Marketing Virgin

A few tips, from my experience…

1. Use an off-site AV rental company and make them bid for a job. Don’t accept the first offer, they have bargaining power.
2. Rent basic carpet. If you’re in a basic 10×10, you can afford to scrap the prestige carpet. The standard cut carpet will cost you 100%-150% less.
3. If you can’t afford giveaways for everyone, raffle off one good prize like a Wii or iPhone.
4. Place your literature on CD’s. For about $1, you can place all of your literature on one disc. Printed materials are expensive and 80% of it is left behind in hotel rooms.
5. If you must ship to the show, ship in advance to the warehouse, not to the convention center. The best possible option is to ship to your hotel room and carry your boxes onto the show floor.

Genius!

That’s all I have to say about the Nike Human Race 10k, taking place August 31st. Is has all the makings of a great program. Nike hand-selected 25 cities world-wide based on their geographical locations, landmarks and their unique race courses. In Austin, Texas, Nike is preparing runners for the race six weeks in advance. Every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, runners can meet with instructors and test out Nike products while they run three or five mile courses. I went with a group of friends and we had a great time. On August 31st, Lance Armstrong will be running in Austin for his foundation (the race benefits one of three charities), and Ben Harper will play a free show afterwards. Anyone who runs is encouraged to visit nikeplus.com to track their progress and network online with other runners.

Why this event is so great…
1. It’s built heavily on word-of-mouth marketing
2. The online community they are creating is a fantastic way to collect data on their top customers
3. Each person who runs in the race, or participates in the training has to give Nike their information - including home and email address information. What a great way to build a prospect list!
4. It benefits three great charities - Lance Armstrong Foundation, Ninemillion.org, and WWF.

                    
Right brain, Left brain; Boxers, Briefs; Playstation, Wii

I discovered a cool product from a local company while attending the InnoTech eMarketing Summit a while ago.
Mikons are little stickers that you can design yourself (www.mikons.com). They are meant to be used as a networking tool. You know the boring badges you’re given at every event, tradeshow, etc? Once you place these stickers, or Mikons, on your badge you instantly become unique.
We used Mikons at our Symposium in April and they were a hit.
Mark Smith, the founder, showed me their new beta site that makes creating these little masterpieces even easier. Check it out at www.mikonmixers.com.

NetQoS Symposium Mikons

(No, that is not my hairy hand.)

I wrote an article for theb2blead.com titled “Top 10 Ways to get Booth Traffic at a Tradeshow.” Check it out by clicking here.

I hired a photographer at our Hard Rock customer party in Orlando. We designed a border and he printed off the shots he took on-site. For more information, visit www.eventmallusa.com. They have a bunch of great ideas for exhibiting, if you’re willing to pay a little extra money.

Click the link below to get the full view..

NetQoS After Party
NetQoS Staff
NetQoS Customer

1 week — time spent in Orlando, FL.
3,190 — number of people who sat through our booth theater presentations.
3,500 — number of “network rockstar” t-shirts we handed out in the booth.
3,000 — number of blinky guitar pins we gave out in the booth.
400 — number of customers/prospects that attended our “by invite only” exclusive after party I put together at the Hard Rock hotel.
2 — number of “stripper-esque” party crashers who I kicked out of the party.
Diamond — level of sponsorship I signed up for in San Francisco next year, taking us up to a 30×40 booth.
3 — number of times I have managed this show.
Universal Studios — rented out by Cisco - we ate, drank, went on rides, and watched the Blue Man Group, for free!
99.5 to .5 — percentage of males to females at the show.

Click on the link below to see the full picture:

Cisco Live NetQoS After Party - I am in the bottom left-hand corner with Steve, our VP of Marketing
After Party - Guitar Hero and Rock Band
NetQoS After Party Staff - My marketing team! Cathryn, John, and Jordan
Full Booth – We certainly know how to draw a crowd
Product Demo – Rob gives an NPC demo
Packed House
Flight Home – 1 of 3 guys sporting our NetQoS shirts on the flight home

Are you planning an event overseas? Are you having a difficult time getting a response to your RFP? Trapped by a language barrier or a timezone difference? Consider getting help from an event planning company. The cost to you is virtually nothing - their commission comes from the hotel you book with.
I’m currently working with a company called Essential Events. They have been such a time saver! Ask for Kimberly Adams.

Did you land a highly sought after presentation timeslot at a tradeshow you are exhibiting at? Trying to figure out how to market your presentation to attendees? Create a business card that advertises your speaking timeslot like the ones below. You can hand these out to attendees that visit your booth. After you scan their badge, place the card in the badge holder as a reminder to attend.

Graphics by Ginger McBride, Tip courtesy of Jordan Weiss

I’m currently planning a customer event in Germany. We’d like this event to leave a big European footprint.

We’ve settled on the first week of October and now we just need to figure out which city. We have narrowed it down to Duesseldorf and Cologne. The time I spent in Germany was limited so I need some advice.

Has anyone exhibited or spent time in either of these two cities? Any advice on venues, entertainment, etc?

Whew! The last two weeks have been crazy!
I ran a 263 customer, 3-day Symposium at Barton Creek Resort…then I hopped on a plane and headed to Vegas for a week to run two tradeshows, simultaneously. I am exhausted, but I’M BACK!
All of these events have taught me many new things that I can’t wait to share. Next up…more tradeshows, a few roadshows, then it’s time to plan the international customer workshops. Finally! Amsterdam….Berlin….anyone?