As part of the content series off the back of our Echo Chamber report we had a chat with Carole Davidson, a qualified coach with 10 years’ experience in helping businesses develop their skills and fulfil their goals.

We asked her thoughts on improving success at trade shows, and the stand-out insight that came from our conversation was this:

“A lot of trade show success stems from general admin, which are the tasks that seem to be most easily forgotten in the excitement of the event.”

This is definitely a risk. Once the team arrive at the venue and enter the fray, distractions are everywhere. Combine this with some staff members’ tendency to see the whole thing as “a jolly”, and focus can quickly disappear.

How to avoid loss of focus

Carole explains that a key step is to choose trade shows carefully, prioritising ones that offer real value to your business.

There is an increasingly large selection of events that business can choose between and perceived pressure to be at the ‘right’ event for your industry can distract you from the one(s) that would actually offer most value.

o achieve success at this stage, write down what you will achieve from attending the trade show(s) you choose, and make sure this chimes with your overall business objectives.

Choosing goals, and how to achieve them

In Carole’s experience, most businesses “decide to attend a show, then promptly forget about it until a few days before the event” - by which time it’s already “panic stations”.

Following on from the previous point of writing down what you will achieve from the trade show(s) you will be attending, it is important to establish desired outcomes for the trade show two to three months ahead of the event itself. This will pave the way for effective planning in the interim and will lay the ground for achieving your goals on the day.

Different goals will fit different business models and priorities, so there’s no go-to advice. Some broad goals that may apply or, if not, provide some inspiration:

• Make connections with potential suppliers
• Generate leads for future potential business
• Launch a new product or service at an event attended by industry journalists
• Be an active and positive presence at an event attended by competitors

Start Up Donut have published a great resource on setting goals for your business which may offer further inspiration. You can find that here.

The importance of a team leader

Once goals are established, giving someone the responsibility of seeing them achieved is the next step.

We mentioned earlier the risk of staff getting distracted at the event; this can have negative implications if left unchecked. One of the main risks is lack of coherent messaging between staff members, and this is especially troublesome if they deviate from the agreed-upon goals for the event.

A team leader will be tasked with ensuring messaging remains consistent, and that the company is portrayed positively as a result. They will also “gee everybody up” and motivate people to deliver, both at the event and in advance.

Carole recommends the team leader organising several meetings in the run up to the event to check everything is on track and that everyone understands what is expected of them at the event. This means that no one is left guessing on the day.

Establishing this chain of responsibility and understanding of what is expected means members of staff will be more confident at the event, and more likely to help your business achieve its goals as a result.

Carole notes that team leaders should not be chosen solely on seniority – sometimes the most suitable person will be someone who can command respect from and motivate the other staff that will be attending the event.

Our thoughts

Keeping the team focussed is hard, but the effort more than pays for itself.

A team of staff promoting the same narrative and working toward the same goals will perform even more strongly if their stand has consistent and well-presented messaging. Our wide selection of exhibition stands and display stands will help you achieve this aspect of your goals.

If you have any questions about our products and how they can help you succeed, get in touch with the contact details below.

We’d like to thank Carole again for her time. You can find her online at her website and on Twitter.