Lessons Learned on Our First Trade Show

A few weeks ago, we concluded our inaugural trade show participation at the Small Business Expo. It was both enlightening and exhilarating!

Here’s what we discovered:

What worked well…

1. Build an attractive booth.

Despite a modest budget, Jim LeRose selected a high-quality booth, while Matt Omohundro and Madison Worden Unruh designed eye-catching graphics with attractive backlighting. 👉 This effort paid off as our booth stood out, attracting numerous compliments for its visual appeal.

2. Booth location matters.

Positioned near the entrance and close to industry leaders like Amazon and Zoho, our booth enjoyed significant traffic and visibility. This strategic location, chosen by Jim LeRose, was a key factor in our success.

3. Pre-show outreach.

Our targeted SDR email/phone campaign effectively warmed up our audience, leading to high brand recognition among attendees. This recognition facilitated meaningful discussions at the booth.

Areas for improvement…

1. Clearer Messaging:

Some visitors mistakenly thought we were a 3PL or a full-service warehouse and distribution company. As a pure SaaS business, we need to refine our booth’s messaging to better communicate our identity.

2. Supply Management:

High booth traffic led to us running out of one-pagers. We’ll ensure we have more stock next time.

3. Engagement Strategies:

While we were ready to provide live demos on demand, visitors preferred scheduling follow-up meetings. We’ll adjust our approach accordingly.

4. Swag Management:

We encountered some swag-stealers! 😂 A more controlled distribution might be necessary. 👉 However, random people walking around NYC in Ordoro t-shirts could be great free publicity!

5. Prize Attraction:

A 43-inch TV didn’t draw as much interest as we anticipated. Next time, we might opt for a more enticing prize, like an iPad.

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