Posted by

Barry Siskind

Community Manager

 

During the past decade the industry has spent a great deal of time talking about the need for specialized education for its exhibitors and yet a surprising few actually have robustly adopted the practice. Some of the excuses for inaction include:

 

Our exhibitors are large companies who participate in many fairs and know what they are doing.

 

We have tried but get a poor turn-out for our efforts.

 

Exhibitors haven’t asked.

 

There are two main reasons to re-look at this practice.

 

1. It’s in the organizers best interest. Happy and profitable exhibitors mean an increased loyalty to the fairs and events they participate in.

 

2. It’s in the exhibitor’s best interest. Often their approach to a fair is outdated. I am not referring to simply displays but also to the interpersonal interactions which have often not been adapted to a younger, technology savvy audience who demand that the companies they chose to do business with engage them in the process rather than sell a solution.

 

The choices for educating exhibitors are many including webinars, live training, mentoring, coaching and one-on-one consulting.  In addition there are countless books and other learning materials that will help your exhibitors improve their performance at the fairs you organize.

 

So, what’s holding you back? I would be very interested in knowing what obstacles you face in the area of exhibitor education.