Earlier this month, my husband came home from work and asked if I’d seen that day’s Dilbert cartoon about trade shows. When I said no, he presented me with a copy of the comic strip. If you haven’t seen it, here’s the link to read it online before we continue with the analysis.
Basically, Dilbert’s boss asks how things went at the trade show. The report sounds hauntingly familiar of many companies I’ve seen over the years: while there was good traffic at the show, virtually none of it was at their booth. There’s a humorous twist (dark humor, that is) in the middle. But the real kicker comes at the end, when Dilbert reports that they spent $200,000 for an absolute zero return. His boss responds upbeat that it’s just like every other year.
Seriously? Since when is spending six figures for an exhibit that doesn’t produce results justified? Yet sadly, it happens over and over again. Companies spend thousands (perhaps not as much as the cartoon, but still …) to appear at an industry show with no more of a reason than “we always go” or “all of our competitors will be there.” News Flash: That’s NOT a reason!
Before you ever commit to a show, do the math. What will it really cost you … in dollars, time, energy, staff, etc.? And while you may not know an exact amount of sales that will come out of it, you can make an educated guess based on data such as who the audience is, what the percentage of decision-makers is, how much time they spend on the show floor, and many other meaty details contained in the show’s prospectus.
Perhaps the bigger question remains, if Dilbert’s company is spending multiple six figures on one mega-show that doesn’t produce, could they possibly shift those dollars to several smaller regional shows that do? Or is the show a good fit and it’s just the execution of their exhibit marketing strategy (IF they even have one) that’s lacking? These are all valid questions, not only for fictional characters, but for any business who is considering exhibiting at a show.
The saddest part of this cartoon is how it feeds into the public and media perceptions of the past few years that trade shows are giant “boondoggles” and a huge waste of money. When in the real world, businesses can easily make back their exhibiting investment by following simple steps that start with strategic goals and a realistic budget.
Now if only someone would design a cartoon about the $5000 exhibit that landed a $50,000 client … Sigh!
So what do you think of this cartoon? Please share your thoughts in the comments below!
© 2012 Marlys K. Arnold (from the May 2012 TradeShowTips Online. To receive tips like this in your inbox every month, please take a moment to fill out this request.)
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About the Author:
With experiences as both an exhibitor and a show organizer, Marlys Arnold has a unique perspective on trade show exhibiting. She travels the country consulting and training both exhibitors and show managers, and is the author of Build a Better Trade Show Image (2002), host of the Trade Show Insights blog-cast and creator of the ExhibitorEd training kit. To request access to her free video series, “7 Mistakes Exhibitors Make (and how to avoid them),” go to www.imagespecialist.com/7mistakes.
Thanks for a brilliant post! I love your newsletter and blog!
We have this exact problem, almost literally.
We are in the B2B industry with a very defined and limited customer base (all of whom are already using our product), our industry is VERY competitive, VERY saturated, LOW differentiation between competitors’ products and the limited purchases that are allowed by government regulation is based on product performance.
Therefore a trade show is little more than a showcase of new products being brought to market, with customers already knowing what and from whom they will be buying.
Add to that that the only trade show of the industry is combined with a golf and fishing tournament with parties in the evening, and I’ve got my Financial Director asking whether it is worth even attending every year??
There are no quantifiable sales made at these shows either. I’m scratching my own head and struggling to defend why we should attend other than to keep up with the ‘Joneses’ (other competitors). Any advice will be very welcome!
Thanks for being a loyal reader and for sharing your story, Christina! Unfortunately, you’re definitely not alone. Many exhibitors struggle with how to go beyond just showing up. While show organizers think they’re helping to increase attendance with golf tournaments and other related events, it often works against you by drawing people away from the real reason they’re there: to spend time on the exhibit floor. There are three keys to turning your situation around: taking a serious look at which other shows might bring you better ROI, doing more promotions to drive qualified attendees to your booth, and taking the “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em” approach by sponsoring one of the add-on events. If people are so excited to be at those, you might as well be there making the most of it!
good point about attending one mega-show vs attending multiple, smaller regional shows. i think sometimes people are just after the “big fish” and don’t really think about the cost of getting that one big fish over the cost of landing a bunch of smaller clients from regional shows
So true, arock! Too many companies measure success as landing a major client because they think that means they’ve made a big splash. In reality, there’s much more visibility and sales potential at the smaller shows … plus the fact that your ROI is higher because it doesn’t blow an entire year’s budget! (For example, in the Dilbert scenario, how many smaller shows could they have done with that same $200K?)