Last month WorkPal exhibited at the Facilities Show in London’s ExCeL. This is our third year attending this show and each year it gets bigger and better. One month on, we are seeing the benefits of branding WorkPal as a market leader in job management software.
We are by no means experts in terms of exhibiting at expos but after our 3rd year and confirmed booking for 2020 we feel like this direct and personable selling approach is hugely beneficial for us in the job management software industry.
Here are our 4 top tips on how to have a great expo:
1. LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
Common sense you might say? Well if you’ve ever walked around one of these shows you will know what we’re talking about. Traditionally, exhibitors showcasing similar products stuck together, all located beside each other and it makes sense (somewhat). Visitors looking for a particular product or service know where to go to find it. However, after 2 years of experiencing this show, we found that being bundled into an area that is saturated with job management software exhibitors was drowning out our brand.
This year we made the big decision to take our stand out of the field service management section of the show and exhibit in the main facilities show. The result? Our footfall increased by 32% from 2018.
2. CREATE AN IMAGE
How does your stand look? What is its purpose? What do your visitors expect? All of these will make up the design of the stand. As a job management software provider, the purpose of us attending the show is to provide as many demos of our system as possible, showcasing the features including job allocation, invoicing and tracking. WorkPal went from a shell scheme, bringing everything with us, building everything on-site and taking it all down again. Last year we invested in a custom build stand and the comparison is…, well you can look for yourself.
2017 2019
3. THE SHOW STARTS LONG BEFORE THE OPENING DAY
It’s not just enough to turn up at an event and expect it to be successful. This is a longer process than attending a 3-day expo. Create a buzz about your attendance. Use social media, email and direct mailing campaigns to engage visitors before they even step foot in the exhibition hall. Let people know you will be attending, create initiatives such as competitions to drive footfall to your stand, email promotions to encourage quick conversions during your attendance.
4. IT’S ALL ABOUT THE LEADS
Your primary goal at these events is lead generation. It’s great having lots of people on your stand, showcasing your products, giving demonstrations, but if you aren’t collecting the data what use is it to anyone? The majority of shows now provide a way of collecting data eg. Scanners. While these are great for quickly collecting information on visitors, the data can be somewhat useless if it isn’t correct.
Does the scanning device have the information you really need? Is the information they have inputted at registration even correct?
Creating a contact form that visitors can quickly complete on your stand is an easy and accurate way of collecting warm leads. If they have engaged with you, they will be willing to give over their contact information. You can tailor these forms to the information you need and even set up an automated email once subscribed to send out your brochure, case studies and links to your website.
It’s important to remember that people sell to people and that is why these events are great for not only selling your product but also networking with other people in your industry. The job management software industry is becoming increasingly more crowded and being able to effectively stand out is extremely important.
