Making the most of exhibitions
Making the most of MACH
It’s the time of year when many businesses up and down the country are working on plans for exhibition stands, marketing literature and product launches. It’s important not to forget, though, the key role that PR, content marketing and social media can play in ensuring your presence at an exhibition is maximised. Here, we give our top five tips for success at an exhibition like MACH.
- Start planning early
MACH is less than three months to go, but the PR planning process for many will have started many months before. Back in Summer 2019, we were planning with our clients for what innovations they should release at the show and what press releases and articles we needed to prepare. We then prepared a schedule of PR stories, starting with a MACH teaser, to be released every month to maintain interest in our client’s attendance at MACH leading up to the show.
It’s not too late to start planning your PR presence at MACH 2020 though - and our PR/exhibition team would be happy to help. Just drop us a line hello@dragonflypr.co.uk.
- Integrate social media
An effective social media campaign can drive a significant amount of traffic to a stand. Do the research and start posting with the exhibition hashtags at least three months in advance. Make sure you follow companies on Linkedin and Twitter that you are interested in engaging with. Take a look at what they are posting about and look for opportunities to retweet, Like and engage directly with them on relevant topics. Once you have an idea of what you will be demonstrating on the stand, post about it 2-3 times per week in the run up to the show.
- Send regular E-invitations
Review your database and make sure that you have contacts at key businesses which are attending MACH. With GDPR regulations, it is essential to ensure that your database is verified and you have permissions to hold details of specific contacts and mailshot them.
Design an invitation, via a system like Mailchimp or Adobe, and send regular e-shots to contacts informing them about your presence at MACH.
Invite people to register to attend a webinar, seminar or demo that you will be running on your stand. Delegates often don’t let you know they plan to attend right until the last minute, so be prepared to chase them up!
- A launch doesn’t need to mean a new product
Your flagship offer at the exhibition does not need to be a new product.
Many manufacturers, OEMs or machining companies won’t have new products to launch or showcase. It’s therefore important to be able to demonstrate your services and expertise.
Exhibitions are all about demonstrating your competitive edge. You need to be able to show why your products or services are better, more efficient or more reliable. Value for money and longevity of equipment are more important than ever. Testimonials are important to give a third party endorsement of your abilities and achievements. Why not showcase a couple on the large exhibition panels around the side of your stand, plus give a more in-depth feel about what was involved on data sheets available at the exhibition. These should include high quality photos and quotes from the customer. Check that you can include their logos on the stand and that you have photos of your facility looking high tech and at its best. Showcase your accreditations, investment in apprentices, industry 4.0, the visits you’ve had by dignitaries or overseas customers and your environmental and health & safety accreditation. The aim is to build credibility with your audience and to demonstrate that you are innovative, as well as reliable and trusted.
- Invite the editors
One of the most important parts of our job is to invite the manufacturing, engineering and end-user editors to visit our clients’ exhibition stands. As exhibitions can be very busy for our clients, we make sure that we are available to meet the editors and introduce them to clients when they arrive. It is important that companies make time for editors as they are looking for content that they can produce in their online and printed magazines, particularly their exhibition reviews. Editor meetings are a good opportunity for us to secure thought leadership articles on topical themes, where we can present our client as the industry experts. We also use it as a chance to discuss with editors their forthcoming features schedules for the year ahead and what topical angles our clients could cover in their articles. It’s a great way to build relationships with editors and to ensure they come back to us for comments and informative articles on a regular basis.
There are more tips to come! Watch this space for five more tips on making the most of exhibitions, such as MACH. If you would like a free review of your PR, content marketing or social media requirements, please drop us a line at hello@dragonflypr.co.uk or call 0114 349 5341.
About Dragonfly PR
Dragonfly PR is South Yorkshire based public relations agency that specialises in B2B PR and has expertise in developing successful PR and social media campaigns for manufacturers.
If you’re looking for support with launching a new product or service, increasing awareness and sales or maximising your profile at exhibitions and seminars, or to discuss a bespoke PR, social media or SEO plan for your business, call 01143 495345 or email hello@dragonflypr.co.uk.
For examples of our previous work in manufacturing PR, visit https://dragonflypr.co.uk/casestudy-manufacturing