CUSTOMER RESEARCH
 I know my exhibit program should be targeted to meet the needs of my customers. However, I don’t fully understand who my customers are or what they want. What are some of the most important things I need to know about my customers, and how can I gather this information?
 You’re absolutely right. Exhibit-marketing success hinges on your program’s ability to meet the needs of your customers. Without targeted, customer-specific marketing, you’re doing little more than throwing money to the wind and hoping for the best.
At the very least, you need to be able to answer the following questions about your customers at each show:
 Who are your customers in terms of demographics such as age, location, gender, culture, job title, industry, level of buying influence, company size, etc.?
Why are your customers attending this particular show? Do they want to be educated or entertained, to seek out new suppliers or further their relationships with existing ones? Are customers interested in visiting the exhibit hall, or are they mostly interested in the educational sessions?
How do your customers feel about your company and its products? Are they your biggest fans, or are there problems with products or customer service you need to address in your booth?
What are some basic characteristics of their personalities? Are they fun and energetic, or more of a serious group? Do they love kitschy games, or turn up their noses at group activities?
How do they want to interact with your company in the booth? Do they need demos, private meeting rooms, theater presentations, or one-on-ones with key executives?
Based on past history, what are their expectations in terms of products, services, entertainment, giveaways, evening events, VIP treatment, etc.? What kind of track record have you established with them, and do you need to change perceptions or maintain the status quo?
What is their main reason for visiting your booth? Are they looking for new products or upgrades, their sales rep, or just free stuff?
What is their preferred method of pre-, at-, and post-show promotional contact? Should you communicate with them via phone, e-mail, or direct mail? Do they want hard-copy literature or electronic versions?
While this list of questions is just the beginning, it no doubt seems a bit daunting to the newcomer. However, the following people and places can help you answer these questions and many others.
Sales Department: Your sales force is
the pipeline that leads directly to your customers. Conducting formal or informal interviews with your salespeople can yield valuable data such as current market issues, customer responses to products and services, best approaches for exhibit promotions, etc.
Product Development Department: This department should have profiles of your target audience, including demographics, job titles, business issues, and markets served.
Distributors/Dealers: If your company is an OEM with an outside distribution network, your distributors probably have more contact with your customers than your own salespeople. Thus, dealers and distributors are excellent resources for a variety of customer information.
Customer-Service Department: Your customer-service department has data about not only common product/service problems and complaints but also general information such as customers’ education levels, cultural nuances, etc. If you have a telemarketing department or firm, it can often provide information about what drives customers’ purchasing decisions and what specific hurdles prevent them from closing the sale.
Show Management: Show management should provide a host of valuable data, including everything from general audience demographics to audits and surveys, which provide verified, third-party attendance figures and demographics. However, if you don’t find what you need in the data provided, consult the show-management rep that sold you your space. While reps usually don’t have statistical data over and above what the show provides, they should be able to answer questions about your customer base and their behaviors and preferences at the show.
Association Sites: Some associations that sponsor shows also have Web sites that include demographics about the target audience.
Show Directories: The educational offerings listed in the show directory are a wealth of information in terms
of attendees’ current needs and hot-button issues. Plus, the directory’s calendar will help you gauge how much time attendees will be spending in the exhibit hall vs. attending educational and entertainment activities.
Customers: Above all, however, your best source of information is your customer. Whether you informally poll a handful of VIP customers or create a formal survey for your entire lead database, any information gleaned directly from customers is gold.
— Judi Baker Neufeld, president, TradeShows Plus, Pittsburgh
PERSONNEL COST CUTTING
Booth-staff expenses take a big bite out of my exhibiting budget. How can I cut personnel expenses without decreasing face-time effectiveness?
While you certainly need effective staffers in your booth — trade shows are all about face-to-face marketing, after all — you can still cut personnel costs without drawing blood.
Consider hiring local talent for basic booth tasks such as greeting, crowd-gathering, and basic pre-qualifying. You’ll not only save money on staff travel and per-diem expenses, but you can also free up internal staffers to focus on closing sales and meeting with hot prospects.
Along these same lines, if your company has several regional offices, check to see if there are any local employees that could staff the booth without incurring travel costs.
If local staff members aren’t available, consider doubling up staffers in hotel rooms. While many people hate sharing rooms, others don’t mind shacking up, and some even prefer the company of a friendly co-worker. So give your staff the opportunity to pair up with other staffers voluntarily, offering them an incentive such as cash or a hotel-spa gift certificate if they agree to share a room.
If hotel expenses are still a serious pain in the pocket book, research alternative lodging options. While the show hotel can be convenient, it can also be costly. So investigate other
potentially less-expensive options, such as boutique hotels, bed and breakfasts, or even vacation-home rentals for lengthy shows requiring numerous staffers. Before you opt out of the show hotel, however, scrutinize the location of the accommodations and factor in any additional transportation costs you may incur.
Another way to cut costs is to consider switching to business attire in your booth, as opposed to branded polo shirts or other clothing that must be purchased for every show.
Finally, if attendance is typically down on the last day of the show, send home a few non-essential staffers a day early. Or if attendance often peaks in the middle of the show, bring in some staffers a day late. Not only will you save a full day’s worth of hotel and per-diem costs, you’ll also increase productivity by minimizing the amount of time employees are away from the office.
— EXHIBITOR Staff
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