Guest blogger Annmarie Mansour, Account Director at Zadro Communications, shares her top tips on making the most of your next tradeshow. Guest blogger Annmarie Mansour, Account Director at Zadro Communications, shares her top tips on making the most of your next tradeshow. As with any event, it’s the thought and work that happens before that makes the most impact. A tradeshow is one of those events that requires time to allow it to be a great success. There are a few simple steps that can be addressed in a targeted three step approach; Pre Show Preparation and Promotion, At the Show and After the Show. 1. Pre-Show Preparation A tradeshow is not all about shell schemes and stand size. Once you have booked your space, take the time to ask key questions and undertake some important steps: What is the purpose of your presence at the show? As with any element of your marketing campaign there needs to be a purpose to any tradeshow presence. Are you attending the show to launch a new product; introduce a new brand; create brand awareness or to generate sales? Nut down the goals of your presence to help you gain the greatest return on investment. Establishing clear goals and objectives gives you and the team clear direction. Dedicate some time to read your exhibitor pack. Exhibitor packs include policies and procedures, and ideas and steps to help make your time at the show a hassle free experience. Stand Design – you’re booked in, you know what you want to achieve and you’ve read your exhibitor pack. Now is the time to think about how to create the greatest impact and stand your company apart from your competitors. Conduct a pre-show briefing to train the staff who will be hosting your stand. The briefing should cover the show including layout and amenities; the stand and what it will look like; behaviour expectations, any special promotions you will have at the show and last but not least why you’re involved and what you want to achieve.
Promotion
You’ve booked your space, now it’s time to let everyone know you’ll be there. Invite your clients. Tradeshows are a perfect opportunity to invite your clients (current and prospective) to take another look at your company and your brand as well as starting a new conversation with them around new products; new team members and new ideas Take it online. Whilst your presence at a tradeshow is very much physical, use all the online resources you have to promote your participation in the show:
Website – Add a blurb to your website about the show and share your stand number
Social Media – Create a series of social media posts in the lead up focussed on what your key messages will be E-news. Use your own internal and external newsletter to start sharing information about your time at the show 2. At the show
When you’re at the show there are so many more opportunities to making the most out of the show then just your stand Be Interactive. Encourage visitors to your stand with vibrant displays, videos, giveaways, tastings and most importantly, a refreshed, fed and energised team. Be Approachable. Tradeshows are not a case of if you build it they will come – you need to design your approach to start the conversation with attendees. Make sure all your team are aware of the conversation starters and confident in their own individual approach. Lead Generation. Make your team’s life easy – provide them with an easy to use lead sheet. Lead sheets that are simple to use help your team start the conversation with prospective clients at the stand and also capture the information you need to continue the conversation long after the tradeshow. Come Prepared. Ensure the collateral you have on your stand tells your story simply so that when visitors walk away they understand what you do but are not victims of information overload. 3. After the Show
Follow Up. The success of your time at a tradeshow hinges largely on your ability to continue the conversation with those you met after the event. Assign the responsibility of follow up before the first day of the tradeshow and ensure it happens within 48 hours after the completion of the tradeshow. De-brief with your team. A tradeshow is a learning experience for everyone. Sit down with the entire team involved and discuss what you did well and what could be improved for next time. It’s amazing what ideas a fresh perspective can inject into your planning process for next year. All that said tradeshows are the perfect opportunity to show off your company’s personality through the team, the ideas and the inspiration that represents your brand!
