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Small, medium and big businesses benefit so much from making their products and services known to the public through different events, stalls and stores they establish in malls.

One of the events that proved to be beneficial to these businesses is trade shows. The primary goal is to showcase products or services to various markets that may be interested in availing the services or the products. Moreover, other benefits can be acquired as well from participating in a trade show.

A businessman should not be afraid even if he is new in the field because of the amount of exposure he would get through these kinds of events. Trade shows are a continuing trend in the business sector. Malls have always been open to hold such shows and be a venue. Therefore, trade show will continue to exist in every corner of shopping malls. It is not only appropriate because people who are visiting malls are in a shopping mode so most likely they will drop by your booth and have time to listen and view your products and services. Who knows, you might have a handful or a number of leads by the time the show ends and close a number of sales. You do not want to miss that opportunity, right!

But participating in a trade show is not a piece of cake. You would need fresh and innovative marketing ways to catch the attention of potential customers and you should be financially able to participate. A trade show is not a one- man show but tendency is all your competitors will be present, so be very creative in your marketing ploy.

There are some great tips for you to guide you in achieving success in trade shows.

1. Identify the purpose of your participation in the trade show. Aside from increasing your sales and collecting possible leads or customers, trade shows are opportunities for you to observe the trends in your area or field of business. You may learn the newest products or services that your competitors may offer. Through these, you can assess how your business is catching up in the industry you are involved in and you can think of ways to improve or plan out your next step. Trade shows can also help in your networking efforts with colleagues that are not competitors and suppliers. Therefore, be sure that your products and services are cut for the trade show you have participated in. You do not want to be out of place, would you?

2. Plan out your budget. Every wise businessman should include participation in trade shows as a part of his marketing plan because it can cut off costs on his part. In case you have a series of trade shows to participate in, be sure to inform the proper people who can help you, pose a partnership with them and in the end share the expenses. Most likely, these are your show sponsors, suppliers, previous attendees, vendors and your customers. Do not forget to register early for the trade show because usually they have early bird discounts.

3. Get organized. Once you have registered, you should keep papers and pertinent documents that you can refer to in the future or when the show is near. Be sure that all documents such as registration form, booth and floor plans, invoices and notes are all intact in one folder. You might need all these to confirm your participation and to submit to the organizers your booth floor plan and design so they can make the necessary adjustments.

4. Identify the goals you want to achieve during the trade show. It will be an extra effort if you would research on who is going to participate and who will be attending but it will be worth your while. Set a plan and identify a number of high quality leads to achieve within the period of the show so that you have something to look forward to.

5. Make your customer know that you are participating in a trade show by marketing it. Publish print ads in different publications especially in the trade show publication. Send out invites to your prospects through direct mails. Ask these prospects and other long time customers to drop by your booth and try out some of the new products or services you have.

6. Your participation does not stop from just stalling a booth in a trade show and wait for customers to drop by. It is important for you to create an appealing atmosphere by being creative in the manner of your presentation and how you make your booth striking and a level higher than the other booths. You can include value- added services inside your booth and make use of technology such as LCD projectors and DVD players to present your product or services to customers. Make sure that you assign staff in the booth who is knowledgeable about your products and services. This way, you can take a rest in manning the booth but still be confident of the person you will leave behind. Also, prepare your materials like brochures, flyers and giveaways. These are necessary point of sales materials that the customers can refer to after dropping by your booth. Be sure to have your contact details on all of these materials.

7. During the trade show, focus and get your acts together. Try to plan out your work by focusing on your set goals and the number of prospects you will have to follow- up. Make sure to keep some notes of the promises you made to prospects like a follow- up call, a presentation of your products in the prospects office, a quotation for your services or products or even a visit.

8. After gathering some quality prospects after the show, be sure to keep their interest high by following them up with letters, thank you cards, an email or phone call.

9. After the show, it is best to make an evaluation of how well you did by determining if you have reached your identified goals before the show, if you have executed your plans well and whether you did an immediate follow- up to an interested customer.

10.Keep in touch with the shows organizers, sponsors and interested prospects and customers. Be sure to actively participate in the next show. You can even volunteer. Additional task, yes but it will be all worth it.

There you have it! All the recipes for a trade show success served in a silver platter. Be sure to keep them all in mind until your next serving.