THE EXPERIENCED EXHIBITOR                         August 2022

Spotlight Opportunities

Lunch Symposium - exclusive or shared options available

Attendee Re-Charge - host the food and beverages during the break times at your booth! A guaranteed way to get traffic to your booth. Only $750 plus the cost of food and beverage!

Around the World - participate in Bingo for only $375!

The Power of Manifestation and Getting the Universe on Your Side

aka How to Make the Universe Your B*tch

Ann Dosen

Watch this video presentation with my thoughts on manifesting. I tell a story and by the end you may think I have completely lost my marbles.

MARKETING BUZZ

We tested the effectiveness of traditional mailer campaigns. Here's what we learned.

Ann Dosen

In July we had the idea to test the effectiveness of traditional mailer campaigns. We figured the data we collect will help companies decide where to invest their marketing dollars.

We mailed a postcard to the APMA National 2022 attendee list with a simple call to action and added bonus of receiving a free gift from us as a thank you.

The postcard went out to 584 addresses. Out of those, 16 were returned as undeliverable. From the 568 postcards that landed in mailboxes, we only received 19 responses! That is only 3.2%.

Postcard Mailer

568 recipients

19 responses - 3.2%

Here is the interesting part: the question we asked on the mini-poll was "Do you like receiving mailers like this one from industry vendors before a conference?"

As you can see in the table below, 57.9% of respondents say they prefer mailers, while only 5.3% said they prefer emails. 

BUT - only 19 out of 568 (3.2%) recipients actually noticed the postcard at all! 

By comparison, when we send an email, about 62% of our 12,000 email subscribers open it.

Email

12,000 recipients

62% response rate

So, what I learned from this test is that mailers do reach a small demographic of physicians - those that do not prefer email communication. Is it worth the money? Hard to say. This mailer cost us about $450.

LOGISTICS AND STATS BUZZ

Measuring trade show success and

4 unexpected benefits to exhibiting

Ann Dosen

We all have our preferred methods for calculating ROI at a show. Some of us track how many people we spoke to at our booth compared to the total number of attendees. Some track how many samples were given out or how many follow-up meetings were scheduled. Some track how many orders were written and the dollar amount compared to the cost of exhibiting.

Have you thought about the other benefits to exhibiting? Here are a few I think we should be paying attention to...

#1 Brand Recognition. This is an easy one. Trade shows are one of the best ways to put your product or service, and your brand, out in front of your audience. Presenting a cohesive look across your products, booth design, and collateral is essential here. Even if you don't get the traffic you are looking for, if you've done it right, your brand has made an impact on attendees. Repeated exposure across different media (print ads, online, email messages, mailers) will solidify this exposure so that when they are looking for a product or service you offer - your brand pops up in their head. They can't remember if it's from an ad or a referral from a friend - but they recognize you.

#2 Collaborations. Are you looking for a reputable physician to join your company as an ambassador or consultant? Conferences are the best places to make these connections. Facilitating a relationship like this requires face-to-face interactions. Perhaps you are looking to expand your sales force in the field? Many reps at shows are freelancers for several different products. This is a great place to meet potential new employees.

PS - if your marketing plan does not include utilizing your "brand champions" as influencers - you need to add this as an essential element. Now more than ever people are trusting their friends' and colleagues' recommendations.

#3 Expand your professional network. I'm not just talking about making friends with your neighbors - though that is important. Have you thought about chatting with various vendors that may be able to assist with manufacturing or distribution? Some vendors may have contacts they can recommend as potential manufacturing partners. Some vendors are distributors or are part of a distribution network. Use your time to chat with the people around you. You never know who you might meet to help take your company to the next level.

#4 Contact database. Every person you say hello to, and every attendee on the registration list, is a potential future customer. You may not get a chance to have a quality conversation with them this time, but hopefully, you were able to capture their contact information (Tip: use the Bingo game to gather contacts!) and can add them to your database. Don't forget to follow-up. Send an email, mail a short letter, send out a sample... whatever it takes to open up communication with everyone at every show.

I hope this helps you take a different approach next time you are at a show. 

Happy hunting!

WHERE IN THE WORLD WILL ANN & SARAH BE?

Texas PMA Southwest Foot & Ankle Conference | September 15-18 | Irving, Texas

Weil Foot & Ankle Institute Retreat | November 4-5 | Chicago, Illinois

Kent State Southeast National | November 17-20 | Orlando, Florida

We're looking forward to seeing you out there!

TRAVEL BUZZ

Room Blocks

Ann Dosen

Have you ever wondered why conferences ask you to book in the room block at the conference hotel? When a conference is held at a hotel, their contract is mostly based around the number of rooms they will book for the event - that's how the hotel makes their money.

Conference planners have to pay for any rooms in the block that are unsold, resulting in unexpected out-of-pocket costs for the organization. Guess what that means? Higher registration costs for you.

Help keep prices from increasing by staying at the host hotel and booking in the room block.

PRO TIP: even if you are local to the event - stay overnight! Often the best connections are made at the bar after the event ends each day.

Divide and Conquer: Establishing Roles on the Floor | July 2022 Newsletter

Click here to watch the short video tip.

Experienced Exhibitor | July 2022

Click here to read last month's issue.