Integrating Social Media Into Trade Show Marketing

15 Ways to Integrate Social Media Into Your Trade Show

According to one survey,  93% of marketers ranked Twitter as their best marketing tool for trade shows. The best part of social media marketing is that it’s free, engaging, and authentic. Not only can you build exposure for your brand, but you can leverage social channels to communicate its ethos and values.

Our trade show management convention services emphasize social media marketing throughout to capture new leads pre-show, during the shown, and even after the conference. If you’re attending a trade show production in the near future, we’ve provided you with fifteen ways to fully maximize your results using social media.

Pre-Show Marketing

     1. Create Anticipation Through Teasers

When people are truly interested and constantly engaged with your brand, any drop of information you can provide them will be eaten up in a second. Consider how successful bands use social media teasers to draw anticipation for album releases.

Publishing teaser posts over Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram is a great way to build excitement for a new product launch, special guest, or surprise announcement at your next trade show event. Better yet, build a landing page to direct users to, and supply them with information to register for the event. To fully maximize this strategy, build a countdown timer to the event.

     2. Market Using the Event Hashtag

Trade show productions often feature their own dedicated hashtag to condense and curate conversation over social media relating to the event. Hop on the bandwagon and use the conference’s dedicated hashtag in every post you publish over Twitter and Instagram relating to your involvement in the event.

Incorporate your own branded hashtag for each post to promote your brand. Best of all, with Instagram’s new follow hashtag, all of your posts using the conference hashtag will appear in user’s newsfeeds who are attending the event.

     3. Promote Keynote Speeches or Sponsorships

One of the best strategies to stand out at any trade show event is to provide a keynote speech that demonstrates your authority over your niche. Even if you’re providing a sponsorship, be sure to promote this over social media channels before the event to make your brand top-of-mind when entering the conference.

     4. Create a Post-Show Party Event

Lots of people enjoy throwing post-show parties to further connect with customers and also demonstrate the human side of their brand. Create an event over Facebook and invite people who are attending the event to join you.

     5. Mention Influencers and Authorities in Post Snippets

The benefits of influencer marketing are endless. Mention an influencer or thought leader whose attending your event over social media to pique the interest of his/her followers and incentivize them to visit your booth at the event. Once you answer the question of “What is marketing automation?”, you’ll be able to automate your data collection at the booth as well.

Trade Show Social Media Marketing

     6. Advertise Events Your Brand is Participating In as They Occur

While most people will be engaging with booths and viewing interactive media walls, that doesn’t mean they won’t be on their phone half of the time. In fact, many people check out social media during a trade show event to get information about the hottest booths and events happening right now. Be sure to share any events you are participating in during the trade show conference and share pictures throughout of what’s happening at your exhibit.

     7. Host a Contest or Raffle

One way to incentivize attendees to visit your boot and sign up for an email list is to enroll them in a contest or raffle. Offer a cool prize that’s also branded. This strategy is not only cheaper then handing out free merch, but it’s also more engaging.

     8. Take Pictures and Videos

Don’t forget about your followers back home. Be sure to share any exciting news or events for the people who couldn’t attend the event. Be sure to take pictures and videos of your booth, as well as your staff interacting with other exhibits. Show off the true, authentic side of your brand.

     9. Acquire a Video Testimonial

Have you ever awed somebody with a trade show exhibit and just not followed up afterward? Be sure to capture a video testimonial of somebody who was awestruck by your product exhibit or display and share them over social media. This strategy is woefully underutilized and brilliant for your overall marketing campaign.

     10. Invite People to Like Your Page

Incentivize people to like your page by offering rewards, such as free merchandise or discounts if they reshare a tweet or post a picture to your Instagram. Along with your email signup list, use social media engagement to diagnose your marketing efforts at the conference.

Follow-up

     11. Contact Leads Via Email, LinkedIn, Social Media

Go through your contact list and begin reaching out to people over these channels to market your products. Chances are mostly everyone forgot about your brand and exhibit, unless your product was truly extraordinary. Be sure to always follow up to recapture leads and increase your conversions.

     12. Share User-Generated Content

Be sure to reshare any videos or pictures that users submitted to your brand during the event in the upcoming months to remind people of the awesome time they had. User-generated content offers social proof for your brand’s authenticity and authority.

     13. Share Content From the Event

Following this same strategy, be sure to share any pictures and videos that you couldn’t post during the event and reshare them, tagging people from the event to renew engagement with your brand.

     14. Write Up a Blog post About the Event

Whether you’re attending SXSW or a small trade show, write a blog post or press release explaining your success at the event and what this means moving forward for your brand.

     15. Assess Success

Finally, assess the efficacy of your trade show event by analyzing any additional social media likes and shares you received following the event.

Alliance Exposition is a full service trade show marketing firm specializing in everything from booth design to social media strategies. Contact us to help get your brand more exposure and engagement at your next trade show marketing event.