You’re at a trade show. Forget that you spent an entire day traveling to your destination. Then another day setting up your booth. Now, you are finally at the show. You’re shaking hands and meeting the masses. People are approaching your table and watching your demos.
Some are even actively engaging with you on what your business offers. Everything is a huge success, right? Well, maybe. It depends on what your expectations are from that huge expense of time and resources.
For a lot of businesses, trade shows are meant to grow the business and generate solid sales leads. If that is why you attend trade shows, then there may be better ways to allocate your resources. It is not easy trying to find a potential lead in the middle of a crowded trade show floor where most people are also there looking to sell, sell, sell.
On the other hand, there are places where buyers are actively looking for your solutions. It is your job to meet them there. Where is that you ask?
Let’s find out!
B2B Marketing Plan: Trade Show Winners and Losers
First, let’s talk about who’s benefiting from trade shows. According to IBISWorld, the trade show industry raked in $21 billion in 2023. So, the argument could be made that the biggest benefactor of a trade show is the trade show industry itself.
Don’t get us wrong, there are some very good trade shows. Some that you may feel you have to attend. So, whether you continue to make appearances at trade shows or not, it also makes sense to show up where your prospects are actively looking to buy.
Where Are Your Customers Looking To Buy
When a B2B buyer is looking to make a purchase there are a few places where they go first. At the top of the list is a search engine – no surprise there.
What may shock you, however, is that what they click on is not always the top link. In fact, according to a recent study, if the top spots are all vendor websites, the B2B buyer often scrolls past those until they reach a non-vendor website.
The reason for this is simple: the B2B buyer knows your website is trying to sell them. What they are looking for is not a pitch, but a potential solution. They are looking for nonbiased information to help them come to a reasonable conclusion. Which is, who should I include on our short list of candidates to reach out to for help?
Now that you know that your customers are narrowing their search by looking for answers on websites other than yours, it presents an interesting dilemma for distributing your content.
Interestingly enough, according to the same study, right behind non-vendor websites ranked trade publications (which are also non-vendor websites). Therefore, if you are looking for a gold mine for your content it would be to generate some positive press in the publications your target audience is already consuming.
B2B Marketing Plan: How to Get Published in a Trade Publication
There are a few ways to get your story published in a trade publication. Traditionally, it began with a PR agency writing either a pitch or a press release. Either way, you are then relying on the publications to develop a story for you.
A third option is also available, but because it is so much more difficult to execute than the first two options, very few agencies offer it. That is to write the entire story for the publication as if you were the editor or journalist at the outlet.
This requires generating informative, educational, and even industry-disruptive content that is not overly promotional, or advertorial in nature.
By generating this type of content:
- You get the credibility and awareness that comes from getting your story published in a major trade publication.
- You get to educate your target audience on why they would benefit from working with you.
- You also get huge value from a digital perspective because the articles deliver a high DA backlink for your website and the trade publications tend to rank very high within a given SERP.
The Power of Positive Press
Your brand is what people say about you when you are not in the room.
As we mentioned earlier, trade publications are being consumed by your target audience at a very high rate. However, the value of articles in trade publications goes well beyond your company name simply appearing in an article.
The value of feature articles is that you can control the narrative. Through these articles, you can show how you’ve solved problems for your customers. What struggles were your customers facing, what challenges did they overcome, and what differentiates you from other options?
Better yet, we can interview your clients and have them tell the story in their own words.
These articles can also be published in the print publication which is sent directly to your target audience. All for far less money than the cost of a trade show!
B2B Marketing Plan: So What’s the Final Verdict?
Trade shows vs trade publications, what to choose? Many of our clients report low returns on trade shows. They paid thousands of dollars on travel expenses, booths, and people to man them, and labored for long hours creating collateral to hand out to visitors—with very few sales leads to show for it.
However, it may still have a place within your overall marketing strategy.
On the other hand, according to a 2023 Censuswide survey, 92% of business leaders read trade publications. And 97% of those say that what they read in those publications directly impacts their purchasing decisions.
This creates a huge value proposition for companies that can produce content that gets published. It creates an even bigger one for companies that can get published numerous times each month.
Verdict: Whether replacing trade shows or supplementing them, trade publications deliver a better ROI.
If you’re looking for the biggest bang for your marketing buck, feature articles in trade publications should be a top priority.
You can do it yourself or call someone like us to help. Set up a free call to learn more about improving your B2B marketing plan.