One event marketing strategy many small businesses have tried at least once has been a raffle or draw.
The concept is simple – entice people to come to your booth by offering them a chance to win a prize if they just fill out a ballot and drop it into a bucket.
Prizes can range from free products or hours of services, to something unrelated to the business altogether, like a gift basket, or the wheelbarrow full of liquor.
I’ve attended my fair share of shows over the years, from wedding events to find a venue and caterer for our big day, to a home show to get ideas to improve my deck and renovate the house. And at every single one, I’ve entered my name into a draw.
To this day, I’ve yet to win a single prize.
That may just be bad luck, and really, only one person can win. But what is more surprising to me as a marketer is, this booth got flooded with people willing to give them their information, and yet I never heard from them again.
In fact, at some of the booths I walked up to where I filled out a ballot, I was even told I didn’t need to provide all the information on the ballot, it could just be my name and phone number.
What a missed opportunity!
The truth is, raffles are simply gimmicks, normally thought up by passionate small business owners who want to attract people to their booths.
However, they often are done for the wrong reasons and attract the wrong people.
It’s an important lesson to learn – not every person who comes to a show is a potential customer. But everyone loves free stuff.
What’s more important is to maximize your booth presence so that when people are walking by, they want to come speak to you naturally.
Let’s look into booth presence and how small businesses can take actionable steps to improve their efforts on the trade show floor.
Myth: You Need A Huge Fancy Booth To Stand Out
Some may think the biggest booth at the show is the best. The truth is, it just costs more.
A 10’ x 10’ space can look just as great as a space that is 20’ x 20’, if the visuals are done well enough to grab people’s attention. The average cost of a a large booth is $15,000 to $20,000.
When designing your booth, think both near and far. Think about the experience someone has who is looking at your booth from across the event space, with people standing in the way.
Can they identify who you are and what your business sells just by looking at the top portion of your booth? Is it attractive enough to make them want to come over and see you?
At the same time, how is it for people who are just about to enter? Is it inviting, does it inspire them? Is there anything for them to see, or is it just you sitting at a table waiting to talk?
From afar, unique lighting and towering displays can help bring people in. Remember, when you buy a 10’ x 10’ space, you’re not just buying the square on the floor, you’re buying the space. Check with event organizers and see how high you can go, because that increases your booth size by thinking up.
It can also increase costs, as electricity, furniture rentals, and audio visual equipment can can thousands of dollars. AV equipment and electricity can cost $500 to $1,000 per day to rent.
It’s also important to make your booth look as professional as possible. Spend some budget on banners and professional booth kits if event marketing is something you do regularly. There is nothing more off-putting than a fold-up table with a tablecloth draped over top, with printer paper info sheets laid out.
This interaction at the booth is possibly your first impression with a possible customer. Put your best league forward. You don’t need to go all out on video board displays and free giveaways to attract people. Instead, you just need a professional looking booth that invites people in.
Common Mistake: Not Having A Clear Call-To-Action
At every trade show I’ve attended, I’ve come home with a bag full of business cards, pamphlets, and brochures.
What I rarely come home with is a time set up for a quote or an appointment.
One of the biggest mistakes small businesses make when doing event marketing is not having a defined call-to-action. What do you want your potential customers to do, beyond taking your information and calling you later?
Giving a trade show attendee my business card would actually be my third call-to-action, not my first. That’s because I would prefer to gather some form of information from them first, and take my marketing efforts to them, rather than hoping they would call me later.
Let’s use an example of a deck building company who attends a home trade show. For them to get an actual customer, they would need to provide a quote for a new deck. Those quotes generally require appointments for someone to come to the potential customer’s home.
So, why not try and book the appointment right from the show floor? Set up a system with a tablet or phone where you can book appointment spots from within your booth. Anyone who agrees to an appointment would be a very hot lead, and are one step away from becoming a paying customer.
What if they aren’t ready for a quote or appointment just yet? Offer to send them more information about your services, what you have done in the past, and the benefits you bring.
Collect their name, email, and phone number, and set up an automated email marketing program to deliver a series of follow-up emails to them after the show.
81% of exhibitors use email to follow up with leads collected at a trade show. An automated system already set up just makes it easier.
We do this because we want to continue our interaction with this potential customer. A trade show is a busy place, with lots of booths and competition. Sending emails after ensures they are away from the noise and have more time to consider your services and products. A large email list can be a valuable tool for marketing, so collect as many emails as you can from the show floor.
