Trade shows are designed to let
entrepreneurs meet many potential customers face-to-face in a brief
period of time inexpensively. According to the Trade Show Bureau,
more than 4,300 were held nationwide in 1994, attracting 85 million
visitors.
"A trade show can significantly help your business,"
comments Barbara Kimmelman of Sellit Inc., marketing and trade show
consulting firm in Santa Monica, California. "Qualified buyers
in your category are congregated in that city for a few days. Not
only can you make an impression, but you can captivate them."
Trade shows help level the playing field for smaller firms, since
booth space is generally inexpensive ($13 per square foot on average,
with the typical small booth covering 100 square feet), and even
small companies can usually afford attractive displays. With creative
marketing and booth design, small businesses can actually appear
as substantial as much larger corporations.
The Trade Show Bureau reports that of the firms exhibiting at business-to-business
shows, 44% have fewer than 50 employees. Sophisticated exhibitors
do well at trade shows no matter what their size, while the naive
and inexperienced can waste thousands of dollars and countless hours
- and possibly do more harm than good. Using trade shows effectively
takes only a little effort and planning.
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