…and the pounds look after themselves…

Once you’ve decided to exhibit at a show it’s natural that you want to make the most of it. For many people this involves throwing money at the project only to be disappointed when the return doesn’t seem to match the investment. Obviously you are going to have to invest a certain amount of time and money otherwise there would be hardly any point in being at the event in the first place. There are, however, certain things you can do at every step of the way to make sure that your finance department don’t go into seizure when you present them with the expense claim. Think At every point of your exhibition experience you should take time to carefully consider what you are doing. Even at the very beginning you should think carefully about whether being at the show in the first place is strategically a good idea for your company. There is no doubt that exhibitions provide an excellent platform for companies to promote products but you simply mustn’t do it for the sake of it or because you liked the salesman’s spiel. Research Take time to research the show, what sort of visitors it usually attracts, where your stand will be situated, how much it will cost to feed and accommodate your staff, not to mention how much it could cost to have several people out of the office for several days. Talk If you’re not happy, talk to your organiser, it is their job to help you find solutions. If you’re still not happy after this then don’t do the event. Pre-show: Use your organiser Most organisers nowadays provide a reasonably comprehensive range of services that you can use to spread the word about your company and what it’s going to be doing at the show. The organiser should allow you to input your own details on the show website. They will also be interested in hearing any news you have so that their own PR and marketing people can spread the word. They will know all the journalists that have registered for the event which means you’ll be able to send information to the press. Who knows, a journalist may like the look of what you’re doing and write a feature about it? As far as inviting clients is concerned, the organiser should be able to help you with this too either by emailing invitations or sending them through the post. Either way, there are great savings both in terms of time and money that can be made if you take advantage of the help your organiser is offering. Next month we’ll look at what to do when the big day of the show arrives