Trade Show Exhibits
Since medieval times people have been selling their products and services at trade fairs. Amazingly, this method of reaching prospects and customers is more popular today than ever before.
Thousands of trade shows are produced each year throughout North America catering to just about every industry or special interest group. There are shows for wedding planners, gardening enthusiasts, cottage owners, boat lovers, golfing nuts, plumbers, real estate brokers, and more, plus shows for just about every industry, from chemicals to industrial equipment to pharmaceuticals.
To promote their products and services, companies often rent space at trade shows, put up lavish booths, and spend days exhibiting their wares. In some industries, attendance at the annual show is practically a necessity. (People will think you're out-of-business if you're not there!)
Companies spend a fortune participating in trade shows. When you take into account the costs of designing and building the exhibit, transportation, airfare, hotel and meals for the exhibit staff, and fees paid to the trade show producer, it's not unusual for a company to invest tens of thousands of dollars into a single show. That's often much more than would be spent on even the most lavish advertisement or direct-mail campaign.
Imagine the frustration, and waste of money, when few potential customers visit the booth. Ouch!
No wonder companies are so careful when creating their trade show booths and exhibits. They want to attract as many visitors — potential customers — as possible.
Writing On Walls
As a copywriter, especially if you work for a business-to-business company or client, you can expect to handle a variety of projects related to getting prospects to attend a show and visit an exhibit. These can range from invitations sent by direct mail and e-mail to banner advertising and telemarketing campaigns. “Visit us at the Pet Owners Show and get a free bag of organic doggie treats!”
One of the most interesting copywriting tasks is writing copy for the trade show exhibit itself.
Most trade show exhibits are primarily dimensional and visual. Most have no words at all. But for some exhibits, well-crafted words and phrases positioned on the panels of the exhibit can play a major role in attracting visitors and holding their attention.
Trade show exhibit copy can range from just a headline to several short promotional blurbs to even full paragraphs.
When writing copy for the trade show panel, follow these important guidelines:
All the techniques you've learned for writing a great headline apply to trade show exhibit copy. So use them!
Your primary goal is to gain and hold attention. The salespeople in the exhibit will take care of the rest. So you don't need to have a strong close or call to action.
Client testimonials and quotes from case studies and success stories can be very effective.
Use short words, short phrases, or bullets, not full sentences or paragraphs.
Focus on the biggest, most important benefit to the exhibit visitor. Often that's all you have room for.
Being concise is the key. You must distill your sales message to just a few powerful phrases, or even just words. Don't worry about conveying detailed product information. The handouts and salespeople at the booth will take care of that for you.
