How To Fix a Bad Tradeshow Promotional Item
When You Are Already at the Tradeshow

Many companies use the “Putting Green” method of attracting attendees to their booth.

This is the story of an exhibitor who used a very difficult putting green and gave the visitor three chances to get the ball in the hole. This certainly provided the opportunity to qualify the visitor or to talk with them about the company’s products and services, but unfortunately the exhibitor didn’t talk with the game participants.

This exhibitor was using a $100 bill as the prize if the visitor sank one of the three balls. The hundred dollar bill was placed on the putting surface right behind the whole.

The exhibitor encountered two problems with his implementation:

1.    He had several hundred dollar bills stolen when he was distracted

2.   He gave several people more than 3 chances to sink the putt and some of them did.

I happened to witness this series of events and had the opportunity to talk with the exhibitor during a break in the exhibit floor hours and suggested that instead of using a real hundred dollar bill, he use a million dollar bill, which cost about 40 cents.

I’m glad to say that he took my suggestion. It turned out more people were attracted to his game by the million dollar bill (due to its scarcity) than the hundred dollar bill. Yes he did have some of the million dollar bills “lifted” but the cost was insignificant compared to before.

He also became more engaging with the visitors during the game and identified more qualified prospects.

From "How To Be A Tradeshow Superstar" by Michael T. Curtiss, CEO Thunderbird International Group

For additional information on how to be a more successful tradeshow exhibitor go to TradeshowMentors.com

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