The Yin and Yang of Websites and Trade Shows

Exhibitors often spend hundreds of thousands of dollars for the opportunity to meet face-to-face with prospects over the course of a few days. Websites, on the other hand, are the 365 days-a-year, 24/7 workhorses of marketing. Instead of looking at these two marketing strategies as competing, marketers and content writers should consider the power of yin and yang. Together, websites and trade shows can work together to enhance both online and offline sales and interaction. There is no substitute for face-to-face interaction, but trade show marketing needs to extend before and after the show. Websites can not only drive more potential buyers to your exhibit, they can also provide convenient after-the-show support at a time convenient to the buyer. At the same time, trade shows offer marketers an excellent source of content that can be used to enhance a potential customer’s online experience.

Tradeshow yin

Use trade shows to generate content for the website. Capture customer interviews or record videos with product experts. Video product demonstrations and get reactions from interested trade show attendees. After face-to-face meetings connect with prospects through social media channels. Ask questions and notice how attendees respond to your messages. Learn what their sales objections are. Take note of pain points to generate new ideas for content.

Website yang

Before the show use your website to let buyers know where and when you will be exhibiting and what you will have on display. Build suspense for new product introductions. At the show, use QR codes to help buyers access relevant information right from their smart phones. Recognize that prospects don’t want to carry around your literature or ship it home in a suit case. They want to access everything online, in their own language. Make sure your website is up-to-date with the latest information from the show. Nothing is more frustrating for a buyer or journalist than knowing there is something new but being unable to find information on it. Yet it happens all the time when trade show planners, pr professionals and online marketers work in different silos. It’s a missed opportunity. Once you capture their attention at the show, a website should pull buyers through the sales cycle, providing content that will help buyers make informed decisions. 1) Comparisons with competitive products 2) Comparisons with other products in your line 3) Case studies 4) Frequently asked questions 5) Technical support 6) Where they can buy 7) When it will be available 8) How much it will cost 9) Warranty or guarantee

Follow-up is essential

Email marketing can bridge the gap from the trade show to your website. Instead of just capturing email addresses, keep track of what products or services trade show visitors are interested in, and send relevant messages geared to their interests. Let prospects know you were listening. Trade shows are a huge investment for many companies. Take a yin and yang approach to get the most from both your trade shows and your website. Do they work together at your company? What are the challenges?

How to Find Credible Sources for Articles, Blog Posts and Whitepapers

One way to keep your B-to-B content fresh is to inject the information and opinions from experts related to your product, service or industry. Writers call these their “sources,” and developing these relationships can inject new life into your website, blog, e-newsletter and articles.

Look for sources who are regular users of the product or service.

If you are a manufacturer, an expert doesn’t always have to be a CEO, engineer or marketing executive. A source can also be a customer or dealer who has experience with the product in the field. If your company is in the business of renting machinery, the opinions of a machine operator or a construction project manager would be very valuable to a potential customer. Each source will have a different perspective on the experience of renting a machine. Varied experiences will add credibility to your message. Customers love reviews from regular people. Salespeople can help identify potential candidates.

Look for sources in a business related to yours.

Your topics don’t always have to revolve directly around your business. A moving company might ask a professional organizer for moving tips that could form the basis of a blog post, checklist or whitepaper. A commercial real estate advisor might ask a lawyer to provide information about lease transactions.

You can find sources for a wide variety of topics using a free service like HARO (Help a Reporter Out) to identify experts in particular fields willing to answer questions for an article. PR Newswire has a similar service for journalists. You can also identify like-minded bloggers using tools like Technorati or Twitter. Consider asking an expert to write a guest post on your blog.

Look for sources through industry associations and publications.

Industry associations and b-to-b publications are typically tremendous sources of information. If you see an article you like, ask the editor for permission to republish it in your e-newsletter, on your website or in a blog post. (There may be a fee.) Search the news sections of an association website for press releases highlighting industry research and to identify potential interview sources.

Look for sources among your strategic partners.

Your strategic business partners may provide content that your customers find interesting. In fact, they may already be creating that information for their own customers. Explore content sharing ideas with other businesses and industry trade groups. For example, a website developer might provide information on the latest updates to Google for any number of firms with small business clients. I know I often share my marketing articles, blog posts and presentations with a local printer.

Finding credible and intelligent sources for your online content can go a long way toward building your company’s online reputation. If you have a large audience, sources may be happy to provide information for its publicity value. If not, you may have to work harder to get what you need. Start by building relationships with industry movers and shakers. One way to do this is to comment on their blogs, “like” them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter. And of course, make every effort to meet in person. However, be realistic in your expectations and let them know how their business might benefit from the relationship.

