How Much Do Sellers and Buyers Trust Our Tradeshow Environments? February 21, 2019 by Dave Lutz The most glaring reality I’ve pointed to previously in this space — that three out of four B2B buyers conduct the majority of their research before talking to a salesperson — greatly affects the sustainability of the tradeshow business model. That, and the others explored in the five realities of today’s B2B buyer post, and … [Read more…] Filed Under: Business Model, Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , buyers, exhibits, expo, face-to-face events, sellers, trade show, trust
B2B Buyers Have Changed, Expos Haven’t March 2, 2018 by Dave Lutz The way B2B professionals buy has dramatically changed, but our dependency on expo revenue hasn’t. There are two primary segments that leverage the traditional exhibit business model — conferences with an expo and expos with a conference. Based on our deep analysis of dozens of shows, the former are the event business models being disrupted … [Read more…] Filed Under: Business Model, Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , b2b buyers, bite-size learning, exhibit hall, exhibitors, expo hall, show floor theater, solution center, trade show
Time to Retire Your Platinum, Gold and Silver Sponsorship Levels September 22, 2017 by Dave Lutz The most effective sponsorships are all about the attendee — the fan, the sponsor’s target market. If they don’t win over the attendee, the sponsorship may not be sustainable. The same could be said for the naming of your sponsorship levels. It’s time to reimagine the precious metal sponsorship categories — and unless you’re the … [Read more…] Filed Under: Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , attendee-centric sponsorship categories, sponsorship, sponsorship activation, sponsorship levels
10 Ideas for Improving Your Pay-to-Play Conference Presentations August 22, 2017 by Dave Lutz There’s a place for sponsored content in conference programs, if you’re thoughtful in your approach. The seventh of the TED Commandments — “Thou shalt not sell from the stage: neither thy company, thy goods, thy writings, or thy desperate need for funding; lest thou be cast aside into outer darkness” — is especially timely advice. … [Read more…] Filed Under: Business Model, Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , association, association best practices, content marketing, education champion, Pay-To-Play, sponsored content, sponsorship, thought leadership
Exhibitor Priority Points System that Rewards Loyalty September 29, 2016 by Dave Lutz Your Points System Should Influence Current Spend Decisions Like any storefront business, exhibitor booth selection is heavily influence by three factors: location, location, location. Most trade-show organizers use a priority-points system to help determine the order of booth-space selection for next year’s expo and their system has been in place for quite a while. Over … [Read more…] Filed Under: Business Model, Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , exhibit sales, Exhibitor marketing, exhibitors, loyalty, sponsor acquisition
Back to School for Trade Show Organizers: Build In More Ways to Learn and Connect August 2, 2016 by Betsy Bair This is the second in a series of posts on the findings of reports published by the Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) based on research recently conducted on attendee retention strategies. The way we buy has evolved for both the B2B and B2C sectors. Trade show organizers who have re-imagined their expo floors into … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , conference best practices, conference education, Education & Adult Learning, tradeshow
Your Trade Show Attendees: What Do They Really, Really Want? June 28, 2016 by Betsy Bair This is the first in a series of posts on the findings of reports published by the Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) based on research recently conducted on attendee retention strategies. It’s likely that the Brexit vote last week is on my mind and that’s why the Spice Girls’ tune, “Wannabe,” popped into my … [Read more…] Filed Under: Attendance Marketing, Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , attendance analysis, attendance marketing, attendees, behavioral data, conference best practices, engagement, Trade show marketing
Conference Sponsorship As An Investment In Relatedness, Connections And Community January 27, 2016 by Jeff Hurt Often we feel that conference sponsorship is a necessary but unpleasant activity to support an event. We are uncomfortable asking organizations for money to support our endeavors. Sometimes that uncomfortable feeling is more a reflection of our personal beliefs about money than our beliefs about our conference’s impact. Raising conference sponsorship dollars should actually be … [Read more…] Filed Under: Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , conference sponsorship, sponsors, sponsorship best practices, sponsorship sales, sponsorship strategy
Keys to Sponsorship Success October 14, 2015 by Dave Lutz Lots of conference organizers want a magic formula for pricing sponsorships. Sadly, there isn’t one. To grow this critical revenue line, sponsorship seekers must do the following: Earn a high concentration of participants who have influence on deal making or purchases. Involve leadership in the relationship building of primary investors or targets. Place attendees’ needs … [Read more…] Filed Under: Business Model, Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , conference sponsorship, sponsorship strategy
High-Stake Conference Partnerships September 15, 2015 by Dave Lutz As brands evolve, they are increasingly looking for marketing investments where they can make an emotional impact with a defined target market. Most of them can do it with or without you (ambush marketing), but most would rather partner and support organizations that are already serving a demographic that matches up with their best customers. … [Read more…] Filed Under: Sponsorship & Exhibits Tagged With: , conference best practices, conference revenue optimization, Partnerships, sponsorship best practices, sponsorship sales, Strategic Sponsorship
