Your Tradeshow’s Canceled, Now What?

Were you planning to attend an upcoming event or tradeshow? Our clients and team members were! But with many events being canceled or postponed, it is an unprecedented time for marketers and really, everyone around the world.

You still want to connect with customers, partners, influencers, peers and others, but how do you do it? Here are 5 alternate ideas for a virtual gathering, event or conference.

Tap into Existing Content and SMEs.

In our partner Studio North’s blog, social media director Stacy Goebel shares a great first step to get started. Review your existing show content and see what you might be able to repurpose. She recommends conducting an audit of content including speaking sessions, booth experience content, demo content, available SMEs and also utilizing giveaways to mail to winners. 

Take Another Look at Webinars.

OMSer Stacy Greenberg is a big fan of webinars and even wrote an entire best practices blog. A webinar offers a good alternative to connect with a big group of people virtually. Start by leveraging existing content assets to create it.   

Explore Sponsored Content or Research Options

Tradeshows were a big part of many lead generation programs. As an alternative, sponsored content or sponsoring research fills that gap. Thought leadership content is the foundation of any sponsored content and OMSer Suzette Sexton recently shared some great best practices. Step one is create content that engages your audience. Help solve a challenge or problem with your insight. Learn more about the secret sauce to creating high-quality content. 

Oh Hello, Social Media

Our team has a lot of experience maximizing the benefits of social media pre, during and post-event. Embrace and expand social media platforms to get your message out. For some ideas, dive into these tips to make the most of your social media efforts. One way is going “live” on a social platform like LinkedIn Live to share your point of view on a specific topic or challenge. 

Consider Virtual 1:1 Meetings

Just like a booth meeting except you’re connected via a video conferencing platform. There are many options available. To start, reach out to the customer, prospect, partner or media contact that you wanted to connect with and book 20 or 30 minutes of their time. Once you book time, plan ahead to make the conversation interactive and engaging. For instance, highlight a demo, showcase a new product or discuss how your organization is addressing a customer’s challenges. It’s easier than you think.  

Lastly, get some great tips from this CDW collaboration expert.

These ideas won’t replace face-to-face interactions, but they can put you on the right path to salvage complete work and seize new opportunities for relationship building. We hope everyone stays safe and healthy!

In the wake of recent event cancellations, how is your organization rethinking marketing activities? Do you have any other suggestions? We’d love to hear from you! Tell us in the comments, or connect with us on Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook. 

Author: Heidi Murphy Senior Account Manager