Written By: Annmarie Mansour, Account Director, Zadro Communications. … Read More
Festive Styling Ideas
Mar 19 2018
This week our lovely event stylists are sharing their top tips for a super styled festive season. From table decorations to the hottest colour schemes, get the tricks of the trade and use them in your own home. First up is our Sydney Event Stylist Joshua Mason. As well as his very hectic day job, Joshua is a freelance editorial stylist, nightclub promoter and writer on design, decor, fashion and travel for online publications such as Oyster, ninemsn, Does Not Equal and The Vine Online. Here he offers up his suggestions for Christmas decorations that will see you crowed the seasons most stylish. Into the Woods
This trend is all about fossicking about your local florist for all the things they use to jazz up an arrangement. Twigs, branches, moss, berries and pine cones combine with smart laser-cut tree silhouettes you’ll see everywhere in the shops. Go all out DIY and you’ll impress your guests with a unique table or mantelpiece of found, natural items warmed by candlelight. This season, I am just dying to pick up a genuine pine tree for my apartment to compliment the high ceilings and dress it with home-made balsa wood decorations. The overall style takes a little time to get right but looks effortless, charming and uncontrived. Festive Floral My friends, colleagues and clients alike would agree that I’m fairly obsessed with flora. There is just nothing better than an idiosyncratic arrangement in assorted vaseware on a table using rich colours and fragrant varieties. If you’re bereft of vases, get creative and use teapots, teacups, old cut-glass highballs or the base of a old candlestick. Peonies, calla lilies, berries and natives are the eclectic mix this season. No need for a florist, arrange it yourself! Arcadian Antiquity The old-world never, ever goes out of style and there are so many ways to make it work in even the most modern of homes. Look out for the décor with antique motifs, mercury glass, mottled gold and crystal. Dramatic black or white Christmas trees allow these elements to stand out and add a touch of the ostentatious. You will need to invest a little coin, but it’s an investment in a charming Christmas over and over again. Colour Pop & Bauble Brights I never would have thought it, but baubles are back and it’s as simple as a trip to your local department store or Christmas cave. Bright vibrant colours are this year’s direction with this style and you can dress everything from your tree, tabletop or chair. Glossy, matte, glittered and sequin baubles are a load of fun together, match them up in contrast ribbon. I would especially love mixing this up with hand-sprayed pinecones in complimentary colours. Feliz Navidad! Images sourced via Inside Out Magazine, Vogue Living, Belle Magazine, Bright Baazaar and DesignSponge Next to the (Christmas) table is Kelly Williamson our Perth Event Stylist. Kelly is a creative at heart with a keen eye for the next big thing. In the past she has worked as an Interior Designer at Laura Ashley, a Visual Display Consultant for Topshop and as a Researcher for a trend prediction company in the UK. Inspired by her children, history and creative people she adores all things vintage and quirky and describes her own personal style as eclectic. Here she shares her ideas of how to display Christmas cards. Christmas cards are something we all get a lot of, especially if we have children in school as they come home in a steady stream from the end of November. The problem with cards is that there are only so many surfaces we have in our homes that can accommodate them and every time you go running past them they all blow over! Now there’s only so many times you can pick them up without it driving you bonkers. So back to the point...the best way to combat this problem is to make a feature out of them, and what's more as the cards you receive will vary from year to year your feature/display will always look different. It’s an inexpensive way of creating an bespoke piece of Christmas decor in the home, because as we all know Christmas decorations can be pricey! Frame it
Existing home decor such as frames and mirrors can be given a new look especially for the festive season by hanging a string or cards across or within the frame. A minimal and simplistic way of displaying your cards is amongst a string of Christmas lights. Simple yet very effective! Colour Coordinate
Make traditional displays more interesting and colour coordinate using only cards that fit your particular Christmas colour scheme. You can take this look even further with a single colour concept where all the cards are the same hue (so you will have to be selective which of the cards you use). To make this display extra special, add tree ornaments and decor in the same colour scheme amongst the cards to create a relatively contemporary look which suits the more modern home in particular. Images sourced via Martha Stewart, Hall Ready, Punchbowl, Not on the Highstreet and Maddycakes Muse Next we have our Event Stylist, Alana Berryman from Adelaide with her top picks for Christmas decor. Alana has a background in visual merchandising, interior design and floral art which she uses to deliver events of all kinds whether it’s funky, old school, retro or cutting edge! Mix & Match Fabrics
Don’t be afraid to mix and match patterns, it’s very “Now” and adds depth to the design. For instance, floral fabric and striped fabric in the same colour palette or style works perfect together. Dinner by Candlelight
Use as much natural candle light as possible to create warmth, ambience and a festive mood. When selecting your candles try to find out the burn time so you can get as much life out of them as possible. You can even do a test a few weeks before so you know the best time light them! When placing candles around the home also be careful to make sure they are not in the path of any air conditioners as they will burn much quicker. And finally we have some backyard inspiration from our wonderful Event Stylist Renae Vella. Renae is a perfectionist and is constantly working on her own innovative techniques by incorporating current trends and pushing the boundaries of event design. Here she encourages us to look no further than our backyard for inspiration this Christmas. The Natural Centrepiece Arrange a variety of ruby red berries, seasonal green and rustic pine cones in and amongst a symphony of clear glass vessels and candles, to create a unique table centre with a lovely aroma. Mirror Mirror Give an old mirrored photo frame a new lease of life this Christmas. Add it to the base of any table- scape to add instant elegance to your dining room table. ... Read More