Green Beer and WordPress Go Down Easy

I love this day. I love green beer, eating corned beef and cabbage, and celebrating my Irish heritage. It’s also the perfect day to showcase the new website I created for my friends at Chicago-based Shamrock Tuckpointing. I recently helped Owner John Gallagher overhaul the Shamrock Tuckpointing website using the WordPress theme WP Remix. I love the idea of WordPress for creating great websites, not just blogs. I hope we can finally say goodbye to stagnant, static websites. My Mom might not be able to update this site, but just about anyone else could do it.

When it comes to Internet marketing, Gallagher is like a lot of small contractors – he didn’t know where to begin. He understood that potential customers search the Internet and not the Yellow Pages. And he knew that a website lacking in style, substance and visibility was causing him to missing an opportunity. However, he was lacking a solution that fit his budget.

A few months ago, I wouldn’t have been able to help John beyond providing content. But after learning how WordPress can work as a website, I knew I could do more. Too often web designers complete the design, only to be held at a standstill because the client doesn’t have content. Waiting in the wings are search engine specialists who want to be paid handsomely for getting that page to the top of the Google rankings. It’s all too overwhelming and expensive for a small contractor who is busy estimating jobs, hiring workers, repairing chimneys and inspecting job sites.

With WordPress it’s easy for content to be the driving force for design, and the two can work together seamlessly. With elaborate paid themes available, an array of Plug-ins, SEO options and free analytic tools, you can have a very dynamic website up and running very quickly and economically. I’m not a webmaster by any stretch of the imagination, but I was able to get this site completed in a matter of weeks.

I wish I could show you the “before”… but you can see the “after” at www.shamrocktuckpointing.com.

Could WordPress be a solution for you?

Who’s Looking at You?

Are you one of 90 million people on LinkedIn? One of the more interesting features of the business networking site is the ability is to see who has viewed your profile. Even though I have an unpaid subscription, I can see enough about the people visiting to know that my profile is something I need to pay attention to.

For example, in the past five days, my profile has been viewed by five people, some of whom I recognize, and some of whom I don’t. In the past 15 days I have turned up 11 times in the search results. Last year there were more than two BILLION people searches on LinkedIn. Just as you can improve your website’s rankings with the use of keywords, the same is true of your LinkedIn profile. Did you know LinkedIn now offers an enhanced profile for companies?

Who’s looking at you? Potential customers, bankers, vendors, journalists, former colleagues, future employers– anyone and everyone who might want to find out more about you or your business is searching online. So what does your online presence say about you? Are you professional, up-to-date, well-connected, well-read, and highly recommended? Can you be found through LinkedIn or Facebook? Does your company have a website? How easy is it for someone to find you if they can remember your name, but not your company; or your company, but not your name?

For those of you who are diligent about maintaining your LinkedIn profile and website you are probably already reaping the benefits of your efforts. But I know for a fact, there are many people and companies who still want to do business the same way the have always done it.

Does the construction industry lead the world in terms of companies without websites? I think it must. I was recently looking for a Las Vegas contractor to interview for an article I was working on. From a list of about 25 highway/heavy contractors, I was shocked to find that fewer than half had websites. This correlates with other research that shows that fewer than half of all small- and medium-size businesses have a website.

Now I had the names and phone numbers for the companies without websites. I could have easily called them for the article, but I didn’t. Why? Because I would much rather have some background information on your business before I make the first contact. How many others come to the same conclusion about working with your business?

While personal relationships are still the cornerstone of many business marketing efforts, companies must recognize that an online presence is a necessity in today’s world. At a minimum, create a LinkedIn profile and periodically review who is looking at it.

So please pass this post along to someone who needs to hear it. Ninety million people can’t be wrong.

Where is Your B-2-B Content Hiding?

I recently received an e-newsletter from Hawthorne Caterpillar that was full of great content. An article on the dealer’s experience helping government agencies prepare for natural disasters was unexpected, and peaked my interest. Another article told the story of CAT rental equipment being used to rescue a cruise ship. Again, not your everyday run-of-the-mill use of rental equipment.

I searched www.hawthornecat.com, wanting to see if a website visitor could find these treasures, and found they were buried deep within the news section. While Hawthorne Cat has clearly done a lot of things right, it missed an opportunity to put this content front and center with website visitors. Wouldn’t it be great if visitors searching under the “Rental” or “Governmental” navigation bars could find these stories?

Not everyone gets your email newsletter. Some people will find you through your website or social media site. Make sure your great (and relevant) content is easy to find wherever potential customers could be looking.

Perhaps your content is still on paper in a salesman’s briefcase, or maybe it’s a Q & A session with one of your best technical experts. (You know –the ones who can actually explain things to the rest of us). Make a list, make a plan and get it out of hiding and online.