Trade shows are exhibitions in which companies, from different industrial areas, present their new services and products. They are usually not open to the public, only company representatives or members of the press being able to attend them, but there are exceptions.
When it comes to fashion trade shows, they are really great occasions for sellers and designers to present their products to the world and gain as many customers as possible, not just for the present, meaning the moment of the trade show, but also for the future. That’s why it’s really, really important how retailers choose to present their collections – whether they are of clothes, jewelry or no matter what else; because if it’s done right, it could really make their businesses grow. And isn’t this the goal?
When you know you’re about to exhibit at a trade show as a retailer, you should totally have your goals clearly set. You may have decided to exhibit because you want to generate sales leads, to obtain customer’s feedback or even to study competition. There are a lot of legitimate reasons for exhibiting your products at a trade show. Then, if the first step is accomplished, you should move on to number 2, meaning:
The training – you should go through this to assure you get the most from your booth and also, from your interactions with the visitors – a.k.a. your potential customers. It’s very important to build an efficient, flourishing relationship with them. In order to do this, you need to view some aspects: the time you have to spend at the show, which will be limited, floor plans booklets with a description of the exhibits, marketing materials and stuff.
All of these must be well prepared before. Your company must be well-represented at the trade show, and, for starters, you have to assure that your staff does the work right. Also, you should know that the other vital things that you should take care of are the collateral materials and the booth.
As some general advice, you should keep in mind some things:
First of all, you have to assure that your booth staff: won’t ever sit down – you don’t want them to seem bored or/and unenthusiastic, and also, booth staff should always sit beside or in front of the booth;
Smiles – it will facilitate the approach with the potential customers, and it’s the first step in building a vigorous relationship;
Greets people as they approach – so first of all, they attract people to your booth, then they can initiate a conversation and also develop it, talking about your company and products; doesn’t eat in the booth – that’s just a massive turn-off for the show attendees passing by, it looks really unprofessional and it makes it much more difficult to concentrate to the customers – you can solve this by giving the staff one or two breaks when it’s needed, and replace them with other people in those moments.
Then, you have to prepare your booth: it should be well-assembled – some things, such as crooked displays, groggy lights and duct tape create an unprofessional look; It should be kept clean and uncluttered – so no store papers or giveaways at sight (but keep them at an easy access though); consider having some kind of seating – stools or something else – attendees will be more than happy to have the chance to sit down, and this could also lead to a longer conversation.
Now, as I presented you some general advice in attracting the customers at your booth at a trade show, I am going to present some tips for selling jewelry at trade shows.
As I already said, the first step is to prepare your booth. It has to attract and maintain show attendees, so it’s very important how you do it. First of all, you should assure it is all cleaned up, well-ventilated, so they feel they are free to browse in there, rather than feeling suffocated.
Then, you have to create a connection between the type of jewelry you’re selling and the display – meaning you have to bring the perfect props, appropriate with the jewelry styles you’re proposing. For example, if you have jewelry from different time periods, you should properly accessorize the displays (which could be necklace busts etc) with specific things for the culture and the style of those years.
Other things that you should take care of are lighting and mirrors. You must bring a large mirror for those who want to have a full image of them with the jewelry they’re trying on and several other smaller ones, placed near every display. Also, the lightning must be flattering to people’s faces, so you should light up the jewelry so it can sparkle and shine; you should use lamps that are small and portable. And don’t forget to bring battery-operated lights!
Organize a giveaway – put the names and contact information of all people passing by who want to do this into a big bowl, and then extract one of them and give the winner a beautiful jewelry item as a grand prize. How will you proceed after that? You will display a drawing of it in your booth, along with a big poster describing the drawing, and this will encourage people to enter. Also, to build interest – and to remind people which type of jewelry you’re selling, you will mention the name of the winner.
Don’t forget about the collateral materials. Give colorful postcards, flyers, and all sorts of stuff like that, all including, of course, the name of your website. And if it provides a cart, you can include a code that people could use to get a price reduction.
You should also keep in mind that every trade show has 3 phases: the pre-show, the actual show and the after-show. For the pre-show, don’t forget to: contact your regular/current clients; also, contact potential clients; request a list of the attendees of the show and contact them before; promote something that brings people to your booth – for example, a postcard of a free gift, and, very important, to mark your event on social media, on all the possible as we live in the 21st century, in the era of technology.
During the show, you have to keep in mind to: pay attention and say hello to everyone; get to know your neighbours (even if they are selling jewelry too); not sit down (as I already mentioned earlier); be off of your phone; not eat (as I already mentioned, too); have your booth kept clean and organized; have images of your jewelry on a postcard, and put a price on all the jewelry (because you will not have time to price it later).
After the show, you must: keep in touch with everyone who placed an order; keep track of all your clients and also to follow up with people who left a business card. It would be appreciated too if you send a note in which you show your thankfulness to your show contact and if you inform all of your email contacts about the best sellers from the show – people appreciate all that’s hot!
All in all, you must always keep in mind some things that you absolutely have to do in order to have an appropriate booth and to boost your sales at a trade show. Also, pay a lot of attention to the details!
