Comments on: Ditching Trade Show Paper in a Digital World

By: Dena

Dena — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 13:46:40 +0000

I think that many of you are on a wild goose chase to get rid of print. However when I am at a trade show, the first day I am overwhelmed with the amount of booths and options out there, so what do I do? I grab relevant catalogs and bring them back to my hotel room. That night I sort through them and decide what I really want to investigate and possibly purchase and visit those booths the next day. I have gotten many flash drives and CD’s and usually they sit on a desk in the hotel room as it is too cumbersome to load everything onto my laptop if I even bring it with me. I do like the flash drives as I can erase the content and use them for other purposes. Paper catalogs are still the easiest to work with and I would definitely be disappointed if they disappeared. Am I the only one?

By: Gail Hernandez

Gail Hernandez — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 13:40:55 +0000

For years, whenever I am faced with a booth staff that wants to bring 100 lbs of literature, I’ve weened them off their reliance on brochures by suggesting we bring 25 of the one piece that’s important to us and “see what happens.” It’s worked every time … the next time we bring 5-10 pieces for the hard core “brochure-ophiles” amongst us and the team is relieved they don’t have to keep shipping those darn boxes!

By: Barry Viniker

Barry Viniker — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 11:18:59 +0000

Great read – but for experiential shows such as food shows, taste shows or plant shows… many people still visit for the freebies. Maybe food suppliers should be handing out mini hotdogs with thumb drives.

By: Steve McWilliams

Steve McWilliams — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 17:41:49 +0000

Electronic links often provide a better solution Newman because of the $0 cost but also because of the viral/evergreen nature of a link to a website. 2-4-6 months after the event when you have time/budget/need you can click the link and get accurate and current information. We provide this capability on a as needed basis. Very cost effective compared to the cost of disposable hard drives plus you can resend the customer specified information on request.

By: Ken Newman

Ken Newman — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 16:43:56 +0000

Great thinking, Andy. Focusing on ‘problem/solution’ is always the way to go.

By: Andy Saks

Andy Saks — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 12:21:35 +0000

Well said Ken! I think there’s also a potential tie-in idea with more personalized marketing. Paper marketing is generic and focuses entirely on the product. How about instead, you and the prospect create a digital document while you’re at the booth that’s tailored precisely to how your products meet their needs, and load THAT on to a thumb drive?