What to Do When There's Nothing New: Five Strategies for Success
By Susan A. Friedmann
Look at that throng of people crowding the trade
show floor. People come from all over the country to walk these
aisles, eager eyes flitting from booth to booth, scanning the
exhibits for…what, exactly?
Research shows that the vast majority – 76
percent – come to trade shows to discover what’s new and
exciting. Maybe it’s a new product, or an innovative bit of
technology, or a snazzy new application, or even an entire
company that they were never aware of before. In an ideal world,
every company would be constantly innovating, creating cutting
edge products at phenomenal savings guaranteed to meet the
customer’s needs.
But as you and I know, business doesn’t work that
way. There are years when companies struggle to survive. Other
years, it takes every ounce of effort just to maintain market
position. And still other times, things might be fine, but the
newest innovation is six, twelve, even eighteen months on the
horizon.
Is it even worth exhibiting during these times?
Do the results of participating in a trade show while your
company’s in a lull phase justify the costs?
Absolutely! In fact, it is precisely at these
times when not participating could hurt your bottom line.
Businesses rise and fall based on the strength of personal
relationships. There is no better place to form new
relationships and maintain and reinforce existing relationships
than at a trade show.
To do this, you need to create a positive
impression with your exhibit. Demonstrate something new and
exciting. Give the people what they want. How can you do that,
you ask, when you don’t have any new and exciting products?
Here are five focus strategies the pros use when
they’re in a similar situation:
Focus on Features: Purveyors of
high-tech or complicated products often don’t realize how little
consumers know about the items they purchase. For example, take
the average word processing program. It has countless features –
yet how many does the everyday user know about, much less use?
Realize that your buyers may not even know what they don’t know.
Here’s an opportunity to offer seminars, tutorials, or other
interactive options centered on the more obscure features. This
way, you’re demonstrating that you value your customers and want
them to make the most of your products/services. You could win
their loyalty for life.\
Focus on the Future: If the next big
innovation is in sight, but you’re not ready to spill the beans
just yet, you’ve got an ideal opportunity to create a buzz. Some
of the most effective excitement generating campaigns say
little, if anything, about the new product, yet still create an
impression that something noteworthy is about to happen.
Signage, graphics, and literature all declaring “It’s Coming!”
let the public know that you’re excited about the new product –
and that they should be too.
Focus on Finesse: Is there a way
to make your product new and improved? You’ll sometimes see this
technique that I’ve called the Proctor & Gamble strategy. Every
so often, you’ll see a new and improved version of a product
introduced – laundry soap, shampoo, deodorant, and so on – yet
you’d have to be a chemical engineer to notice any discernable
difference between the old product and the new one. Still,
consumers flock to the new, even if it’s only slightly different
than the product they were previously satisfied with. If you
can’t change your product, what about the packaging? Glidden
changed their paint can while still keeping their actual
product, the paint, the same as it ever was, and saw sales rise
as a result.
Focus on People: Great products
wouldn’t exist without great people. Consider putting a human
face on your operation by centering your latest exhibit around
the people who make, test, or use your product. Post Cereal,
Reynold’s Wrap, and NAPA auto parts have all used this strategy
successfully during periods when their product line was fairly
static – and then carried the idea forward, altering it as
needed to introduce new products!
Focus on Service: Many times,
we’re asking buyers to make a huge investment to buy our
products. If something goes wrong, the buyer worries that they
will be left holding the bag on a very expensive mistake.
Reassure consumers that they’ll never be alone if there is a
problem. By promoting service plans, support networks, and other
types of assistance, you’re demonstrating that you’ll be there
for your customer – through thick or thin!
About The Author
Written by Susan A. Friedmann,CSP,
The Tradeshow Coach, Lake Placid, NY, author: “Meeting & Event
Planning for Dummies,” working with companies to improve their
meeting and event success through coaching, consulting and
training. Go to
http://www.thetradeshowcoach.com to sign up for a free copy
of ExhibitSmart Tips of the Week.
info@thetradeshowcoach.com
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