October 7, 2011

Time to Check Your #Postseason Stats

The tradeshow is over. The booth has been packed away and you’re heading back to the office. No more late night carousing with clients. No more worrying about that graphic makeover that didn’t really fit. No more hustling to post photos on Facebook of those endless booth visitors.

Well, until the next show. At which point you’ll want to know how many people checked out your Facebook page; how many people retweeted your tweets and what kind of response you got from the various social media promotions you did during the show.

To check your #postseason stats (okay, a little play on the TV Major League Baseball promos going on to get people to chime in on Twitter), you want to know what statistics and metrics to track.

And that depends on what you did during the event. If you posted photos and updates on your company’s Facebook page, it’s an easy matter to go through the Facebook wall a few days after the show and check post impressions and feedback percent. You can track them by making a quick spreadsheet with the title of the post, what type it is (photo, video, text, etc), when it was posted, number of impressions and % of feedback. If this is the first show you’re tracking these stats, it gives you a baseline. Then at your next show do the same thing. After a few shows you’ll have enough information to track trends and see what types of posts get the most reaction. Is it photos? Videos? What kinds of comments do you get? You can even track who commented, and whatever pertinent information you glean from their Facebook page (where they live or work, how many friends they have, etc.).

Yes, you can go a little nuts spending a lot of time compiling and tracking the information. But by doing so, you’re moving ahead of the competition that is not bothering to learn about their community. The more informed you are about your community the better prepared you are to respond to them, interact with them and plan for the next show when you know a lot of them will want to see you and learn about new products.

You can essentially do the same with Twitter and YouTube. While you don’t have the same amount of metrics available on Twitter, you can still track re-tweets and responses and log that information in your post-show stat book. On YouTube you can compile video views and log any feedback and responses you get from the videos you post.

Is all of this extra work worth it? I think so. It gives you inside information and insight into who’s responding, what type of posts are getting responses and what kinds are ignored.

photo credit: Brett Jordan

October 3, 2011

Choosing a Social Media Consultant for Your Event and Tradeshow Marketing

When it comes to promoting your events or tradeshow appearances through social media, you probably know best about what parts of your company or product line you want to promote.

But are you the best company for the actual job of winding up your social media and getting out the message?

Perhaps. Or perhaps not. But in considering outsourcing your social media, there are two pieces to look at:

First, what do you want to do and what is your company capable of doing?

Second, what capabilities does the social media consultant need to bring to the table once you answer the first question?

So in assessing the first question – what do you want to do and what is your company capable of doing? – you should have a pretty good handle on your internal capabilities. If not, ask around. You might be surprised to find several of your people are already extremely adept at social media – for their personal use. That doesn’t necessarily translate to doing the right thing for your company, but it’s a start. Every company probably has hidden ‘digital natives’ that can step into at least a part-time role as social media manager. At minimum they should be able to set up accounts, get followers, send out tweets, post videos, etc. They may not have the ability to design a marketing plan, but they may have the ability to execute the plan if it were outlined to them. Also, take a look at this very thorough checklist for self-assessment in your social media capabilities from Marc Meyer.

Second question: what capabilities does the social media consultant need to bring to the table? At bare minimum they should be able to strategize short-term and long-term marketing plans. They should know their way around all the popular social media outposts.

Check their client list. Not having a long client list shouldn’t necessarily disqualify them, but it’s a good first step. Next, check their involvement in social media. They should be actively involved in Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube at the minimum, and possibly active now on Google+.

Have they taught classes or given webinars? Ask their definition of social media. Is their blog active and current? Do they blog at least once a week? Do they have comments? (Comments aren’t the barometer they used to be, but still something to look at). Do they understand that social media is about PEOPLE and not TOOLS?

If they promise instant success, flee! Social media success builds slowly and over time as you build a community to interact with.

Finally – do they seem genuine? Are they authentic? Do they appear as enthusiastic about social media, or do they sound like a used car salesman?

This is not about the perfect checklist for finding the right or the best social media consultant for your business. No matter who you choose to work with, there’s always going to be someone else who’s cheaper and better.

It’s about finding the most compatible consultant with your company and with you. And it probably won’t happen overnight.

