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Ok – We are continuing our preparations for the exhibit that we are taking to the ExhibitorLive Show in Las Vegas. Last week I told you I would go over the decisions that were made at our first planning meeting so you could see how we went from brainstorming to decision making.
You will also learn how the team was involved by assigning tasks for each person to research to help in the decision making process. From the brainstorming questions and ideas we shared came a basic concept as to how we would accomplish the marketing goal we set. That goal, if you remember, was to sign up 2 to 300 attendees each day at the show.
We agreed on an upscale square shaped shot glass as our give-away for anyone one who signed up to join our Exhibitor Lounge weekly video e-zine. Oh yeah – If the word “e-zine” is new to you it is just an acronym for the term “electronic magazine” or “e-zine.
So why did we pick a shot glass? If you are a regular in the Exhibitor Lounge community then you know that the drink of the week is a signature part of the video e-zine series and newsletter. What better way to promote the Exhibitor Lounge on the show floor then to pass out (pardon the pun) a shot glass with our logo. We agreed that it would be a very collectable and unique show floor gift and fit well with the Vegas venue. So we made that decision at the first meeting.
Notice I said that we would only give out a shot glass to attendees who signed up to be weekly subscribers to the Exhibitor Lounge. Your give-away should always have a purpose. I explained this in detail in a previous Exhibitor Lounge video titled the proper use of Promotional Products. If the person did not want to sign up then we would have a post card available to give as a way for someone to sign up later. We always remind everyone that the Exhibitor Lounge is a free service and they can opt in or out at any time.
Here are some basic questions and decisions that got us moving forward from the first meeting.
1. The give-away would be for attendees who signed-up only.
2. We discussed using a laptop – a tablet – or an app to sign attendees up? We assigned Kay (our marketing manager) the task of figuring out how we would sign up attendees fast; basically 1 per minute.
3. We talked about the need for a lead retrieval machine and assigned Angela (our Account Manager) the task of seeing if there was a show attendee list we could get instead. We felt that a lead retrieval machine would slow us down at the show?
4. We discussed the need for internet service so attendees who signed up would get an instant welcome reply from our website? We decided that was not necessary.
5. We practiced how we would shoot video onsite and what kind of interview microphones we should use.
We assigned the Design Department with the task of researching any changes we needed to make to our video and audio technology. What we are using in the studio may not be the best solution on the show floor. We are not going to pin on wireless Lavalier mics to everyone that we interview.
Wow – That should give you a good idea of our first meeting. It took a little over an hour. But – you can see how these planning meetings are a critical part of a successful event. Without a strategy and good planning you are just another attendee at the show. You just happen to be in the booth, not in front of it.
As always, please respond with your questions or comments and let others know about EXHIBITOR LOUNGE.COM. We will see you next week. Until then, I am your host Michael Gray telling you to RELAX in the Exhibitor Lounge.