Finally, if they aren’t willing to do either of those, give them a piece of content, such as a brochure. But, you still need to make sure there are calls-to-action on those pieces as well, such as QR codes that lead them to specific websites, potential offers, or ways to directly contact you.
Having a clear set of calls-to-action will improve your event marketing return on investment, and will give your sales people a pathway to turn booth walk-ups into potential customers.
Common Question: Can Giveaways Help Booth Presence?
We started this blog talking about raffles, and one of the most common questions asked is, do they actually help?
They often make up for a lack of booth presence. I often see real estate agents at home shows with booths offering draws. That’s because they don’t have anything to really sell, and no one is really interested in speaking with them when they are in the market to find someone to do deck repairs or house painting.
I’ve even seen real estate agents at wedding shows and they are always giving something away.
There is nothing wrong with doing this, as it does bring the people in. And for them, it’s more about awareness and making people aware they are available.
However, you have to accept early that when doing a raffle, some people just want free stuff, and will never use your service. You’re creating a false sense of accomplishment at your booth, which will affect your ROI.
If you’re going to do a giveaway at a booth, I would ask the simple questions of, what are you trying to accomplish? What is the goal of you being at the show to begin with?
I hear it all the time from people who run raffles, “I had great traffic at our booth, but we didn’t get enough sales from the show”. More than likely, it’s because people weren’t interested in your business, they just wanted a chance at free stuff.
How I would combat this is, beyond not doing raffles, is to require anyone who wants a raffle ticket to sign up for a quote or appointment spot, or at the very least, get their email address to join a newsletter.
This goes right back to the calls-to-action we established earlier, and makes your raffle a part of your event marketing strategy, rather than just a gimmick. In order for an attendee to get a ballot, you require them to take an action. There is nothing wrong with doing this, and it will weed out those just looking to score something free.
Even things like pens, cooler cups, and other freebie giveaways should come with some sort of string attached to them. Not only do these freebies and raffles cost money, they are simply ineffective at turning attendees into actual customers.
Often, they are just used because a small business owner thinks it’s the best way to improve their booth traffic, when in reality, the money they spend on freebies and raffle prizes could be put back into their booth budget to help improve their booth presence.
Actionable Steps To Improve Booth Presence
To make your booth presence better at events, there are three specific areas you can focus your attention.
- Pre-event planning
- Staff training and engagement
- Lead capture and follow-up
Pre-event planning
Always go into an event with defined goals. You need to determine what you want to achieve at an event, such as the number of leads you want to get, quotes or appointments to book, or even just people coming to your booth. This is very important part of event marketing because it’s how you will gauge the success of the events you go to, and if you should be returning.
It’s also here where you plan what your booth is going to look like and what content you’re going to give away. The two should work together, telling the story and highlighting the products in your booth.
Don’t just rely on business cards or paper-based handouts. Think of videos, social media channels, and websites you can get potential customers to go to, which could lead them to them calling for a quote.
Staff training and engagement
Once you have defined your calls-to-action, it’s important to train your staff or whomever is going to be at the booth in what they should be asking for. Get them comfortable with engaging with a potential customer, and not just sitting back passively waiting for them to ask questions, or pick up a brochure.
Role-play scenarios, ask them to become product experts, and teach them how to use any technology at the booth to capture information so it’s a seamless experience.
This is also a time to train them on being proactive and identify customer’s needs so they can tailor their approach. Not every customer wants the same thing, so dig into as much information as possible to find the solution for them.
Lead capture and follow-up
Build a quick and easy way for potential customers to give you information, such as a three question lead form, or even a QR code that links to a landing page. Consider offering them something valuable, like a guide or discount codes that will get them to leave their email with you. In the end, some people will remove themselves from your newsletter, but many will stay and become part of your long-term nurture activities.
It’s also important to build your follow-up. 40% of exhibitors wait between three to five days after a trade show to follow up with their leads. An email marketing campaign can be built to send follow-up emails to those who filled out your form. This is a great opportunity to stay in contact with potential customers, reiterate the value of your business, and offer a clear next step for them.
Not everyone is going to be ready to purchase when they walk up to your booth. But they might in six months. Don’t miss out on a chance to stay top of mind.
Improve Your Booth Presence, Increase Your Business Success
If event marketing is a part of your overall marketing strategy, then you should always be trying to improve your booth presence.
You don’t need a fancy booth to stand out and make a difference. By planning out your pre-event activities, calls-to-action, and follow up strategies, you’ll see greater success from event marketing activities at trade shows, turning more attendees into actual customers.