Keeping The Spirit Alive

"The tradeshow is over. Now what?"

A very simple and important question. As I've mentioned before on this blog, registering for a tradeshow can be expensive, especially when factoring the travel/accommodation expenses, man-power and time away from the office. And with all the money you're spending, you want the benefit of the tradeshow to at least last into the workweek. Here's what you can do to keep the spirit of the tradeshow alive:

1. Take photos.
Show those who couldn't attend the tradeshow what they missed. Take photos of the sights and sounds of the tradeshow, including your exhibit and satisfied attendees holding up your promotional products. With enough of these photos, your booth will look like the center of attention at the tradeshow and with enough photos of attendees holding up promotional pens and promotional mouse pads, you'll be able to use that as a way to further extend your logo on the Internet.

2. Testimonials.
People like to give their opinions. And whether good, bad or informative, these opinions will certainly benefit your company in some way, shape and form. And this will certainly benefit your company as well. While at the tradeshow, approach attendees and ask them for an honest opinion of your products, your custom imprinted tradeshow displays and even your promotional products. For those who have pleasant and noteworthy testimonials, ask them for their information and permission to use it. These testimonials can be just quoted on paper, in audio or even recorded as a video. However you choose to use them, these will be applied to your company's name and products for as long as you choose to use them.

3. Start planning.
What did you do right? What did you do wrong? Was the custom imprinted tradeshow banner too small? Did people enjoy the promotional tote bags? Did the promotional pens not work? Whatever might have happened that made your tradeshow experience good or bad, take note of it. And start finding your next destination in the meantime. This keeps the excitement of the tradeshow alive in the office, tells your competitors you mean business and introduces/reintroduces your name to another region.