Attract Visitors to Your Booth
11 practices every exhibitor should implement before and during The NAMM Show
Exhibiting at The NAMM Show is a great opportunity for you to gain invaluable exposure to a qualified buying group that represents $10.9 billion in combined buying power.
With more than 2,000 exhibitors displaying their products at this year’s show, it’s important to utilize strategies that will draw attention to your products. Following are 11 tips that will help you gain more traffic to your booth and maximize your trade show investment.
-
Invite your buyers to The NAMM Show
It may seem obvious that your buyers will be attending The NAMM Show, but don’t assume. Sometimes people want to be invited. Sending them the link to register for badges is a nice gesture and reminder that you hope to see them at the show. At a minimum, it will get your business on their radar. For high profile buyers, who may not be NAMM members, you can invite them with a buyer badge without dipping into your badge allotment. Click here for details.
-
Send pre-show email updates
It’s important to create hype leading up to the show; so make sure you are communicating with your mailing list on a regular basis. Keep your business on the forefront of attendees’ minds by steadily sharing news and new products information over the course of the weeks leading up to the show, encouraging them to visit your booth at the show to learn more. Make sure to include your booth number so it’s easy to find you at the show!
Email Marketing Tip According to HubSpot, using the word “video” in an email subject line boosts open rates by 19% and click through rates by 65%. This is a great time to highlight that newest product, talk about incentives, promotions and definitely giveaways that you have to be present at your booth to win.
Send a press release
Even if you don’t have a PR department, sending a press release about your participation at the show is vital to your campaign strategy. Google “Free press release distribution” to search for the many services that offer a way for you to get the word out for FREE. Make sure to use the show name, date and your company name in the title to increase your SEO ranking. If you’ve never written a press release, use one of NAMM’s as an example of what information should be included and in what order. And again, don’t forget to include your booth number and any newsworthy information such as new product releases, awards, scheduled demonstrations or special guests.
Go fishing
Expand your reach at the show by distributing postcard invitations at high traffic areas. Perhaps station an employee at the entrance of the hall where you are located to pass out the postcards so that attendees know to look for you when they walk the aisles of the show floor. This will reinforce your brand with them should they come across your booth, as well as after the show when they go through the information they collected throughout their day. To increase the likelihood of a booth visit, use the card as a way to redeem some swag at the booth (i.e. a fun giveaway with your branding such as a pen, shirt, hat, phone charger, etc.).
Set up pre-scheduled appointments
In the weeks leading up the show, your salespeople should contact local prospects to invite them to The NAMM Show and set up appointments to meet with them onsite. When you send out your pre-show eblasts, encourage your buyers to sign up for an appointment using automated scheduling websites like Calendly, that list available appointment times they can choose from. You can even go one step further and add a cancellation policy so they know these meetings are important to you.
Announce incentives and giveaways on social media
Your social media channels are perhaps the biggest tool in getting the word out about your booth to potential buyers. This is the place to talk about buying incentives, baiting buyers to visit your booth to enter into win fun giveaways, such as product accessories, or a raffle for one of your latest products. Again, make sure to always include your booth number and hall or area that you’ll be in so buyers know where to find you. It’s always a good idea to include a cool graphic, or even better a video, to accompany your announcement.
Become a NAMM sponsor
NAMM sponsorship is perhaps one of the most effective ways to reach your buyers at The NAMM Show. With multiple display case options, you can display your latest products and branding with a sign that includes your booth location, which goes a long way in expanding your reach beyond your booth. These cases are always placed in high traffic areas around the show, like the front of the lobby, so your first impression is made before a buyer even makes it to your booth.
This is also a great opportunity to experiment with augmented reality technology, where a buyer can use their phone to scan your display case and instantly be directed to your website or video for more information. It’s physically impossible to talk to every NAMM Show attendee, but digitally, this becomes more of a reality. Other sponsorship opportunities include floor graphics, vehicle wraps, charging stations and more. Click here for more information.
Be the charging station
There may be charging stations around the show, but why not put one in your booth? With more than 110,000 registrants using Wi-Fi, the need for cell phone power on site is a hot commodity and charging stations can often get crowded. Offer your customers a charging oasis to drive traffic to your booth. This is an excellent opportunity for a captive audience! Have a looping video demo on a tablet at your station; and after the video is over, ask the attendee about their business challenges and what solutions they seek. This is a great way to start an organic conversation that could lead to a sales conversion.
To become a charging station, you’ll need:
- Two power strips
- A high-top table with stools
- Tablet or video monitor
- Multi-charger where you can charge up to 6 devices at one time with one outlet. Make sure it comes equipped with a variety of ports so many different devices can use it.
Create a brand experience
There will be many brands at the show doing cool and unique things to attract attention. Sometimes less is more. In the chaos of a busy show floor, don’t just create a place to share your brand, create a simple oasis that will feel like a breath of fresh air. Use pale colors, minimalistic modern décor, and floor lamps with warm lighting that will make your brand feel warm and familiar before you’ve even said a word. Keep your pitch short, simple and easy to understand—you only have a few moments to capture their attention. For those high traffic hours, incorporate interactivity, whether that be headphones, a tablet with a presentation or an artist performance. You won’t be able to talk to everyone, but through technology, everyone can interact with your brand.
Post your planned demonstrations and events
It’s always a good idea to post a schedule of all your booth events just outside of your booth on an easel, so customers can incorporate your events into their schedule (and more importantly, you can generate a crowd and buzz). Make sure to enter your booth events via your exhibitor dashboard on namm.org so it can be included in NAMM’s master schedule (When doing this, be sure to provide a title that is an accurate description and attracts interest so that the reader is intrigued to learn more and/or attend). Email your list of events in advance to your buyers who are attending so that you can get on their schedule before it fills up.
11. Post your news stories FREE on NAMM.org
Under The NAMM Show tab on namm.org, there is a brand new Exhibitor News section where you can promote your latest products! Get more exposure on this high-traffic page by being included. Go to the exhibitor dashboard, click on "My Exhibitor News" and follow the instructions to be included.