Five Things We Miss With the Temporary Loss of F2F Marketing

Sure, as a company whose business is reliant on trade shows we miss – well, the business! Yes – revenue, activity, challenges, opportunities, solutions and seeing our clients succeed have been a regular part of life for our decades in this industry. While we miss these things, and we miss the daily interaction (most of our team is working from home), we recognize that you (our clients) are missing out on more:

• The efficiency of a trade show where you can meet hundreds of prospects and clients in a short period of time. That means you’re missing opportunities to introduce, educate, impress, demonstrate and gather feedback essential to your growth.
• The networking opportunities that are the mainstays of most tradeshows. These can be casual interactions on the expo floor; that new contact you make while attending a breakout session; or that ‘old friend’ you meet up with in the hotel bar.
• The learning, intel and ideas you and your staff pick up from the people who visit your booth, and when you walk the show floor. This includes checking out the competition, meeting new potential suppli ers, and the opportunity to assess common trends within your industry.
• The opportunity to attract attention, enhance interest, and influence preferences for your services, products and company. This may include not only buyers, but investors, partners, the trade press, as well as current and future employees.
• Being a part of something larger than just your organization. So many of us have had those moments where we realize the very people against whom we compete are also our allies in meeting societal and global needs.

No matter how much of a close-up we derive from a ‘Zoom’ call, it will never have the confidence-instilling impact of heartily shaking hands, looking someone in the eye and the intimacy of physical proximity. So, here’s to getting back to business and finding those opportunities for face-to-face in the “new norm” – whatever that means.

As experts in the art and importance of face-to-face, let’s help our businesses, our leaders and our nation understand the importance of getting back together. And yes, of course, we’ll do it responsibly, we’re not proposing reckless abandon. We just know that the quickest way to recover is to analyze, adjust and go back to what helps our economy boom – face-to-face marketing.