Advance Publicity - You will get more mileage from the event if you invite your own prospective customers to attend. TVC Events will provide you with postcards or flyers for this purpose.

Exhibit Booth - Your booth or display table should reflect the quality and professionalism of your products and services and display them visually. For a service business, use samples of your work, photographs, testimonial letters, press clippings, etc. to make what you do as tangible as possible. Try to find out what sort of displays other exhibitors will have. You don't want to look cheap or unprepared by comparison.

Marketing Literature - If you exhibit at a large event, be prepared to give away many copies of your literature. Some attendees make a habit of taking something from each booth, regardless of whether they are actually interested. Create one-color or black & white to save up to 50% or more on material cost. It's a good idea to have a relatively inexpensive piece available for the taking, and keep your more costly brochure or marketing kit behind the table to give to serious prospects.

Script or Outline - Prepare in advance what you will say to people who come by your booth. Think of one good qualifying question you can ask at the outset of a conversation to see if the person you are speaking with is a prospect for you. Write out a script for any helpers so they can answer predictable questions. If you will be conducting a demonstration, write a script or outline for it, and be sure to rehearse!

Capturing Leads - The traditional way to capture the contact information of people who attend an event is to collect their business cards for a drawing. This can result in a large number of cards, with no way of knowing who is a legitimate prospect. Insert a qualifier into your drawing -- ask people to answer a qualifying question on the back of their card before dropping it in. To save time, use two stickers of different colors to indicate yes or no.

Logistical Details - Make a list of the small things that could make your day more successful and you more relaxed, such as extra helpers, bottled water, snacks, comfortable shoes, pen and paper, and plenty of business cards. If all the details are handled, you can concentrate on making a good impression.

Check back often for more tips to make your participation in trade shows successful.