Exhibitor Tip: Build Your Contact List with Competitions and Promotions
Ready to grow your network, increase your brand awareness and drive enquires and sales? Running competitions, prize draws, special offers and expo-exclusive deals can really help your team up the ante on the number of contacts you gather while increasing engagement with event attendees.
Here are 5 top tips for running a successful promotion or competition…
Make it Easy
People who come to The Great ECE Expo will have a lot of different businesses to engage with and resources to discover and explore, so make it as easy as possible for them to connect with you! The old business-card-in-a-fishbowl draw is one of the most popular promotions at industry events for a reason – because it makes it quick and easy for visitors to be in to win. It also makes collecting contact details a cinch!
Make it FUN!
Our event is family friendly, and while you may be targeting grown-up attendees and business owners, that doesn’t mean they should miss out on having some fun! People engage far more with brands that bring the fun-factor. Give them an enjoyable first experience with your brand by running an entertaining prize draw or competition.
By bringing a smile to a prospective customer’s face, you’ll overcome any initial objections, build a rapport, build positive associations with your company, and help to make your business memorable.
Make it Relevant
Think about your target audience and ideal customer, and tailor your competition or special offer to be as relevant to them – and to your business – as possible. For example, if you provide toddler resources to ECE centres, you can expect a much greater engagement rate if you give away a bundle of those resources to one lucky winner, than if you were to offer people the chance to win a double pass to the movies.
We’re expecting everyone from ECE business owners and teachers to ECE students and families to attend our events. By making your offer/ prize draw relevant to them, you’ll increase interest and engagement, and promote your products and services at the same time.
Make it Time-Sensitive
There’s a reason retailers and marketing buffs use the old ‘limited time only’ tactic to convince people to BUY NOW. Why? Quite simply, it works. When people are offered a deal they know will only be available for a limited time, they’re far more likely to commit quickly than mull the offer over for a day or two. Maybe it’s due to FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), or maybe it’s because it psychologically triggers people to want whatever it is right then and there.
If you plan on offering a special discount or new customer offer to Great ECE Expo attendees, make that offer HOT by making it time-sensitive. It may be for one day only, or you may give people a week to read more and get back to you, depending on your business, the price-point of your services, and your target market.
Make it Compelling!
We can’t stress this highly enough. Regardless of what industry you’re in, if you’re going to offer a discount or special offer, it has to be COMPELLING if it’s going to attract buyers and prospects.
Have you ever walked into a store with giant red SALE banners plastered all over their windows, only to be left disappointed that their items were a measly 10% off? In this case, you probably didn’t make a purchase because the offer wasn’t compelling enough… but that isn’t to say you need to slash your prices to attract new customers! It’s all in the way you present your offer. ADDING VALUE to an existing package is often more appealing to prospects than giving them an additional discount. Packaging matters, so think carefully about how your offer will compel people to enquire, request a callback, or make a purchase.
