How to get most out of events

I see many companies invest big money in trade shows, events and expo's like DreamHack, Comic Con, Gamex etc.

It feels like most of them have the following strategy; (1) We will focus on products XXX, YYY, ZZZ … (2) Lets make a big wall or nice displays of all the product USPs, and (3) Rig up a couple of PCs/make some competitions around our products… Then they expect a crowded stand, engaged visiors, and that everyone will remember the uber expensive booth.

The truth is; most people don't really care about your USPs, they don't care about product XXX, YYY or ZZZ. You have some PC's lined up in your booth with the newest games on? Great, so does the other 20 exhibitors…

The sad part is, at the next event I see the same stands, of the same brands with the same plans… I have the feeling they struggle with defining goals and evaluation, so here is a step-by-step plan on how you can prepare for your next event:

1. What is your main goal for the event? (Generate leads, branding, building brand ambassadors, showcase/teach…). Sidenote: It can't be all, all = none. Have one clear main goal.
2. What do the visitors really want? How do you win their attention? No, they're not interested in your new "cutting-edge" rubber grip - unless you present it the way they want it.
3. Combine point 1 & 2. How can you reach your goal, by giving the visitors what they want - and win their attention?
4. Make an agenda, a plan - how you're going to keep the people in the booth engaged.
5. Drop all the USP walls/displays - crisp and clean design looks much better.
6. Bonus: How can you get some useful data out of the trade show? Some examples are: Focus groups on a upcoming project or your products, short questionnaire on what visitors think of your booth and activities (always have a small prize to get more answers), blindfold testings.

7. Evaluate: Very important, and the key to master the art of winning attention and the expo-area. Gather the team and answer these questions (honestly):
1. What was good about the event? What worked well?
2. What did not work at all, that we should just drop?
3. What can we do better for the upcoming event?
4. Was the staff well trained? Do we need more/less people next time?
5. Did we win the attention? Did someone else do a better job than us? If yes, what?
6. From 1 to 10, how do we rate the event?

I challenge you to give it a try :) 

How to create a buyer persona on budget?

The best place to start is in the channel you have biggest reach; (for example: Facebook, Mail, webside). First you want to get the basics in place (demographics), and you want a lot of answers to have much data to work with. I personally make a questionnaire with about 15 questions (to get more engagement you can always throw in a prize). The goal of this exercise is to understand who your customers are:

• Gender
• Age
• Occupation
• Interests/hobbies
• Which social medias are most popular?
• Social status
• Are they influencers on a given subject in their family/friend-circle

When you have all data gathered you create the average customer. Give him a name, a face.

After you have these basics in place - it's all about your creativity to get to know your buyer persona even better; use focus groups/trade-shows/competitions to get more info on:

• Buying process
• Decision making
• Favourite brands/shows/channels/celebrities
• Who are their influencers?
• What type of content do they want to see more from you?

Why buyer personas, and how to use them?

 I've noticed that many companies in the tech/gaming industry don't operate with buyer personas.

They spend big money on trade shows, reserach, sponsorships and video content.. But yet don't have buyer personas.

Two very good reasons to implement buyer personas:

1. It will become a hub for all data/insight you have on a given target group - that you keep expanding for each new piece of information you get.
2. Your communication will be aligned; by sharing your persona internal (design team, copywriters, content department etc) and external (creative agencies, video production etc) everyone will have a clear (and the same) picture on who the audience is.

When you have your typical customer in place, it will help you determine:

• Which influencers to work with
• Which teams to sponsor
• Which events/trade shows to focus on
• How to present your products
• What content to focus on