Trade Shows Effect On Participate Companies

Trade Shows Effect On Participate Companies



TABLE OF CONTENT

INTRODUCTION3

Research Background5

Research Hypothesis6

Problem formulation6

Delimitation7

RESEARCH METHOD7

Data collection method8

Theory9

LITERATURE REVIEW9

Overview9

Evaluating trade show performance11

ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION19

CONCLUSION20

Implications22

REFERENCES23

BIBLIOGRAPHY27

Trade Shows Effect On Participate Companies

Introduction

When we talk about trade shows most people know what it is, since there are so many different kinds of trade shows for consumers. However, the really big trade shows are business-to-business trade shows and they attract business people from all over the world. Some of the biggest trade shows are in North America and all most all industries have trade shows.

Trade shows are a popular medium for promoting products and services. There is an increased importance of trade shows in the promotion mix. The second most used promotional tools by industrial marketing firms is trade shows, which is ranked behind personal selling and ahead of print advertising and direct mail in terms of influencing the purchasing decision process of industrial buyers (Parasuraman 1981). Trade shows bring together people that would normally not meet and relationships can be developed. Also trade shows can be considered an opportunity to meet potential suppliers, buyers and costumers in a short time and at one location (Eves and Knight 2008).

Companies that participate in trade shows do expect some benefits from their hard work, but what are the benefits of participating in trade shows? Most companies would most likely say that sales are their prime objective to participate in trade shows. However, in most industries, generation of qualified leads is the number one priority, which can be converted into real sales through follow-up activities after the trade shows (Seringhaus and Rossen 2004). Many are assuming that companies only participate in trade shows to generate sales, but the truth is that trade shows are more an opportunity to generate a lot of leads in a short amount of time. These leads can then be turned into sales after the show.

Many companies participate in trade shows every year, mostly because they always have, but with no overall strategy, so the big question is what they get out of it? Many business leaders are of the believe that participating in a trade show is not something that needs a lot of preparation. On the contrary, many studies have showed that preparation is the key to a successful outcome. Also studies show the importance of management involvement in trade shows and the ability to create superior results (Seringhaus and Rossen 2004).

Activities involved in a trade show is not only limited to the days of the trade show. A trade show can be divided into 3 phases. Pre-trade show activities such as planning, training of booth personal, advertising ect. At the show there are also some things that have to be done, such as lead generation, promotion, networking and relationship care. After the trade show it is important to evaluate the show and make follow up calls to the leads, so further business can be conducted, this can go on for years after the trade show ...