Jack of all trades
Trade fair appearances are not questioned, but the objectives a company is pursuing by taking part are not even clear to those involved.
The objectives a company is pursuing by taking part in a trade fair should be clear to everyone involved in the project. But when asked, many companies admit their trade fair presences are meant to be Jacks of all trades. The trade fair appearance is for presentation of new products, image presentation, the search for new markets and generation of orders and sales, as well as customer care and canvassing for new customers.
With such a wide variety of objectives, it's no wonder that only a third of exhibitors asked define their trade fair objectives before the event. But exhibitors who do not know where they are heading will easily get bogged down when drawing up a trade fair concept.
Nevertheless, one of the main interests exhibitors have in a trade fair is to lure customers to their stand. They can all agree on that. 68% would like to attract visitors interested in the company and its products to their stand, while the press as a multiplier is only of interest to around a quarter of those asked. Direct communication with their own suppliers is hardly stated as a purpose at all. Only about 10% of those asked are interested in having suppliers as visitors.
Two ways of addressing target groups are shown to have proven successful. Invitation by post is very popular. It is favoured by all companies and used by almost 100%. Face-to-face conversations, by customer care or sales force, are almost as important. For more than 70% of companies, this is what brings the visitors. The fax has become obsolete as a means of communication. It is no longer used by anyone, unlike e-mail and the Internet. A good third of those quizzed use advertising ahead of the trade fair.
m+a report Nr.8 / 2005 vom 08.12.2005
m+a report vom 8. Dezember 2005