Your website can be your most effective form of advertising at zero dollars added to your trade show budget. Add a new area on your front webpage and start advertising immediately. Start with the next show you are attending – add the show logo, the city, your booth space, and the exhibition days. If you would like to make that box a click through, you can then start adding information about what you are exhibiting, product launches, demonstration times, giveaway enticements, and speakers. Exhibitors have been sending out pre-show mailers to show attendees, their customers and their prospects, often with an incentive to visit their booth space during the show. Now you can translate this to the web by promoting their presence on their website and in online marketing campaigns. Add the trade shows you will be exhibiting at to your company’s online events calendar, or create a new section for a running list of upcoming events.

Write about events you plan to exhibit at in this section since useful and interesting and content will both entice your visitors to attend the show and and seek out your display. Good content that includes the keywords of your industry, your product or your company will help increase SEO. You may also consider an online advertising campaign to promote your appearance at the show. Similar to pre-show mailers that often include an incentive to visit the booth such as a drawing for a prize, online ads are good place to entice your target audience with some sort of “at show” offer. Remember, even if they are already planning to attend the show, you want to get on everyone’s schedule.