We hear about productivity hacks for improving our work-flow and time management but what about more specifically Trade Shows?
If you’ve been tasked with planning your company’s next show, here are 5 things you can do to help make it more productive than ever.
#1- No procrastination!
Plan your exhibit needs 2 months before your show. Our most successful customers are the ones that take care of their exhibit needs 2 months or more, out from their next show. They take care of their graphic design needs, exhibit and printing needs, how they will merchandise their booth, etc.
But how do you figure out what you’ll need for the show?
Just kidding.
You’ll want to look at the “Exhibitors’ Manual” for the show that you’re attending. This document should explain almost everything you need to know about the show you’re attending or thinking about attending. From important dates to follow, to set-up guidelines, and the general rules of the show. This document has it all.
In addition to that, once you know what you’ll need, if you get those services ordered early enough you might be able to get those sweet, sweet early-bird discounts for booth rentals, on-site labor, other rentals, etc. Also by not procrastinating, you won’t beat yourself up for procrastinating! There’s something to be said for not losing your mind over the stress of running late.
#2- Minimize the “Catch-up” Work After the Show
Let’s face it. You’ll be recovering from the show and all of the traveling associated with it for at least 2 weeks ‘post-show’.
Don’t disappoint ‘future you’ with all the catch-up work that you leave for… well, yourself!
Sure, some catching up is unavoidable, but try to squeeze in some time before your show to save yourself the headache when you return from it. Essentially, take care of everything that you know you’ll have to do normally, but before you have to do it.
#3- Stay Organized
Keep yourself and your team organized! Create a specific “Trade Show” folder with sub-folders on your computer for different categories like:
- Booth Space
- Exhibit to-do list
- Contact Lists
- “Remember to Bring” Lists
- Trade Show Checklists
- Travel Plans
- Exhibitor Manual
Keeping these documents in a single, shared location will help prevent any sort of panic when searching for a document as you’ll know where it is.
To be even more organized, you can sync up that folder to a cloud-based file system such as DropBox, Microsoft’s OneDrive, or Apple’s iCloud so you and your team can easily access these files from anywhere.
#4- Set Up Appointments Beforehand
Like we said just a bit ago, our most productive trade show customers are always planning ahead and waaaay before their show. This includes reaching out to their customers who they have previously met at a trade show or those who may be attending.
These power-players know that trade shows aren’t just about setting up and waiting for people to stroll into their booth, but that they should also be meeting with their current clients and customers at the show.
Plus, this is a great time to show your existing customers (and any potential new customers) your “A” game.
Hopefully this small, but manageable list of helpful ‘trade show hacks’ will propel you to a new normal and make the next show even more successful than the last! Have a tip of your own? We’d love to hear it. Simply leave a message below.