PPB March 2017

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| MARCH 2017 | 83
THINK
need to keep people hands-
on and active—they’ll give
money if they feel connected to
[the organization].”
She created a local event for
a client organization based on
the TV show The Amazing Race,
utilizing promotional products.
“We set up banners and had QR
codes that would give people the
clue (and a website they could
just type in if they didn’t have
the app) and at each station that
they managed to make it to they
would pick up a little gift that was
either tied into that particular
station or that would help them
make it to the next one. And each
one was sponsored by a different
sponsor of the nonprofit itself,”
Beerfas says.
Because of the sponsorships,
it didn’t cost the nonprofit
anything to provide the
products, but the event—and the
products—got people excited
about the program. And, equally
important, they got the sponsors
excited about the program.
Success followed the
engagement. “The organization
made more money that year than
they had in the previous two
years when everything they tried
was not working for them,” she
says. “They learned a great lesson
about keeping people involved
and keeping things fun. They also
grew the number of volunteers
because people were so excited
about what was going to happen
the next year and they wanted to
be involved behind the scenes,
not just show up on the day [of
the event].”
Trade-Show Success
Beerfas emphasizes that
experiential marketing programs
are great to implement at trade
shows because they drive
people to your booth and
create excitement.
“Suppliers can provide things
like spin-the-wheel games …
Something with noise to get
people noticing your booth. The
goal is to tie into messaging.
I have seen amazing things
where people are lined up to get
whatever prizes they’re giving
away—and they could be little
things or expensive things. But
then people walk away and say
‘What was that about? I never
talked to anyone, I don’t know
why they were there or what they
were doing there.’ So the key is to
tie the experience into messaging,
and whatever your goals are for
having that exhibit there.”
She adds that it’s critical to
make sure that the people who
are waiting in line—and that’s
your goal, to have people waiting
in line—are being prequalified.
“Prequalification can be as
simple as saying, ‘If you want
to have a chance to do the
experience, first you have to
sit through the presentation.’
People will filter themselves out.
Or maybe they have to fill out a
form first. It could be as simple
as asking for their title. Maybe
you want to hit all the CMOs on
the floor, for example. A lot of
prequalification can be done in
pre-show marketing,” she says.
Watch a Q&A video as Beerfas
discusses how to deal with
difficult clients and turn
frustrations into sales.
Find the link with this story at
Julie Richie is associate
editor for PPB.
Rama Beerfas
Shares Five
Trade-Show
Tips For
Suppliers
1 Pay attention to people
walking by. Never eat or
read in your booth or people
will feel ignored.
2 Don’t be overly aggressive,
but don’t be too passive
either. Stand in front of your
booth, smile and nod and
ask how the show is going,
but don’t chase after people
or offer to scan their badge
before they show interest
in you.
3 Make sure you have
branding at the top back
of your booth (about 8-10
feet high). People scan
from the top left in a Z
formation; they like a certain
amount of anonymity before
they make eye contact or
look at your name badge.
4 Any graphics you display
must be relevant. Don’t
just pick a random photo
that doesn’t relate back to
your messaging.
5 Don’t be afraid of words.
Yes, fewer words are better,
but sometimes you need
more words, especially if
your message is somewhat
fleeting. Give people enough
words and graphics, when
appropriate, so that you can
start a conversation.