Photo Creative Commons by Orangeacid.

September 28, 2011

Facebooking at the Tradeshow

While there are literally dozens, if not hundreds of things you could do to interact with Facebook while at your tradeshow, let’s look a few of the basics. Are you covering these?

Does your blog (assuming you have a blog) have a Facebook page widget inviting readers to connect (like) with you? That’s a must. Every one that likes your Facebook page through your blog is another person that you can connect with in another place. And the good thing is that they are able to do that without even landing on your Facebook page. If you don’t have a blog, at least put a widget on the front page of your website. They’re easily configurable, and easily found – just go here and follow the instructions. You may need the assistance of your web guy or girl to install the code, but really, it’s pretty simple!

MRH ss — Add photos and videos to your Facebook page from the show

At the show, plan to post photos and updates as often as time allows. Encourage people to upload their own photos of your booth and/or staff to their pages. People love to share, so make it easy. In fact, you might even create a special backdrop where they can have their photos taken. Get creative – put up a photo of Brad Pitt or someone famous, or perhaps a famous scenery such as Yosemite Valley or Grand Canyon, or some other place that might relate to your business.

If you have a smartphone, get the Facebook app set up on it, and log in before the big day. Spend a little time getting use to how to take photos and upload them to your company page. Once that’s done, you’ll have a much easier time doing it while in the chaotic time crunch on the show floor.

Once you’re to the point of posting photos from the show floor and encouraging visitors to do the same, don’t forget to monitor the page. No doubt you’ll be getting comments on a regular basis – or at least feedback on the photos. Chime in to the conversation and respond to questions or concerns. This is great customer service: not only do you show customers that you care; you show potential clients that you’re proactive about dealing with issues as they come up.

With Facebook usage and time-spent data continuing to ramp up, it behooves you to do the best you can to be a part.

September 26, 2011

A Dozen More Social Media Ideas for Your Tradeshow

Put a ‘like’ button on your website. Install a FB widget.
Keep Twitter followers informed. Information seems to spread quickly through the Twitterverse – it’s extremely easy to retweet a post and share. If you send something out on Twitter, chances are good that someone somewhere will pass it along.
Make sure your Twitter profile is complete. This means having at least the basics: a link back to your site – or better yet, a specific Twitter landing page or to your Facebook page so they can connect with you on another platform; a good photo; and enough information so a visitor can decide if you’re worth interacting with.
Tag posts ,YouTube uploads, Flickr photos: tags are how people find you. You can’t tag things enough.
Schedule tweets and FB postings using Hootsuite. ‘Nuff said.
Create an alumni group for your event on LinkedIn. It’s a great way to keep in touch with folks after the actual event, and to get them involved in the next event you do. If it’s not your event, look for a show group on LinkedIn. If there’s not one, consider starting one.
Create a Deal. Yup, people love a deal, and they’ll go out of their way to get a good deal. How will they find out about your deal? One very effective way is through social media, especially Facebook and Twitter. If it’s a great deal, your followers will tell their followers, and so on.
Use Foursquare to create deals for followers and check-ins Foursquare is still a bit out of the mainstream, but it is useful for those who choose to get involved. It’s yet another way for people to connect with you at a tradeshow booth.
Use or create #hashtag for your event. This allows anyone on Twitter to track down any information on the show.
Create a custom Twitter Background. Yeah, the basic Twitter backgrounds are sort of nice, a bit bland, but a custom Twitter background really helps to set you apart from the crowd. Just search for ‘create custom Twitter background’ and get a ton of resources.
Need to get a video stream out? Use UStream.tv or Livestream.com.
Put your slide deck on Slideshare.com. Are you speaking at a show or conference? Share your slide deck with people who couldn’t make it to the show.

photo credit: techatnyu

September 2, 2011

Why Hootsuite is so Good for Tradeshows and Events

Okay, this is gonna sound like an ad for Hootsuite. But it’s not. Well, it’s not intended that way!

But the more I play around with Hootsuite, the more I find it’s a terrific tool for managing your social media efforts at tradeshows and events.

