giveaway ideas is among the most important steps in developing your trade show marketing plan.Consider Your Attendees’ Immediate Needs When Thinking of Trade Show Giveaway IdeasTrade show ideas for giveaways that show potential customers you consider their needs are an important factor in selecting the right trade show marketing items. Think like a visitor. How do you feel? What are your needs? Trade show giveaway ideas such as cloth carrying bags are a smart and useful option.Unlike some novelty tradeshow giveaway ideas, a bag provides visitors with something to carry their trade show items in, gives you time to talk with customers while you help them put the items they already have in their hands into the bag, and it’s added advertising. Personalized food items, a customized mug, and portable business card holders are great trade show ideas for giveaways too.Think Long-Term When Planning Your Trade Show Marketing Strategy
Excellent tradeshow giveaway ideas should have long lasting use. To get the most trade show marketing power out of every penny, consider tradeshow giveaway ideas that your prospective client can use again and again after returning home. Desk items such as personalized paper clip holders, wallet sized photo albums, staplers, and desk calendars are all quality trade show ideas. Giveaways such as printed sticky notes or note pads work well too in a trade show marketing environment; customers use them for a considerable amount of time, and when they do, they help to spread the word about your company.
Aligning Your Trade Show Giveaway Ideas With Your Overall Trade Show Marketing Message
If you supply spas with beauty products, tradeshow giveaway ideas like children’s toys don’t make much business sense. Instead, spend a considerable amount of time selecting trade show giveaway ideas that truly serve the needs of your target audience and enhance your overall tradeshow marketing message. For a company in the beauty industry, women’s bath oils, men’s gourmet coffee sets, stress relieving balls, or aromatherapy candles are all smart trade show ideas.
Great trade show ideas for a financial institution could include piggy banks for children and calculators or debit card protectors for adults. Whether you choose to target children, men, women, families, or high 
profile professionals will depend greatly on the trade show marketing plan you have in place and who your target audience is.
Selecting the right trade show ideas to enhance your marketing message will have a significant impact on whether or not trade show attendees will remember your company after the event. You’ll want to create a strong first impression from the start and ensure that the money you spend on tradeshow giveaway ideas continues to work for you after the exhibition is over. Look for trade show marketing giveaway items that your customer can use for an extended period of time to create brand recognition for your company. To maximize the effects of temporary or smaller items, combine them with a few high value prizes and offers to see both short-term and long-term benefits.
About the author:
Jonathan Edelman is a trade show marketing consultant with more than a decade of experience in the trade show and conference marketing arena. Jonathan is the founder of Promotion Store, an online ad specialties store offering more than 750,000 imprintable tradeshow giveaway items. Edelman is also the founder of the premier trade show vendors directory Trade Show Vendors.com.
