People make an exhibition. They may be there as visitors, exhibitors, technical experts, sales staff, customers, VIPs or service people. You may see them as established clients, potential leads, hot prospects or competitors. You want them to see you as someone worth doing business with. After all, your primary purpose in exhibiting is to sell your products or services.

Your staff members are the key. Exhibition industry research shows that exhibition staff is a major (if not the major) factor in influencing visitor perceptions.

The message is simple. People shape perceptions. If you have the right people and the right mix of people on the exhibition floor, others will perceive your organisation as professional and decide that your products are worth buying.

Staffing your stand cannot be left to chance. As with every other aspect of exhibiting, staffing must be carefully planned. The staff you select must be well prepared and managed to maximise their efficiency and effectiveness.

Don’t forget the human factor. Each member of staff is an individual with a unique personality, different needs, skills and levels of experience. Successful exhibitors acknowledge this and use this factor to maximum advantage.

Research shows that:

• Over 86% of what visitors remember from their visit to an exhibit is shaped by staff behaviour

• More than 90% of reported difficulties at trade shows are due to problems with other people.

• Information received from exhibition staff is generally rated as superior to that received from sales representatives

People buy from people – then they find reasons to justify their decision.


An excerpt from: Exhibitions: A Complete Guide
by Gary-Fitz-Roy



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