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Nation’s Marketers Exhibiting Renewed
Confidence in 2005 Planning
Indicators herald the revival of the trade show industry after three years
of losses
BAY SHORE,
N.Y. (February 16, 2005)— With the trade show and
exhibit industry on the ropes since 9/11, it may be time to start humming
the theme song from “Rocky.”
“Our data is showing a lot of good signs,” says Doug Ducate, president of
the Center for Exhibition Industry Research. “Over the past few years the
telecommunications and information technology industries have performed
poorly and dragged down the exhibition industry with them. But the good news
is that companies are expected to increase their IT budgets five to seven
percent during 2005. That will strengthen the technology sector and help
turn the trade show story around.”
Laura McLeod Palker, owner of Trade Show Solution Center in Bay Shore agrees
that 2005 looks bright. “I’m very optimistic,” she says. “The overall
economy is improving. Business travel is on the rise. There’s no business
like the trade show business because it allows companies to collect
qualified leads from prospective customers, launch new products and build
relationships. There was never a question that the industry would make a
comeback.”
Trade show professionals share McLeod Palker's optimism that a full-fledged
recovery is in full swing. A Trade Show Exhibitors Association study found
that 35 percent of its members reported attendance at “key exhibitions” is
back to year-2000 levels, while another 23 percent expect attendance
recovery between now and the end of June 2005. Only five percent said the
industry would never return to 2000 levels.
“The key is to find the right show for your products and services and then
be prepared with the right booth graphics and a team that is well versed in
your products,” McLeod Palker says. “Exhibitors who get involved in the
planning of the event can enjoy a significant return on investment at trade
shows. Trade shows are not only an opportunity to re-energize your sales
force, they are also an opportunity to re-energize your sales.”
Trade Show Solution Center has been serving the exhibition needs of the
Greater New York area since 1985. For more information contact Laura McLeod
Palker at
laura@tradeshowsolutionscenter.com or (631) 243-4051.
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Contributor: Bonnie D. Graham
TS Solutions Center MarCom
The PR Challenge: Should You Write Your Own?
Think of a press release as a way to propel your company onto the radar
screen of media channels that can draw prospective customers, investors,
suppliers, and even employees right to your door. Sounds good, but don’t
think for a moment that getting effective PR is as simple as putting pen
to paper in the quiet of your office and then sending it out to your
friends, your Rolodex contacts and the business department at The New York
Times. With an understanding of and appreciation for the PR process, you
will be better positioned to get what you need from your PR effort, time
and dollars.
Start by being clear about the purpose and goals of your release – its
primary and secondary messages, target audience(s), timeliness, shelf
life, target media and industry channels, a reputable and cost-effective
PR service to distribute your release, the desired outcome, follow-up
plans and more. That’s a lot to contemplate and even more to manage.
The actual PR writing process can be likened to building a house. The last
thing you need is everyone shouting orders from the ground once you’re up
on a precarious ladder nailing on the final roof tile. Each person on your
team needs to agree to one set of plans and to understand their role in
bringing those plans to life.
The critical components for building a solid house include an accurate set
of well thought-out plans that take into account the site terrain,
climate, local restrictions, budget and number and needs of the intended
occupants; required permits; quality building materials; an experienced
work crew who know their individual jobs and work well together; a
professional foreman; a construction schedule and even the long-range
weather forecast.
When you draw the parallel from home construction to PR, you find that all
too often everyone expects to be either the foreman or the architect – or
both! The company PR manager wants to approve every word because their job
involves spin and damage control. Technical staff insists on verifying
minute product details to minimize risk exposure and wants to use language
that the lay reader may not “get.” And corner-office executives, directors
and partners demand time to pore over their quotes to ensure they sound
intelligent and professional.
Add in company policies, the legal eagles and office politics – and you’ll
see why writing a press release can drag on for dozens of drafts, drain
staff energy and time, and become the bane of management’s nerves – not to
mention the chance of missed timing in your market.
As you read this, your next PR challenge may already be on your desk. It
makes sense that whoever is charged with writing your PR knows what
they’re doing all the way around and can bring you through the process
with your sanity and budget intact.
Consider Trade Show Solutions Center as your PR solution resource for
lower stress, cost-effective PR with better results.
Now, did you want that new house to be a center-hallway brick colonial or
a three-story townhouse with aluminum siding?
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