10 Ways to Boost Event Marketing Effectiveness

4. GENERATE 'NEWS, NOT NOISE'

This piece of advice is equally important for both conference hosts and exhibitors to follow. In the weeks and days leading up to the event, it is in companies' best interest to issue press releases or share previews of announcements being made, but it's crucial that those involved "make news, not noise," Hlavac says. On the host side, it's a good idea to make announcements about big names that will be presenting and sharing a tidbit or two about a big upcoming product release. If an existing product is getting a slew of updates and upgrades, however, there is no need to tout every one. Large vendors are often guilty of this—their solutions are so massive and complex that changes and improvements are being made constantly, and they're eager to share these with their customers. Customers will appreciate a focus on the biggest, most important updates, and they'll be more likely to notice them as well.

Similar rules apply to exhibitors, according to Hlavac. "Don't issue a press release saying you’ll be there. Find something meaningful to say, and issue a press release then. If you don't have a product announcement, share a milestone or introduce a new partner. Share some findings from a study. It's not enough to just tell people you’ll be there, because so will hundreds of other exhibitors. The question you need to answer is why attendees should stop by your booth, and not someone else's," he explains.

5. DO YOUR HOMEWORK

Hosts and exhibitors alike should conduct a great deal of research on the kinds of people that will be attending the event. For hosts, this will prove to be a productive strategy when it's time to promote the next event—knowing who will be attending one year can be a great predictor of who may be interested next year as well. Exhibitors, on the other hand, can use the information to better prepare their showroom floor strategy.

"Depending on who will actually be there, you need to be prepared with a very different mind-set and different materials. Companies need to know whether they'll be talking to C-suite executives or mid-level professionals. When you're talking to a decision maker, it quickly becomes about conversion, but with mid-level executives, it's about getting that next meeting or phone call, and working upwards," Hlavac says.

6. PUT PRODUCT EXPERTS ON THE SHOW FLOOR

Once the show is under way, engagements in the expo hall are the currency of success for exhibitors; that's why those representing a company at an event should be product experts. The value of engaging with potential customers in person comes from conducting demonstrations and allowing attendees to test-drive the product, so whoever is manning the booth should know the ins and outs of how it works.

"Don't send a low-level marketer or sales executive to a trade show to represent your company unless you're confident that they won't disappoint," Hlavac says. There's nothing worse than leaving an interested attendee with unanswered questions or an unsatisfactory experience. Salespeople typically spend months nurturing leads and trying to schedule in-person meetings, so an opportunity to get face time shouldn't be taken lightly. The best approach is to bring a mix of people—a marketer who can deliver the right message, a sales professional with a deep understanding of the product, and a tech expert, for when something inevitably malfunctions at the most inopportune moment.

As for the host's booth, it should be centrally located in the expo hall, and the product team on hand should be large. Don't assume that attendees are learning everything they need to know about the company just because it's hosting the event. Furthermore, the host company should not only maintain an impressive booth presence but be walking the floor. "Assume everyone is there to see you," Hlavac says.

7. BE DELIBERATE ABOUT SOCIAL PLATFORMS

Tradeshow events are social by nature, but leveraging networking platforms to keep the conversation going after individual sessions are over and the show floor is closed can take attendee engagement to the next level. When it comes to posting, however, sometimes less is more, Hlavac says. "Depending on the social network, there should be a limit to how much you're sharing. When you think about every other company that's also constantly sharing updates and making posts, you quickly realize how overwhelming it can be to someone who's following the discussion and trying to make sense of the clutter. Your message will simply get lost," he says.

Rather than aiming for quantity, Hlavac recommends more scarce yet well-thought-out posts across a number of different networks. Though it's tempting to live-tweet a presentation, the practice has become so popular that a keynote session at a large event could yield thousands of tweets at a given moment, all saying the same thing. To stand out, companies should be sharing content that makes them stand out—a product demo that pertains to the topic being discussed in the session, a blog post that contributes an important viewpoint, an informative video. "You should be participating in the conversation in a meaningful way, with meaningful content," according to Hlavac.

Sharing images and video from the team at the booth through Instagram is also a good strategy, he adds, as long as there's a unique perspective. And as a growing number of business users discover live-streaming tools such as Periscope, dabbling with a live feed may also prove to be worthwhile. Live-streaming a product demonstration, for example, or a productive conversation with a prospective customer will serve as a valuable resource not only for other attendees considering a stop at the booth but also for prospects who weren't able to make it to the event.

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