. Have all your literature on show for anyone to take as much as they wish.

Obviously there are also compromises too. Let’s take the first option of having no literature on show for now:

If you wanted to have a reason to send your new contact details after the show you might decide to give nothing out on the day. By offering to send details of the product to the customer you generate something which is very valuable – a name and address. If you decide to take this approach then it is important to make sure that your staff can handle the enquiries properly and are effective at capturing the names and addresses. If you go down this route don’t be tempted to take literature with you “just in case”, because your staff will take the easy way out and you’ll end up giving out literature most of the time.

If you decide not to give details out, you will need to give the visitor a good reason why they can’t take a leaflet with them. When asked for a product brochure you will need to say something like:

“May I register you for our full information pack which we’ll be sending to everyone straight after the expo? That way we can give you all the details you need and we can include our special offers – plus, you don’t have to carry it around with you all day long either!”

Make no mistake; getting personal details can be very difficult. Most people don’t want to have a follow up. They haven’t got the time and they don’t need the hassle, so finding the right stand personnel to do the job is very important. A team member who is effective at getting the customers details is worth their weight in gold in these circumstances.

Taking approach (B) and having all your literature out on show is a great way of creating awareness. Unfortunately, if you are not careful, it is also a great way of loosing hundreds of pounds worth of leaflets with nothing to show for it when you get back to the office. Think very carefully before you display expensive colour brochures at the front of your stand for everyone to take whenever they wish. Having product information so readily available decreases the number of opportunities that you will get to talk properly to potential customers. What you will probably face is a response something like:

Would you like any help Sir?

No thanks, I’ll just take the brochures for now.

All you have gained from that exchange is another set of brochures into the hands of a mystery contact. You just don’t know who they are or where they are from and, unless they contact you to talk to you again, you are powerless to develop a possible sale further.

If you do want to have good quality brochures displayed on your stand then at least place them at the back so that the customer has to get right onto your space to obtain details. This way, you have an opportunity to get a little more information out of them before they move of your stand.

5f. Reducing the Wastage …

Just as in advertising you are sure to experience some wastage at an exhibition and, as with advertising; the trick is to try to restrict the wastage to a minimum. Some people visit exhibitions and never buy anything from anyone, ever! They are just “interested”. Exhibitors describe them as the “Double Bagger” or “Freeness Lover” You’ll see them approaching your stand with, of course, two or more bagfuls of literature. From the moment they get into the expo, to the moment they leave they are dashing about from one stand to the next picking up every piece of literature that they can get their hands on. And what will they do with it?

Well, generally they will take it back to the office or their home and it will sit in bags for days or maybe weeks. If you are lucky it may get looked through briefly but then discarded. Sad isn’t it?

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Finally, when you have returned to the office, try to take a few minutes to collect your thoughts on the show. Although you might not know for some time whether it has been truly effective as it may take a while to follow up all your leads, you will be able to put down on paper what worked and what didn’t. If you intend to exhibit again at a similar show and definitely at Nigerian Irish Expo, then the ideas and thoughts you have now will come in useful for sure.

Exhibiting can be very cost effective or it can be a real waste of time and effort. Sometimes it depends on the show you are attending, but more often than not it will be down to planning. Make every effort to have a good show and the chances are that you will be pleased with the results.


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