You might have spent a lot of time and investment on your exhibition stand at an up-coming event at a venue such the Birmingham NEC, Earls Court Exhibitions Centre or the SECC (Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre). Your marketing campaign for the coming months might be partly relying on the numerous sales lead you can potentially find from exhibiting as a trade and or public show. Considering this effort and time you are investing in this form of direct marketing, you want to ensure you get the most out of it. Below are some basic tips.

1. Choose your exhibition carefully - Some shows are trade only, some public only and others a combination of the two. The choice will be affected by your business i.e. if you are a B2B business or if you rely on the general public for a lot of your business. Consider carefully also if the exhibition is a local, national or International event and what geographical and also geo-demographics you are targeting.

2. Have a checklist - It might seem obvious in many ways, to make a checklist for planning your exhibition but there are many factors you need to consider in organising your exhibition stand, staff and set-up ahead of the exhibition. There are numerous things you need to consider and cannot afford to overlook.

3. Advertise your presence - Do not forget to let people know that you will be attending an exhibition as an exhibitor. You might want to let other partners, businesses, clients, subscribers to your newsletter and any other contacts know that you will be at an exhibition. If you know which spot you will have you might also want to give this information out in advance.

4. Preparing staff - Do not forget to prepare your staff for the exhibition. You might want to organise a certain style of clothing and certain training for the staff who will front your exhibition stands. You might also want to ensure that they have a planned way for detailing leads and contacts so that you can evaluate the effectives of that specific exhibition.

5. Literature - Ensure that you have the appropriate literature ready for the event. You will more than likely need brochures, leaflets and business cards ready. You may want to get an idea of the visitor numbers you can expect at the event, so that you can plan your literature and printing ahead of the exhibition. You can normally call the exhibition organisers to gather the necessary statistics you will need.
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