If you are new to trade shows, you may be surprised to learn there are thousands of people–many marketers–who are involved in the production of the show. One way to stand out among them is to land a speaking assignment at the trade show.
This might be at the opening session, the trade show “party” (on the night before the last day of the show), or on any number of panels during the show. When you are a speaker, it’s more likely that you’ll be approached by the press, and of course, there’s no better way to network than to appear on a big screen TV overlooking the hall.
To land a speaking gig, form a relationship with the trade association, the entity most likely to organize the programs and panels. With social media, this is much easier to do than ever before.
Expert entertainer?
If the product is technical in nature, become an expert on the technology, or better yet, the psychology that goes into selling the product. Find out where the power players are in the product’s supply chain. Is the industry dominated by a few distributors and suppliers (Apple), or are sales more dependent on a hardy band of dealers and retailers, i.e., vacuum cleaner salespeople.
If so, try to place yourself in front of this group. Industry professionals attend trade shows to learn about sales techniques. If you have the goods, you can be a superstar to this group.
One of the most interesting trade show people I ever met was Pat Porter. Pat was a diminutive guy from Big Spring, Texas with a combover and a sports coat. He was not a technology expert, nor was he a marketing executive. Pat was exceptionally good at one thing: he was able to make people who sold satellite TV products feel good about themselves with his unique brand of Will Rogers-type humor.
Like, “I live so far out in the country, we have to go to town just to hunt.” If you can entertain, inform, and inspire the people who move the product in your industry, you can become an industry superstar, and you’ll be invited to as many gatherings as you can schedule.
It’s a Talent
The reason is there’a vacuum that’s waiting to be filled. Let’s face it, many sales people are “order takers.” They can take an order, but can they make people laugh at the problems in the industry that they run into in their every day life, and can they inspire people to leave the hall happier than when they came in? Can they supply enthusiasm to people who have “heard it all before”? If you can, then you can be a major marketing force and a sought after speaker at your next trade show.