First, everything is in one place. And I mean everything! You can load up several accounts from Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare, LinkedIn, Ping.fm and others. You’re able to set up several members of your team with access to the dashboard, making it easy for them to schedule tweets or posts ahead of time. This is a great tool when you consider the chaos of the tradeshow floor, and you know that you’ll want to be able to take care of people in the booth as well as mix in the occasional live tweet or Facebook posting with your scheduled tweets or posts.

Let’s say you’re planning a tradeshow appearance. You can schedule various activities in your booth, such as guest appearances, product promos, demonstrations, etc., and set up tweets and posts ahead of time. It takes some time to put it all into place, but once you’re at the show, you can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that all of those tweets and Facebook postings are going to show up at their scheduled time. And if something changes in mid-stream, such as guest getting caught in traffic and having to delay his appearance, it’s easy to log on to Hootsuite and make the changes in the scheduled posts.

When Hootsuite first came out, I grabbed a free account, and bounced back and forth between that and Tweetdeck (I wouldn’t count Tweetdeck out yet – I hear Twitter purchased the software and is working to add more capabilities to it). Then I drifted away. But now I’m back, and as I mentioned, the more I use it the better it gets. The coders behind Hootsuite keep adding more bells and whistles, making it more useful all the time. In fact, there’s so much there that I probably won’t ever use all of its capabilities.

As an event manager, your biggest social media advantage is the ability to get ahead of the curve on being able to set up pre-scheduled tweets and posts. This software is the best at doing that, and it’s web-based so you don’t have to download and install anything.

And don’t forget the mobile platform. There’s a Hootsuite app (which I rarely use because I prefer the web approach) that is also available if you prefer to do it from your smartphone.

Have I said enough? I could go on, but you might think I’m trying to suck up to the dudes at Hootsuite. Naah, it’s just a cool tool.

Hootsuite is available in both a free and premium version. The premium version, for just a few bucks a month, offers ore detailed analytics and deeper tools – well worth the modest monthly cost.

August 30, 2011

Social Media Tradeshow Marketing from the Bob Marley Songbook

If you’ve read this blog for awhile or know me at all, chances are you have discovered that, yes, I am a big Bob Marley fan. Have been since the mid 70s. Saw the guy on tour. Twice. Not to mention the tattoo.

So I thought it might be fun to thumb through Marley’s extensive library and pull some song titles for social media tradeshow marketing inspiration. And I thought it might be fun to grab some YouTube videos along the way… So here we go…!

Stir it Up

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6U-TGahwvs

Before the show, get on Twitter and Facebook and let people know you’re going to be at the show. If you don’t stir the pot, so to speak, the only thing you have to depend on is how your booth is viewed and how your staff performs at the show itself. On the other hand, if you ‘stir it up’ on social media, you can spread the word about your booth (is it new?), where to find it, who and what are going to be there and generally create a bit of buzz.

Get Up, Stand Up

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7iXcKKpdx0

Not getting a fair shake from the show organizers? Getting a raw deal from a supplier? Well, don’t take it lying down! Get Up, Stand Up! Stand up for your rights! Be assertive (not aggressive) in making sure that you are getting the full measure of what you’re paying for. Be mindful of what you deserve – and think of those around you. Stand up for their rights as well when the time is right.

Rat Race

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GVzsuDsxW8

Yes, you’re in the rat race. There are hundreds, possibly thousands of exhibitors who are all trying to stand out from the crowd. No worries! As they say in Jamaica, soon come! Just realize that you’re part of the mix. Not only will you have a lot of competition, you can BE a lot of competition for the rest of the exhibitors. Present your booth and staff on a Positive Vibration and you’ll find that you won’t be Waiting in Vain.

Sun is Shining

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBDVarvFqYI

What’s your outlook? Are you spreading positive vibrations, or are you Mr. Stick-in-the-Mud? If you believe that the sun eventually shine down on you, let your followers and friends online know about it!

One Love

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SHbVa8CZZH4

Your clients and customers must feel some love for you in some way. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be buying your product or service. So return the love. When customers stop by, ask them if you can photograph them for your Facebook page. Or get them to sit down for a one-minute testimonial. Show them love by sharing the testimonial on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. They’ll love the recognition!

