BOOTH & ENGAGEMENT PLANNING
Before You Plan: Educate Yourself
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Before planning, familiarize yourself with basic conference information
such as location, hours, target audience, special sessions/events,
conference theme, etc.
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Review keynotes, educational tracks, roundtables, and topic based
networking events to look for platform synergies or customer trends
you can build an engagement strategy around
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You can find this information in/on
• Exhibitor Prospectus (online)
• Preliminary Program (online)
• Conference Website
• Competitor networking – ask other contacts about their experiences & knowledge of the
event
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Focus on the Customer Experience,
Not Your Own
GOAL: Research attendees and understand demographics
RESULTS: Tailored Offerings to Customer Profiles
• Students
• Academics
• Professionals
• Career Enhancement (Certification, Career Support, Talent Mgmt, Self-Improvement)
• Researchers
• Legacy Building
REACH WITHIN YOUR COMMUNITIES TO…
• Build a strategy of engagement around the profiles
• Provide product & platform information
• Sell and market to any customer desire– even if it falls outside of your business area
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Review & Redefine Objectives/Goals
• Speak with colleagues in marketing, editorial, and sales to determine each
group’s objectives
• Ask yourself “Why” are we going? “What” do we want our customers to know?
“Who” are we targeting?
• Communicate these goals to everyone involved in the planning process,
especially those who will be onsite.
• Create actionable goals for onsite representatives, such as:
• Get 5 qualified leads by the end of the day
• Have a conversation with at least 10 people today
• Set a sales target of $500 dollars more than last year
• Collect 25 survey responses
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Booth Layout & Engagement Strategy
• Work with your EM & community colleagues to determine booth layout.
Come to planning meetings prepared with ideas and with the research
you have already conducted.
• Consider the following:
• Customer Experience: Map your booth to the customer’s experience/background - make
sure you are providing materials for every point along their track
• Consider your product & platform demo / display requirements and space necessary
• Define your Lead-Gen and Social Strategy - can you loop them together?
• Technology: do you need monitors, internet, computers, e-readers, LRS systems?
• The “feel”: is this booth cohesive or does it look disjointed? Think about the traffic flow
from entry point to exit
• Messaging/Graphics: do customers understand what it is we are promoting and who we
are/what we do? Make sure all your graphics tie back to your central message!
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Lead Generation Campaigns
• Think about your LRS system – yoga vs. iPad (full badge scanning
with cost vs. free app), or Content Interactive
• If you are not familiar with the tech – ask your EM for a demo or
review!
• If you’re collecting leads another way, how will you consolidate
them with the system?
• Microsites: For separate sites, speak with your EM about
importing leads into the LRS system
• Is there an incentive for signing up for lists? (raffles, free trials,
books, or other content giveaway)
• Is there set a number of leads you would like to collect?
• Consider access requests and how to integrate them
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Messaging & Graphics
• Messaging is critical to a successful booth
• Work with colleagues to create the main message for your booth
• AOM used: “From EDU to CEO”
• ASTD used: “The Best in Workplace Learning”
• ACS used: “Do More Chemistry”
• Ensure main messages & variations are consistent throughout the
booth
• Determine a color scheme that will also be consistent in the space
• Graphics should be placed in clear view for attendees to see
• Top-level messaging should always tell who we are—WILEY.
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Ensure no brand, product, or platform is at equal height to the Wiley logo in the booth
• Product graphics should always communicate what the product
is/does and how it will help the customer
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Did You Think About?
• Activities – Trivia or guessing games, contests, Social games,
socials, receptions, booth events or focus groups?
• Speakers or Signings – author or invited speaker activities
• Digital Strategies – using apps, e-readers, and/or tablets to show
content digitally, monitors to display websites, or demonstrations
• Mobile Strategies – using apps and/or QR campaigns (and
ensuring scans link to mobile-optimized sites)
• Social Media Strategies – support what you are doing on-site by
tweeting and posting pre-show, at-show, and post-show. Work with
the Social Media group in the MRC
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Promotions
• Are you offering incentives? Good for capturing leads, completing surveys,
demos, or for visiting with a Wiley colleague. This doesn’t need to be expensive.
Sometimes the best thing we can give away is our content!
• Consider your promotional needs:
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Posters
Postcards or invitations
Pre-show email or mail campaigns?
Work with sales to pre-schedule appointments and demos
Ads?
Inserts?
Sponsorships?
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Booth & Engagement Strategy Checklist
 Review the program, exhibit prospectus, and website to profile and map your target audience
 Research educational tracks, speaker sessions, and events prioritizing the customer experience
 Speak with marketing, editorial, and sales colleagues to communicate objectives for this conference
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 Review equipment and technology needs for the booth with the exhibit manager
 Think about your digital strategy- including apps, e-readers, iPads, demos, websites & product on monitors
 Think about your mobile strategy -Will you use apps, QR codes, etc?
 Think about your social media strategy and how it can support your on-site and engagement activities
 Think about your lead-gen campaign- Will you use the LRS system, import leads, offer an incentive?
 Consider product/platform demos- how you will execute them?
 Determine your message- What should customers know about Wiley & the product we’re showing them?
 Determine if you will host any receptions
 Decide if you’ll participate in additional promotional activities such as ads, inserts, or sponsorships
 Set goals for the conference such as obtaining a certain number of leads
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