Many of the different trade shows we mention on the Trade Shows Blog don't need our help in getting people to walk through the door. The truth is that if you have a fun/entertaining spin on your industry trade show in a major city, you'll find that people would be willing to do whatever it takes to get there.
But if your trade show isn't much of a success, how do you get people to show up? And if it is already successful, how do you bring more people through the door?
As mentioned almost one month ago, the New York Comic Book Convention and Anime Festival will be opening its doors in just over one week. Since last year's festival brought in over 105,000 people, the trade show tends to not hurt too badly. But how to bring more people in and raise revenue?
The answer is simple: open the doors earlier. The folks at New York Comic Con are opening their doors at 7:00am each day to give early-risers a chance to see the inside of the Javits center and to get advanced tickets for autograph signings and much-desired photo opportunities. With all those scrambling to get spots on a line for later on in the day, opening hours earlier gives people a chance to explore the premises and get some shopping on.
The idea can work with any type of industry. If your trade show is having a celebrity come in, consider signing a deal for him/her to do autograph signings. If your trade show is filled with experts, consider holding private Q&A meetings with experts before the doors open to the general public. It'll create more buzz for the trade show or convention while increasing revenue from vendors in-house.
Vendors and companies that co-host a celebrity or expert can create promotional pens informing fans and industry members to go to a booth later in the day.
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