Agfa has taken the decision to attend both Sign and Digital and FESPA this year as we believe both exhibitions cater for a different type of customer base within the wide-format industry.
As a supplier of wide-format inkjet, we firmly believe in the importance of exhibitions for not only the chance to promote our brand in the marketplace but also the opportunity to network with existing and potential new clients. This is vital when you have products that continue to develop technologically every couple of years especially as the level of expectation increases in quality, speed and price.
The decision to attend both shows can be difficult as it loads added pressure on suppliers in terms of cost and resources in what are already difficult times”
In 2013, we have the unique situation of having two major industry events within the UK. The decision to attend both shows can be difficult as it loads added pressure on suppliers in terms of cost and resources in what are already difficult times.
On the question of whether these events are a sustainable marketing platform, it has to be said this is a decision that needs to be analysed closely every year. The cost of installing heavy inkjet equipment for a limited number of days must be weighed up against the opportunities of added sales and new prospects for the future. In many cases, the decision is also down to whether the main brands will be attending—not to be seen may have an effect on your credibility.
So what about the future? Well, it might be a different world in a few years. With the technical advancements in software and the internet becoming faster, suppliers may find different methods of promoting their products allowing a better return on investment. On the other hand, you can’t beat the human element of meeting and greeting people. It’s a brave new world.
Return on investment
Alistair Weight, director, Spirit Displays
Trade exhibitions will always be a useful marketing platform, but I believe that they do have a greater role to play at certain stages in a company’s growth cycle.
Launching new products into an existing market or seeking new markets for existing products are the obvious times to set up a stand where the industry come to meet and look for new ideas. It is then also a matter of allocating the budgets.
If we talk of value in purely financial terms, then most exhibitors would like to see a positive return on investment before they commit to return to the same show a year late”
If we talk of value in purely financial terms, then most exhibitors would like to see a positive return on investment before they commit to return to the same show a year later. After exhibiting at the same show for a number of years, it can become more difficult to achieve this as there are fewer number of new faces to appeal to.
Having chosen not to exhibit for the last few years, the launch of our new patented Spirit-TEX fabric tension system in 2012 meant that we were ready to exhibit again in 2013. The question then arose as to which one we should choose—with both FESPA and Sign and Digital on the same turf, we felt it would need to be one or the other. Eventually we decided that, for us, FESPA was the clear favourite.
As a UK distributor, there is the opportunity to meet with new and existing local customers to present the Spirit-TEX fabric tension system. At the same time, as a system manufacturer, we are able to target global resellers for our unique range of profiles in both the Spirit-FLEX and Spirit-TEX ranges.
Showing off to a wider audience
Andrew Burdett, managing director, Ultima Displays
Exhibitions are still a great way for us to show off our ‘wares’ to a wider audience. They are an ideal platform to present our newer products and our wide range of services that we can offer our dealers. And this year with both Sign and Digital and FESPA in the UK, it gives us a double hit to do this at a lower cost than normal.
We have commissioned brand new stands for both these shows, building in elements to showcase our new and exciting products—including light boxes, iPad holders and wide-format banners. We will also be presenting our printing, 3D design and marketing services where we have our brand new AR app to demonstrate to our visitors.
Although trade shows are relatively expensive, we get a good return on our investment with plenty of profitable leads to follow up on afterwards. We also build on the wide reaching capabilities of exhibitions by hosting our own in house ‘Open Days’ and ‘Road Shows’.
Although trade shows are relatively expensive, we get a good return on our investment with plenty of profitable leads to follow up on afterwards”
Ultima sales staff actively encourage our new and existing customers to come and visit us and see our extensively stocked showroom with all our latest product releases, plus a tour of our warehouse facilities—thus ensuring that they are kept up-to-date w.th the latest goings-on at the company.
So, yes, industry exhibitions such as Sign and Digital and FESPA, plus our in-house efforts, are still very important to us and something we will continue with. Our commitment to these shows is demonstrated by the fact that we are already planning for Europshop 2014 next year.
Do exhibitions work? Definitely!
Keith Bunker, managing director, Zapkut
Exhibitions definitely work for Zapkut. They are naturally just one component in our marketing mix, but they are strategically important, delivering awareness, credibility and large numbers of sales enquiries.
Today it seems anything can be done online, but there is still significant value in a strong real world presence. Only at exhibitions can visitors see a wide range of suppliers’ offerings, chew the fat with peers, forge new business relationships, and stay up to date with what’s available, all in one day. Travel and time are costly, so that’s also a huge benefit.
Exhibitions are also great thought starters. Getting up close with new tools and products sparks the outside-the-box thinking that fuels business. For example, visitors to our stands often express surprise that vertical panel saws can be so compact and attractively priced. They are then are able to consider a wealth of ways in which they could put a Zapkut to use and tangibly interact with our systems.
Today it seems anything can be done online, but there is still significant value in a strong real world presence”
Another great factor about exhibitions is being able to meet face-to-face with customers. And partly because our portable and moving column vertical panel saw ranges are uniquely attractive to smaller operators, we always manage to draw a healthy crowd. As well as driving sales and dealership enquiries, though, exhibitions are also a great opportunity for us to stay abreast of industry developments and keep in touch with long-standing, new and potential customers.
A robust presence at industry events pays long-term dividends in terms of visibility and credibility in the marketplace: many of our customers have come to us as a result of seeing us at an exhibition. This is why for 2013 we have made a targeted investment and will be exhibiting at both Sign and Digital UK (H70) and FESPA London (M92N).
