Events provide organisations with an opportunity to market themselves to potential members, donors and media. It also provides exiting members/donors and staff with an opportunity to engage with an organisation in a fun and interesting way.

Below are five tips to maximise the effectiveness of exhibiting at events:

1. Set objectives
Have a reason for being part of the event. Are you there to gather member/donor leads? Are you there to demonstrate your new products or services? Are you there to build brand awareness?

2. Have specific strategies to meet the objectives
Once you know your objectives build a strategy around achieving that goal. This strategy should include ways to increase traffic to the stand.
If your objective is to sell memberships, who are you going to send to talk about member benefits? Set targets so staff can strive to achieve a clear goal and you can measure your success.

3. Make sure your booth is engaging
Your booth is a reflection of your organisation so make sure it strikes the right balance of attractive and professional. Spending a little bit extra on a well-designed booth with prominent branding will let attendees know exactly who your organisation is and what it does. Aspects to consider are brochures, flyers, branded merchandise, pull up banners and posters. You could also:

Run a competition
This is likely to increase foot traffic to your booth and generate greater membership and donor leads.
Have iPads stations at your booth
iPads increase brand engagement and awareness, and are a unique way to educate people about your organisation. By using new technology, iPads also display your organisation as modern and cutting-edge.

Generate buzz
Having a unique item at your stall increases foot traffic and generates positive hype around your organisation. However, make sure the item aligns with your goal of exhibiting and isn’t distracting from your organisation’s message.

4. Market before and after the event
Let your current and potential members/donors know that your organisation will be at the event and where to find you. Constant reminders will help ensure that your target audience is present at the event. Don’t forget to market any competitions or unique features that you will have at your booth in the lead up to the event to create excitement about visiting your booth.

5. Measure
Make sure you measure the success of exhibiting based on how well you achieved your goals. Otherwise your organisation will not know how successful participation was and whether to invest more or less in events.

Jacinta Hannaford and Candice de Chalain

• Membership marketing: 8 tips for retaining members
• 5 ways to improve your social media strategy