Trade show season – I know, even hearing the words is exhausting.
The fact is, it’s that time of year where PR and marketing teams are busier than ever, booking travel, setting up booths, completing marketing collateral and press materials….the list of to dos is seemingly endless.
Trade shows are an excellent location for companies to catch up with current and potential customers, but also very important, are the press meetings that take place at trade show booths and meeting rooms. In fact, one article noted that according to the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), “85 percent of CES exhibitors cite media coverage as one of the most important reasons for attending the show.”
But trade shows are crowded and your spokespeople are busy, so how do you make the most of your media relations? Here are three tips for successful media relations during this busy tradeshow season.
Start early. How often have you found yourself in this scenario. You perfect your pitch and you send it out, only to get a quick reply of “sorry, my schedule has been booked for weeks.” It happens more often than not, and that’s because just a handful of media personnel are trying to meet with dozens or hundreds of companies at one event. So, instead of waiting for a media list to come out, do some research on who you reached out to or met with last year or who might attend the type of show you’re working with, and reach out early. Then, you can follow up as media lists are distributed.
Speaking of media lists, tread carefully. Media lists are a great way to see who’s attending the trade show, but should not be your only answer for who you’ll be reaching out to. If you blindly reach out to every person on the media list, you’ll likely offend the editor that doesn’t even remotely cover your topic area. So, use your media list as a starting point and do further research to ensure your target publications are indeed a fit for your trade show meetings.
Don’t forget the details. Great, you’ve scheduled time with your spokesperson and the media and sent out all of the calendar invites – but where are they supposed to meet up? Make sure your calendar invites (or email confirmations) have the full details of the meeting and be sure to include your mobile number for contact during the show. Remember, everyone is busy and a wasted 10 minutes trying to figure out the meeting location could result in a canceled meeting altogether.
We know you’re busy this trade show season, but DJA is here to help. If you’re looking for someone to help with prepping press releases or data sheet or to schedule these very important analyst and press meetings, feel free to reach out at [email protected].
And if you have any other tips for successful trade show media relations, we’d love to hear them in the comments below. Good luck this season!