Trade Shows: What to consider

Here's some expert advice on how editors can get the most from a trade show.

By Halley Stith
ASBPE Cleveland Chapter

Trade shows can be overwhelming, but they also provide a chance to talk to readers and advertisers and to find the hottest stories.

At a recent Cleveland chapter meeting, Frances Richards, managing editor, Designfax and Medical Equipment Designer, Adams Business Media, and Robert Nozar, editor-in-chief, Hotel & Motel Management, Advanstar Communications, examined ways to make your trade show experience a better one.

Pre-Show Planning

• How much staff? The number of staff you have at a show is directly related to the amount of coverage you need. If you don’t have enough of your own staff or have a small budget, try calling local newspapers for freelance recommendations. Know exactly what the freelancer must do.

• Plan exhibit coverage. Once you know how much help you will get, assign duties to each person. Divide a map of the show floor geographically or by subject. List which of the exhibits you must see and allow time for other meeting events. Richards recommends setting specific goals for planning each day’s appointments, seminars and booth visits.

• Line up your vendors. If you are producing a show daily, first identify your printer, photo processors, and anyone else whose help you need, in the city where the trade show is.

• Schedule appointments. Appointments should be made prior to the show, and not just with the companies that call you. Often a complete list of exhibitors is available online to help you plan. Give yourself at least 45 minutes between appointments so you won’t be late or have to cut a meeting short.

• Coordinate with sales team. Pay attention to the needs of your sales team. Nozar recommends meeting with your sales force in advance to coordinate your approach. In show dailies, product shots can help sales reps sell ads. Companies that have photos in the dailies are likely to display the issue at their booth.

Decide which seminars you want to attend. They can provide information you can’t get from the exhibits. Have your editorial calendar in mind as you select sessions to attend.

At the Show

• Good notes. When you are actually walking the show floor (with a good pair of shoes!), thorough notes are critical so you don’t forget the mass of information you’ve been exposed to. Get business cards from everyone you meet and on the back jot down the gist of the conversation. Take time for just walking the floor.

• Digital or analog photos? If you are reporting for a monthly magazine, traditional or digital cameras can be useful. Yet, for a show daily you need to get those photos into the publication tomorrow. Nozar said his staff used to use Polaroid cameras, but the quality of those was poor.

Now, the easiest way to cover a show visually is with a digital camera. This will help whether you are publishing a show daily or not. If you think a picture might not come out right because of the lighting (after all, you’re an editor, not a photographer), the digital camera will let you view the picture. If it’s bad, take another. This can prevent a potentially embarrassing mistake when you get back to the office with the photographs and they don’t turn out.

• Get your sleep! Possibly the most important thing is, according to Richards, to "pace yourself." Get plenty of sleep and use your free evenings to relax, not necessarily to attend every cocktail party in the hotel.

After the Show

When you’re on the plane home, review the trade show. Write thank-you notes and make sure your show goals were met. Outline who you want to follow up with in the next couple of days. Most of all, sit back and relax. It’s all over.

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