Crisis

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nk-Mwh962c8

At some point you will be faced with a crisis – small, medium or (hopefully not) large. Keep in mind, this happens to everybody! If you can keep your head while everyone else is losing yours, you’ll appear as the cool, calm collected individual that people can depend on. Always have a Plan B in mind.

Wake Up and Live

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2Y-KZ0CYDM

Tradeshows are a jam-packed, chaotic environment that goes by really, really fast! Before you know it, they’re over, and you’re left wondering ‘what happened?’ Don’t let that happen to you. Take a few moments during the show to bask in it – to soak it all in – and if the spirit moves you, to share it with your social media community.

Exodus

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWw_gP0vDfE

The show is over! Hallelujah! You can get back to normal, whatever that is for you. But at the end of he show, don’t forget about those social media followers. Tweet out your thanks, photos, videos and other items at the end of the show. It’ll help remind those followers who you are and what you do. And if you do take time to thank people by name (individual or organization), you’ll be seen as that much more human.

August 23, 2011

Ten Things to Put in a One-Minute Tradeshow Teaser Video

So you’re going to shoot a tradeshow teaser video to get people to be aware of your upcoming appearance whetting their appetite to see your company’s exhibit at the show. But you’re rarely messed around with video. Maybe you don’t like getting in front of the camera. Or you don’t know what to put in a brief video.

Well, let’s take a look at ten things to think about when assembling your video.

1. Know whom you’re talking to

What is your intended audience thinking about the issue you’re going to talk about? Are they well informed? Ill-informed? Mis-informed? The more you can understand the mindset of your audience, the better your video will be. In the case of creating a short video that relates to a tradeshow appearance, does your audience know anything about you company or your product? Are they familiar with the show? Do they have the proper context for your presentation or are they coming in from the cold?

Steaz Teas Interactive Fortune-Telling Cactus

2. Pick a single topic and stick to it.

You’ve seen videos that try to do everything and cover a lot of ground. In the case of a short teaser video, know exactly what the topic and don’t waver. If you have more than one reason to invite people to your booth, do more than one video.

3. If you’re going to be on camera, rehearse your presentation a few times, but don’t overdo it.

There are other ways to create a video than to use a video camera. A screen-capture program, for instance, is a great way to put a video together without actually getting in front of a camera. But if you’re going to put your face onscreen, rehearse it a few times until you feel comfortable with the bullet points you’re going to cover. And yes, you should just cover bullet points, and NOT read a script. By rehearsing it a few times you’ll get comfortable with how you’re going to say it. Record a few times and go with the best. Don’t worry about perfection – there’s still no perfect presentation – but just relax and let it flow and you’ll be fine.

4. Fancy production or not?

In most cases, there’s no need for fancy production. If you’re a service company such as a dentist or accountant, just be real and show people who you are. If your company is a high-end video production company, yes, you should show your chops! But in most cases, expensive production is lost on YouTube. It depends on the expectations of your audience, which are being lowered continuously thanks to a lot of low-end video production.

5. Authenticity

Want to impress people? Don’t try and be someone you’re not. If you can show who you REALLY are – your AUTHENTIC self – people will find that much attractive than a horse-and-pony show that has little to do with who you are.

6. Don’t waste time – respect people’s time and use it wisely

If you have 60 seconds worth of information, don’t use three minutes to get it all out. Be short and sweet and then get it over with. Respect people’s time. If they get used to your short (and respectful) videos, they’ll have a greater inclination to come back and see more.

7. Don’t do a hard sell – talk conversationally

This goes back to authenticity. Most people don’t speak in a hard-sell mode in social situations. Imagine you’re in social situation and you’re talking casually with a friend or colleague. Now, use the same approach on your video and you’ll be fine.

8. Solve a problem

If you can describe how your product or service solves a problem in 60 seconds or less (and you should be able to do that!), you have a great chance of getting people to show up at your booth or shop. What exactly does your product do? Do you have a proven result? Tell how your solution will improve their situation. Share it.

9. Subtitles can increase response.

Okay, I have no evidence to support this! But to my way of thinking, by showing subtitles you are reinforcing your message. Of course, there are a few people that don’t hear well and the subtitles may assist them in understanding what you’re talking about. Plus, it’s a good place to put a phone number or web URL. Most video editing programs allow you to insert text on the screen. Again, don’t overdo it – but use it.

