7 Ways to Use Promotional Products at Your Next Trade Show

Trade shows are like speed dating: show attendees form their first impression of your brand within seven seconds. 

You must design all aspects of your booth to maximize the chance that first impressions of your brand are positive, from your booth signs and product demonstrations to your choice of staff shirts and promotional items. Grab attendees' attention with intriguing promotional giveaways, and they’re more likely to remember your brand positively. Here’s how to use promotional products to get the most out of your next trade show.

1. Know Your Audience

People value promotional gifts that enhance some aspect of their lifestyle, whether by solving a problem or simply making life more enjoyable. No two demographics have the exact needs, so it’s vital you understand your target audience—specifically the portion of your audience which will attend the trade show.

If your audience values technology, offer stylus pens as promotional giveaways. Salespeople may appreciate journals and memo pads. Stickers and magnets may get your brand name noticed among a more general audience. Outdoor enthusiasts might gravitate to camouflage baseball hats, while you can tempt athletically minded attendees with sports tees and sports bottles. 

2. Consider Your Booth’s Location

Your booth’s location on the trade show floor influences your promotional gift choices. If you’re near the entrance, give attendees tote bags to carry giveaways from other booths. This strategy works well, as attendees interact with your branded gift even as they pick up promotional items from your competitors. 

Booths at the back of trade show floors should consider providing refreshments to attendees, who will often be hot, thirsty, and hungry by the time they reach your booth. Prefill custom water bottles to attract thirsty customers, or set up a coffee and snacks table at your booth, with branded cups and mugs as giveaways. 

3. Hand out Your Gifts

Send your team out onto the show floor with baskets of small promotional items like magnets and stickers. Have them hand out gifts while directing people to your booth, where you can focus on selling your products and engaging your customers. Even if the attendee never makes it to your booth, they leave the trade show with your brand in hand and the memory of their interaction with your staff. 

4. Presentation Matters

How you arrange your giveaways at your booth makes a difference. Keep your promotional items well-arranged and restocked as needed—a selection of picked-over giveaways makes a bad impression. This strategy may mean ordering a surplus of promotional items to ensure you don't run out of stock. This leads us to our next piece of advice:

5. Don’t Customize Giveaways with the Trade Show Name

Customizing promotional products with the name and date of the trade show sounds like a good idea, but most brands will end the show with leftover gifts. Tying your promotional items to the show limits their usefulness. You can’t give a padfolio as a thank-you to a supplier if it’s obviously from a trade show: the supplier will rightly feel insulted that you're ditching your leftover product on them. 

Instead, stick to using your brand and logo. You can then repurpose leftover promotional items as gifts to clients, employees, and customers. 

6. A Gift Earned is a Gift to Value

Websites like Craigslist that allow people to sell and rehome pets insist people include a rehoming fee when they list an animal. The thinking is that if even a tiny amount of money passes hands, people are more likely to care for the animal than they would if it were given away for free. 

Capitalize on this quirk of human nature by making customers work for your gifts. The effort can be small—have them sign up for a mailing list, participate in a game at your booth, or interact with one of your new products. Attendees will see your promotional item as something they earned and value it more than a simple handout. 

7. Engage Their Senses

Trade shows are very visual experiences. Encourage attendance at your booth by engaging their other senses. Fresh baked goods and coffee engage the senses. Set up promotional speakers to broadcast announcements or play music, and raffle the speakers away at the end of the show. Look for promotional items encouraging immediate interaction, such as carrying a branded tote bag or catching a customized beach ball thrown into the crowd.