4. Train your staff to Market for you.

Your staff represent your company and they must be professional at all times. Gossiping and ignoring delegates is a poor reflection of your company.

Make sure you staff your booth with employees who are people-orientated. Brief them fully on what is required of them. Let them know reasons why you are at trade show, what you are exhibiting and what you hope to achieve by being at event.

Training on how to correctly approach and interact with people and collect quality leads is also essential.

5. Appealing Giveaways

Whether we like to admit it, most of us have probably left a trade show and proudly shown off our new pens and trinkets to those unable to attend.

It can be easy to dismiss these giveaway items as a waste of money. However, reality is that they do increase awareness of your company and entice attendees to your booth.

The trick is making sure that you are giving away an item that your target audience wants. What items will appeal to your market?

6. Lead follow up

A successful trade show is dependent upon your skills in following up leads. Research has found that 70% of trade show leads do not receive proper follow up.

To make job easier, plan before trade show how you are going to follow up prospects. Design a system to mail out information to leads within a week or two of event and how you will follow these up. The longer leads are left unattended colder they will become.

Ideally, ensure that all your leads are qualified before you pass them on to your sales team.

(c) Marie-Claire Ross 2004. All rights reserved.

Marie-Claire Ross is one of the partners of Digicast. Digicast works with organisations who are not satisfied that their marketing and training materials are helping their business grow. She can be contacted on 0500 800 234 (Australia wide) or at mc@digicast.com.au. The website is at www.digicast.com.au.

4. Poor production values

While watching your corporate video, your customers will be left with an impression of what type of business you are and what to expect when doing business with you.

A fast way to subconsciously get across wrong image to your viewer is to have grainy pictures, poorly framed shots and sloppy editing.

A well thought out and professionally created television program will create a positive impression in minds of your prospects. After all, we all watch television and we are used to broadcast quality productions, not wobbly and unfocused shots that scream 'amateurish'.

To produce a good quality television program, it must be made using an experienced A-grade cameraman, a broadcast quality camera and a fully trained editor

5. Target audience is too diverse

Many marketing videos often try to get as many messages out to a diverse audience.

It is very difficult to produce a video that is 'all things to all people'. After all, communicating to primary school students, overseas buyers and consumers all in one video is an extremely difficult feat to pull.

Research has found that advertising that targets a number of market segments results in higher profits than advertising that sells to a mass market.

Likewise, marketing videos that target a small audience are more successful than those aimed at a large audience. It is often wise to produce several television programs for different audiences, rather than cram all of your messages into one confusing video.

6. Let's do a video, just because we can!

It might seem far-fetched but there are companies that embark on commissioning a marketing video without really assessing if they need one.

This can be due to a number of reasons such as using up available budgets, satisfying corporate egos and employees creating work for themselves.

You are probably wondering why a video communication producer would even complain about this situation. The answer is simple.

A marketing video is an effective tool to increase sales in a company. It is actually painful and embarrassing to watch a video that is a shameless waste of company money.

Poorly produced videos might line pockets of some video producers, but they do little to convince future clients that they are worthwhile.

If you are in market for a marketing video, make sure you follow these simple guidelines to ensure your project is a success, rather than destined for rubbish bin.

(c) Marie-Claire Ross 2004. All rights reserved.

Marie-Claire Ross is one of the partners of Digicast. Digicast works with organisations who are not satisfied that their marketing and training materials are helping their business grow. She can be contacted on 0500 800 234 (Australia wide) or at mc@digicast.com.au. The website is at www.digicast.com.au.