10. Put a smile in your voice!

One of the first and best lessons I learned when I got into radio as a teenager: put a smile into your voice! It comes across…really!

August 10, 2011

What does a Tradeshow Marketing Manager do with Social Media?

8 Ways to Use Social Media in your Tradeshow Marketing

Be involved.
Be proactive.
Keep an ear to the ground (continued research)
Plan and execute event-related social media campaigns
Track metrics of engagement
Write up reports on results
Stay informed on cutting edge technology
Use the technology that makes the most sense

Let’s break those down a bit more, okay?

1. Be involved.

Makes sense. If you’re going to use social media in your event and tradeshow marketing – and you should – you’ll have to be involved. That means checking in on your Facebook and Twitter feeds regularly, following and ‘liking’ people and businesses that are related in some way. It means engaging regularly with Twitter followers by offering good information, making your opinions known, and responding to tweets, questions and comments. Engagement!

2. Be Proactive.

Don’t just sit and wait for something to happen with your social media engagement. When you see a cool article that your audience might enjoy, share a link. When you have an opinion on something, write up a blog post (you DO have a blog, right?). When you go to an event, take photos and post them. When you stop at a booth, tell people who you are online and how to find you (this should be on your business card).

3. Keep an ear to the ground.

Your research and listening modules should be concise and easy to follow. If you’re not using a premium research tool, you should have Google Alerts set up on various industry brands, products and people. You should regularly search Twitter for keywords to see what conversations are going on. If you want to be in the know, you have to spend time learning what’s going on. There are tons of free and premium tools to help you do this.

4. Plan and execute event-related social media campaigns

Every show is unique and therefore every show should have a unique marketing plan for your social media engagement. You will have different people involved, different products to promote, and different targets to reach. Plans would include a variety of tweets, Facebook postings, videos and photos to be shot and produced, perhaps an editorial calendar of what information goes out when. Yes, it adds another layer to your entire tradeshow marketing plan, but it’s necessary if you want to get a handle on it and make it work effectively.

5. Track metrics of engagement

Plan on what metrics you’re going to track, how they’re going to be tracked and who’s going to do the tracking. Is it Facebook ‘likes’? Is it the number of people that show up in your booth in response to tweets? Is it pageviews on your blog? Video views on YouTube? Sales as a results of social media engagement? Before you can track metrics, know what’s important for your business and how you’re going to assemble the numbers.

6. Write up reports on results

After each show, it’ll be up to you to include a segment on your post-show report that reflects your social media engagement. It’s generally pretty straightforward stuff, but don’t discount the importance of the essence of the report: who did what, how it worked, what the results were (compared to expectations, if any), and what your recommendations are for the next show.

7. Stay informed on cutting edge technology

“Oh, no, there’s something NEW? Holy crap, I’m only starting to figure out the older stuff!” Yes, there’s always something new, especially in the fast-paced world of social media. Take smartphones, for example. Are your websites optimized for the mobile platform? Are you using QR Codes? If so, are you making sure that QR Code is doing what it’s supposed to do? What about Foursquare and SCVNGR?

By tracking a few blogs, you should be able to keep up on much of what’s new. My favorites are Mashable and Hubspot, but there are certainly others as well.

8. Use the technology that makes the most sense

Just because you CAN use a technology doesn’t mean you SHOULD. While it’s easy to say that you should stay with what you’re comfortable, I think it’s important to keep stretching your comfort zone. Don’t know how to set up a QR Code? Learn about them, and figure out if it’s something your market might react positively to. Not sure if video works in your industry? See what others are doing and assess your company’s capabilities and make a decision based on that assessment.

There will ALWAYS be new technology headed your way. You should at least be aware of it, what the implications might be and how you might potentially use it.

Adding social media to your other duties as tradeshow manager might make you pull your hair out, but the fact remains: your competition is working to do the same. Some are ahead of you, some are behind. The more comfortable you are with all of the tools and gadgets of social media, the better off you and your company will be.

photo credit: RobeRt Vega

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