Trade Show Promotions
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Creating A Trade Show Budget
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Creating A Trade Show BudgetSetting up a display at a trade show is expensive business. You have to rent the space, create a display, promote it, stock it, and staff it. Before you decide to get involved, take a serious look at the costs of all of these components.Start planning well ahead. You already know this, right? Keep yourself as organized as possible right from the beginning -- even before you book your space. You know how carefully today's brides plan their weddings. Months, even years ahead, they start thinking about the church, the reception, the dresses, the flowers, the cake. And of course, the cost. Well, you're the bride. Grab your planning book and start writing down everything you must do to get yourself ready for a successful trade show season -- next year's. Even before you decide to go into a show or two, you should have a hard look at the costs and expected returns. This is why you create a trade show budget. Whether you admit it or not, everything has a cost, and trade shows are no exception. Remember
that your objective is to make sales, or at least
generate opportunities to make sales. So you have to view your
costs in that light. Everything should be done with an eye on
its potential return.
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a
lead-gathering system will help you do more profitable follow
up. Giving out memorable hand-outs will enhance your chances of
being recognized later on. Training your booth staff could make
an important difference.
Ask yourself a few more questions like this to get yourself in the right frame of mind. Then you'll be ready to start preparing your trade show budget. **Let the Planning Begin - Selecting Appropriate Shows** Begin by assembling the following information (and anything else that seems relevant as you go along): Find a trade show directory for your industry (online is the best source), or check out the major trade show venues or exhibition companies. They will put you on the right track very quickly. Select the 10 most promising looking shows -- based on your "gut feeling" about their potential for your campaign. Make a chart and list the five or six most relevant bits of information for each of your most promising venues: - Location -
Date - Number of attendees - Geographic area served - Target market (who will be attending) Calculate Your Costs for Each Show Now add some columns to your chart where you can list the costs that are specific to each show: - Booth space cost - Other space-related costs - Travel costs to and from the show - Things to rent or buy at the show (tables, power, etc.) - Accommodation costs for booth staff - Shipping costs for booth display(s) and materials - Vehicle rentals required **Campaign Costs when Entering a Number of Shows** Now think about the actual "sales process" and make a list of what you will need in order to have a successful trade show experience. These will usually be things that will be used for several shows, so think of them as "campaign costs" that will be amortized over a number shows: - Display booth design and production - Product literature - Hand outs - Staff training - Show promotion (free passes to clients, etc.) If you estimate that your campaign costs will service 4 shows, then take these costs and add 25% of the total campaign costs to the cost of each show. That should give you a realistic estimate of the total cost of each show: Cost to to Attend Show = Specific Show Costs + pro-rated Campaign Costs **Calculating Your Break Even Point** Now that you have a fairly clear idea of your costs, it should be possible to arrive at an accurate estimate of your Break Even Point for each show -- the number of sales you have to make to cover your costs. For instance, let's say you calculate that your costs for Show A are $3,000 (including a pro-rated amount for the one-time costs such as the booth). And let's say you can relatively easily calculate your "gross profit" on each sale (gross sale amount minus out-of-pocket). For example, in the case of the wedding photographer let's say his gross profit margin is 50%, and the average sale is $1,000. That would give him a Gross Profit of $500 per sale. In order to recover his $3,000 he will have to get 6 sales (6 x $500 Gross Profit on each sale) **Factors Affecting Conversion Rate** What are his chances of getting 6 sales from a specific show? Well that depends. If our photographer goes to a wedding show with 1000 warm and willing blushing-brides-to-be battering down the doors of the show, then perhaps 6 is a conservative estimate. However, if the show has only 200 attendees, it might be much more difficult to get 6 sales. But that also depends. A smaller show may have fewer exhibitors (less competition), will have a more intimate feel about it, will give you more time with each prospective client. And, of course it will cost considerably less than a bigger show -- so his break even sales point may be considerably less. The same goes for much larger shows: more attendees (prospective sales), but higher costs, and much more (and more intense) competition. So the "conversion rate" (number of sales per 1000 attendees) will be lower. There will be more people, but they may be harder to sell. Once you have a feeling for the idea of "conversion rate" you can start to see how other factors have an important bearing on it: the price of your service, the attractiveness of your presentation, the quality of your samples and handouts, and so on. Every show and every product will have its "conversion rates", and the only way you can establish the numbers for your own business is to research, experiment, and constantly "tweak" your presentation. It certainly wouldn't hurt to talk to friends and acquaintances who have trade show experience. Ask them about their own success rates. Ask them how many actual sales they get from a good show. Ask them which shows have been most successful for them, and how often they have broken even. **Putting it together...** The only way you can arrive at hard conclusions is by trying. That will allow you to establish a track record. If you think the numbers for a particular show almost add up, then take a stab. Go to a show or two, and when it is over do a careful analysis of your costs and returns. Then you can establish a reliable "Target Conversion Rate" -- a number you can seriously shoot for and expect to reach -- and then you're in business. Preparing a trade show budget for next year will be a piece of cake. And of course, once you do commit to a show or two, your focus has to immediately shift to hitting (and smashing through) that Target Conversion Rate. Design a better display, have more impressive samples and portfolio books, fine tune your product, get some memorable handouts, memorize your sales pitch, take voice lessons, get a hair cut... About the author: Rick Hendershot is a marketing consultant, writer, and internet publisher. This article was orignally published in Trade Show Buzz. For quality trade show displays see Trade Show Displays. Written by: Rick Hendershot
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