To Expo? or Not To Expo?….That is the Question

8 Nov 2016

We have all had the call or the email inviting us (at a very reasonable rate) to take ourselves and what we do to an Expo or Exhibition of some sort.

Here at OpenCRM we have traditionally thanked them for their kind offer but declined, however we have decided to exhibit at this year’s North East Chamber of Commerce’s North East Expo (#NEExpo) at Kingston Park on the 16th November.

‘Why the change of mind?’ I hear you cry.

There were a three questions you have to ask when deciding To Expo or Not to Expo and this time our answers pointed us in only one direction.

1. Will I get a good Return on Investment?

One of the main considerations with doing anything like this is Return On Investment, What is it going to cost me? And what am I going to get back?

None of us have a crystal ball so honestly we don’t know. We decided to take a chance and dip our toes in the water this time for two good reasons: cost and location.

This Exhibition was a good price and it is reasonably local to us, so we don’t have to add large travel expenses or hotel bills.

2. Will it benefit me to chat with the people attending?

The second big question you have to ask yourself when deciding on whether or not to Expo is how beneficial it will be for your business to be more public facing, both in general and at the specific event you are considering.

We decided that this Expo was a great opportunity for us to let our current and future customers see who we are. (See my recent post on how to manage this through OpenCRM.)

3. Does the event, in general, benefit an area that matters to me?

And finally, you have to ask what benefit the event itself will have to your local area or, if it isn’t local, an area that has some meaning to you. For example, seeing a regional capital benefit from the income a large event can bring in.

By attending this year’s North East Expo we knew that we would be supporting our local infrastructure. As a local businesses, we have the chance to team up with lots of other local businesses and show everyone what is great about business in our area, make some wonderful connections and of course do some business.

 

Going to be at the NEExpo? Pop over to stand GS13 on the first floor and say Hi…oh you may also spot the tablecloth!