Should you demo at the show? Maybe.

Posted on September 26, 2007 by Dave J.


Fresh from walking a big trade show yesterday, I found this article: Why Demo at Trade Shows? which rails against demo-ing. Granted it’s by Pragmatic Marketing, which focuses on product managers of software products.

Essentially, the author, Steve Johnson, feels that demo-ing your wares at a trade show doesn’t engage the audience and is ineffective, and at worst, counter-productive.

The article has posted commentaries by several ‘product manager bloggers’ (didn’t know there was such a thing), that are great reads on the subject, as well as on shows in general.

My opinion? Demos can be great starting-points for conversations with visitors. It engages them & qualifies them. If you don’t know what my machine does, I’ve instantly learned a lot about you. Its when the demo is one sided that there is a problem (as illustrated in the image here).

Yesterday, there were two chickies at the bottom of the escalator, handing out invites to their company’s sit-down demo. At the top of the elevator, there was a stack of these invites where attendees deposited them. And at their booth, I didn’t see one chair filled–not even a staff-person. Why do they even try this stuff anymore?

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  • Nick Pirog

    Great post. I think that we need to keep in mind that even though we spend more and more time on computers, there is only so much that can done via paid search advertising and emails. The reason companies are starting blogs is because customers are looking for some authenticity. What better than actually meeting the people who make the software and getting a chance to ask them questions? With some basic customer service, it’s actually a great opportunity.

  • Nick Pirog

    Great post. I think that we need to keep in mind that even though we spend more and more time on computers, there is only so much that can done via paid search advertising and emails. The reason companies are starting blogs is because customers are looking for some authenticity. What better than actually meeting the people who make the software and getting a chance to ask them questions? With some basic customer service, it’s actually a great opportunity.

  • Dave J.

    Nick–You’re right…the best part about being at a show is meeting people. It’s expensive, but you just can’t do that with a website. The worst part about websites is the lack of feedback from visitors. At shows, it is all about feedback!

  • Dave J.

    Nick–You’re right…the best part about being at a show is meeting people. It’s expensive, but you just can’t do that with a website. The worst part about websites is the lack of feedback from visitors. At shows, it is all about feedback!

  • Derse Exhibits

    Interesting post. Keeping an eye on what can still be done face-to-face (what a novel concept, right?) will ground businesses at a grassroots level.

  • Derse Exhibits

    Interesting post. Keeping an eye on what can still be done face-to-face (what a novel concept, right?) will ground businesses at a grassroots level.