How to Attract People to your Event

From our experience:  the best return on investment from trade shows, events and seminars is because of excellent planning and pre-show marketing to attract the right people to come.  And then following up afterwards to nurture the leads.

 

How to attract people to attend your trade show or event

 

1.  Think and Plan First

• Targeting is pinpointing exactly who you want to attract.  That may be the names of specific people or people at specific companies or people with a specific job title.  Or it may be broader for who is most likely to buy what you're selling or offering. 

TIP:  Ideas and examples how a small business did an excellent job in  attracting women to an event

Contact the trade show or event organizer early to propose that you speak and host seminar(s) at the event. 

• Then prepare well!  Public Speaking has all kinds of specific tips to make you stand out as an excellent speaker. 

Give the event planners a good photo and bio to use in their marketing.

You can also give talks at your booth.  Just keep them relatively short.  People like to sit down at trade shows and events.  If they sit down, you have a captive audience to educate (sell). 

What's your winning strategy for why someone will want to come to your booth at a trade show or event or to your seminar? 

• Marketing Planning & Strategy

You'll want to promote that you are attending a trade show or event to your existing customers. 

Is your customer database in good shape?  If not, you'll want to invest some time in cleaning your list and adding information. 

• How to Build and Improve Your List has specific tips to help you with this.

  The least expensive way to promote that you are attending a trade show or event or hosting a seminar is to send an email or text message.  For your best customers, make a personal call and invite them to join you for a meal or coffee. 

TIP:  MeebleMail has templates for email stationery that will make your emails stand out from the crowd.  If you use Microsoft Outlook, check out the options from them for free.  PaperlessPost, Evite, Wufoo, Eventbrite and Facebook Events are also free or low cost ways to invite people to events, create forms and communicate in a more personal way via email.

 

You may also want to buy a direct mail list and send direct mail postcards letting people know you'll be at the event or trade show and inviting them to a special event around the show or offering them a promotional item if they stop by the booth.

• Promotional offers that will attract profitable new customers
  

• Direct Mail Marketing has lots of how-to guides to help you with selecting lists and saving money on creating and mailing postcards or letters.

TIP:  If it's too expensive to go to a show or event you can often buy the list of attendees after the show and then send them information.  Or, buy an ad in the show or event program with a special offer available if they visit your website.  The offer should be related to what you offer so you're attracting qualified leads, not people who want a free iPod.  How to Generate Qualified Leads

• Budgeting for marketing - costs and ways to save money