One of the most popular events promo staff in the industry seem to enjoy are tradeshows! They can be interesting to work and range from extremely busy public tradeshows like the Gourmet Food & Wine Expo or the National Women’s Show to quieter private shows like Grocery Innovations Canada or Sourcefest. Tradeshows can be informative and allow you to check out items and ideas that haven’t even been released yet!

If you’re working at one of these events, it can be easy to become overwhelmed. Here are some tradeshow strategies to help you have one of the most positive promotions you’ll ever work!

1) BE PREPARED: find out which building you are going to in advance (e.g. MTCC North OR South) and which aisle your booth is set up in. Make sure you leave yourself enough time to register for your badge on your first day as well as line ups can be very long.

2) INTRODUCTIONS: be sure to introduce yourself to your contact, any other colleagues from their company and your fellow promo staff. This will break the ice and get things going. Be sure to keep your personal belongings out of sight. There is nothing worse than stopping by a booth that has drinks on the tables and jackets hanging out from behind signage etc.

3) GET ON IT: contrary to what some people may think, you have not been hired just to stand around and look good. You are, to some extent, a “tradeshow model” but you are also much more than that. You are a walking, talking commercial for the brand you are representing so you need to get out there and engage the public. You need to get product into people’s hands and make sure they walk away with a positive impression! As an event marketer, you need to do just that – market the product you are representing! Talking among other staff or stuffing your hands in your pockets is a waste of the client’s money and doesn’t do their product justice.

4) SELL YOURSELF: these events aren’t only about tradeshow selling… it’s also about selling yourself and your own brand. If you stand out at an event, you can guarantee yourself great feedback from the client and future requests for you to work again. You may even be recruiting by other companies for full or part-time work. You never know who is watching!

5) FREE STUFF: depending on the type of tradeshow it is, there may be left over product at the end. This is common with a sampling promotion that involves food. I’ll never forget the time I represented Ganong chocolate and was swarmed by other vendors trying to trade their products for our left over boxes of chocolates during the last hour of the show! Do NOT give anything away unless you have permission from the client. Some client’s would rather donate their left overs to charity but in some cases, they’d rather give it away than have it shipped back to their office or warehouse. If they do give you the green light, this is your opportunity to score some really great stuff. A fellow promo staff and myself were fortunate enough to get an entire green garbage bag full of food EACH after one of these shows… so you never know!

6) DON’T FORGET YOUR P’s & Q’s: after you wrap up each day, and at the end of the tradeshow, don’t forget to say thank you to your contact and their colleagues. This will let them know how much you appreciated the work and enjoyed working with them. A little lip service can go a long way and the next time promotional models are needed, hopefully you’ll be at the top of their request list.

Promotions staffing can be amazing, but it’s not all fun and games. You are representing clients who invest alot of money to have you engage the public and get their product into people’s hands, and into their minds, which in turn, helps increase their sales. A national marketing agency may have a very different approach to a tradeshow than a smaller promotions company, but the goals the clients have are almost always the same. Cheers!

Tigris Personnel hosted it’s annual Christmas party at Easy & the Fifth on Sat., Dec. 10.
All who joined in the festivities had an fabulous time. It was great to take the time to get together
outside of work to celebrate another amazing year and  anticipate the year to come!!

The holidays are just around the corner. Are you ready? If not, here are some amazing gift giving ideas you can consider!

CHARITY: in the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it’s easy to forget about charitable contributions. I’m sure anyone would appreciate a small donation made in their name to a reputable charity like World Vision or the World Wildlife Foundation.

GIFTS FROM THE HEART: you can take a photo to a local artist to create a charcoal rendering to give it to someone close to you. This would be an innovative twist on just framing a regular photo.  Alternatively, you can take a selection of photos and create a calendar with a different photo featured for each month.

HOMEMADE WINE: if you have family and friends who enjoy wine, making this in bulk with a personalized label could be a unique and cost-effective way to give gifts to lots of people. If you really want to get creative, you can even find wine glasses you can etch with a personal message or picture to accompany the bottle of wine.

KEEP IT PERSONAL: gift cards or money may be the way to go for some people, but do your best to choose a store or restaurant that you know the recipient will be happy to use it at. If you are giving this to a teenager, a gift card to the mall may be better than choosing a specific store so they can use it where ever they want. Do you have friends or family on a tight budget? They may appreciate a gift card to a restaurant so they can have a nice night out instead of their usual eating in. Remember to get what they’ll like; not what you like.

MAKE MEMORIES: maybe you’d like to give someone the gift of a special experience over a material gift? A spa package would be lovely for your mom or significant other. Perhaps a round of golf at a great course would work for your father or husband (if you can golf with them of course). These days, most are so pressed for time, giving a gift that forces people to make time for each other may be one of the best gifts of all.

SOMETHING THEY WOULD NEVER BUY FOR THEMSELVES: for the ladies in your life, this may very likely be something that sparkles but it doesn’t necessarily have to be jewellery. Maybe there’s been a pair of shoes that she can’t afford or a nice dress? For the guys, this could be something for their car or a new golf club. There are lots of things we would love to buy but can’t justify spending the money on. If you’re special someone has talked about anything like this, it could be a clue towards giving them an amazing present they’ll never forget.

No matter what you decide to get your family and friends, it’s not so much about getting them something – but the thought and effort that’s gone into what you’ve gotten for them. If you spend some time planning in advance, this will be a pleasant experience for you as well! Happy Holidays everyone