Earlier this week, out at the Sands Expo & Convention Center in Las Vegas, I had the opportunity to present a session on “Branding - a Beginners Guide” to exhibitors and visitors at the ENK/WSA show for footwear and accessory buyers. Having spoken many times about (and to) the tradeshow and conference industry, this was a challenge and forced me to go outside my normal comfort zone.

Once the realization hit that if one can brand a show, one can brand anything—I relaxed and had a great time both putting together the session and then delivering it. The audience consisted of a smattering of international folks, but most were U.S.-based small to medium business owners thirsty for information on building their business. They represented a part of that engine that needs to get moving if we’re ever going to see the end of this awful recession.

Did I provide a panacea for all branding questions? No. However, we discussed basics and asked lot of questions to help the audience begin the process and make their own roadmap.

Bottom line: Every product, service or expo has unique qualities. The key is how to exploit them properly.

First we discussed the concept of Brand Equity—or what is your brand worth? How much are people willing to pay to buy your product/service/expo?

Next we discussed Competitive Positioning Strategy. Who are your biggest competitors? How do your clients and prospective clients view your expo? Clear-sightedness here is crucial. How can you fix what’s broken if you don’t know about it?

Value Proposition Strategy—the value of your product, service or show has to be clear in your marketing. If you are not answering the question, “What’s in it for me” from the customer’s or prospect’s viewpoint, your messaging could use some improvement.

Branding Strategy: Be Clear. Be Concise. Be Consistent. This goes for the message, tagline, logo and colors throughout every single marketing channel you use.

Kudos to the folks at ENK/WSA for providing some real-life help to their exhibitors and visitors for free. Think about offering some basic business classes at your next event. Target it for beginners and publicize that fact. What kinds of classes could you offer to help the next round of exhibitors and attendees grow their market share?


After all, who wouldn’t like to be known as that kind of brand?

Stephanie Selesnick, CEM is President of International Trade Information, Inc., a Los Angeles, CA-based boutique international exhibition management and conference company founded in 1972. ITI has always had an international focus—whether launching shows in other countries or bringing foreign exhibitors and visitors into U.S.-based exhibitions  and events. Reach her at stephanie@intltradeinfo.com and follow her on Twitter @StephSelesnick.