Traveling from afar? Sorting your travel and hotels early is essential, as you don’t want to get caught up close to the time with expensive train journeys and a hotel miles away from the venue! Not to mention, pricing. Accommodation and commuting services are always so much more expensive around an event, especially in a premium city like Manchester, therefore to secure a good deal close to the event space, make sure you have this booked in good time!
2. Have a clear plan
Across the whole weekend you only actually have 15 hours in the event space, unless you’re a lucky VIP that is and then you get an extra half hour each day! It is however therefore so important that you plan your time wisely, to make sure that you pay a visit to all of the stands that you wish to see and gather all your required information. Floor plans are available online now, alongside a business directory and therefore you can take a look at these beforehand to start planning where you want to be and when!
3. Questions, questions??
And no question is a daft question! A trade show is prime time to speak to all the companies you wish to see and ask as many questions as needed. It’s not like you have to wait in a telephone queue with sales teams or that you’re against the clock in a meeting-slot, this is open time for you to gather as much information as possible from the professionals, so use it to your advantage!
4. Go info-collecting ready (we’re talking comfortable footwear, large bag, notebook...)
Trade shows are long days, as the event space is large and can take some time to get around, you’re on your feet all day and you’re gonna’ do a lot of talking! So, to make this experience as easy as possible, make sure you have your comfies on, that you have a pen and pad to take some notes (as you don’t want to forget anything) and also a practical bag to carry any leaflets you might gather. Half of the time, if you’re lucky, some brands actually offer free tote bags for you to take their information, however be on the safe side and come prepared with your own just in case!
5. Plan regular breaks ☕
As we’ve just been discussing that the trade shows are long-days, make sure you plan yourself a few breathers to re-charge! There’s plenty of café’s around the venue and also Costa & Nero are close by outside Manchester Central so you’re never far from a coffee-stop!
6. Network
Trade shows attract thousands from the industry and so this is a great time to meet people with similar interests and learn about their businesses! You never know, you might just learn something along the way or may even get yourself some new business ideas. It’s a great place to network so during your coffee (or prosecco) stops, get talking and socialise with other fellow salon owners!
7. Take your own marketing merchandise
Whilst your networking, give people something to remember you! It’s always handy at trade shows to have a handful of your own business cards, brand merchandise or product leaflets to give out to people. If you think about it, you’ll collect information from lots of businesses whilst you’re there so why not tell people what you have to offer too!
8. Take a look at competition
There will be LOTS of competition at Professional Beauty! There always is at any trade show, whether it be the exhibitors or the visitors, everyone is in competition with someone. Exhibitors will be one of a group of their type of product advertising there, whilst you will be one of many salon owners visiting the trade show for ideas. So, it’s good to see what products other people are looking in to, and also beneficial to look at potential other suppliers that are different to what you are currently using. You always need to be at the head of your game, understanding what else is out there in the industry and potentially what others may already be using that you could always take advantage of. Something to keep in mind!
9. Samples
FREEBIES! The best perk of the trade show. But not only that, these are also fabulous to take back to your clients at the salon and get them to try out before you sign any contracts. At the end of the day, if you’re buying in to a new beauty brand, which may be a potential replacement for an existing one, you have to ensure that your customers are going to be interested in this before committing money to it. You need to make sure the products will sell and so these tester-samples are the best way to ensure that by getting client approval first.
10. Explore the City!
Manchester, the third most visited city in the UK, famous for its fabulous musicians and culture, a great city to explore if you ask me! So, if you’re going for the full 2 days, make sure you visit some local attractions in the evenings. There’s plenty of great places for food (and cocktails) like Spinningfields, Deansgate or the Northern Quarter; and it’s also fantastic for shopping! So, if you get a bit of downtime on the Monday afternoon, head to the shops or to the Arndale for a bit of retail therapy!
So, we hope this has helped you to get prepped for the show, that you’re all ready and we can’t wait to see you there! We’ll be exhibiting at stand #E67 across the weekend and we have some brand-new stands to give you our software demos on, not to mention plenty of exciting new features! Still need to get your ticket, here’s your last chance to get a FREE visitor pass with us; just head to https://registration.n200.com/survey/3pud1tsgfmxw1?actioncode=NTWO000118SAF and fill out your details for yours! See you there :D
Salon Tracker x
No comments:
Post a Comment