Are you measuring your Trade Show marketing impact? Seeking benchmarks to track return on investment (ROI), and find your coming up short?
The challenge in determining such benchmarks, may be due to the fact that they vary so greatly based on a number of factors.
1) Potential Return
What is net return of your average sale, often based on the lifetime value of a customer. Understanding this is key this before laying out dollar one on a trade show.
2) Purpose of Exhibiting
In your case, it may likely be new sales or customer growth through a new product launch or an educational focus? Are you selling on the show floor, or gathering qualified contacts to whom you can market to ongoing?
3) Total Show Investment
From securing the floor space, to creating your display, not to mention the time & related expenses, it can add up quickly! Remember to include sales personnel time spent away from other revenue generating activities.
Based on my experience…
Its better to not exhibit at a trade show, then to arrive unprepared. If your display, or the booth staff, does not distinctively represent your brand and message, it can be a deal killer.
A trade show display is much like opening a branch office, is yours inviting?
eSmart sustainable display for Larson Design Group
For example…
We service a client who is just beginning their trade show involvement with a product that defines a new category. They are quickly approaching the second year for one of multiple shows they tested last year. Their success at this particular show resulted in their decision to double their booth footprint in 2016. Our client offers a comprehensive package that yields a healthy gross profit based on the value proposition of securing their all-in-one solution as a ‘ready to go’ package, as compared to the alternative of a ‘do it yourself’ attempt by using multiple vendors. One sale per show is a minimum expectation, yielding a 60% return on investment over the course of 4 shows total in a 12 month period.
The bottom line is..
Knowing which percentage of your leads historically turn into business, evaluated in regard to the (3) factors above, allows you to determine the minimum number of impressions required for each show. Ultimately learning this figure, gives you a benchmark to measure you to your Trade Show ROI.
Learn more by visiting ‘trade show tips‘