Opening up another wonderful morning at the Airport Marriott thanks to FranchiseRight.net, we started August 14, 2008 with fun-filled networking and a hilarious ice breaker for the group involving some unusual props and a surfing convention in honor of our guest speaker. Speaking of which, after the excitement from the game, we moved on to our speaker for the day, Cheryl Powers from Nimlok Orlando to discuss how to “Get the Most from Your Trade Show Dollars.”

Click here to watch Cheryl's entire presentation!

Cheryl started out by giving the Club a big compliment (you know how we love those) saying that each of us could work for her trade show booth anytime because the energy level was so high in the room. We think it’s one of the things that make Coffee Club so great, so it’s always nice when a new guest notices. Cheryl then went over why people go to trade shows (to see new products, meet with vendors, etc.) and why vendors go (for branding and to connect with their hundreds of clients in one spot).

“The biggest issue I hear from clients is that trade shows cost so much,” she says. Many companies attend trade shows without a clear goal or objective in mind says Powers. “Many have a vision without a plan,” otherwise a hallucination, according to Albert Einstein. She also says that one of the most important things is to have a working marketing plan. The plan will include a budget, objectives, goals, milestones and ownership. She tells clients to begin with the end in mind, so you’ll know when you have a successful trade show event. You can measure traffic, clients gained, products given out and more. One of the best things to do according to Powers is realizing your target client. When you know your client, measuring your return is that much easier because you can benchmark results.

Powers went on to say that goals have to be realistic and measurable to determine if a trade show was successful to drive revenues and make money. “It’s not just about showing up,” she says. You have to think about why you’re there and what will make the trip worthwhile.

She says that roughly 70 to 80 percent of trade show leads don’t even get followed up on. To maximize ROI, she says that leads should always be followed up after a trade show; after all, the visitors were there for a reason.

Cheryl gave an awesome presentation and that’s why we give her a creamy French Vanilla five cups out of five.

Click here to watch Cheryl’s entire presentation!