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The Secrets Of Visual Merchandising

How your store looks is sometimes more important that what you are selling. We’ll explore the basics on merchandising your store from a visual perspective and also discuss how to build a formula to keep your store fresh and exciting to your frequent shoppers as well as your new guests.
10/06/2008

ZJ Boarding House Celebrates 20-Year Anniversary

Santa Monica's ZJ Boarding House celebrates twenty years of being in business with a carnival/concert/barbecue and a good portion of the industry turns out to help them celebrate.
09/29/2008

Surf Expo September Post-Show Recap

Retail shop and booth counts up at Surf Expo; attendance dips slightly due to weather and economy.
09/29/2008

The Girls Of Surf Expo

All the latest swimwear fashions, modeled at Surf Expo's Fashion Shows and at the swank Peabody Hotel.
09/25/2008

Fate Of Trestles Now In Hands Of U.S. Federal Government (Gulp!)

Thousands stand together in oppostiion to the 241 Toll Road extension during the U.S. Department Of Commerce public comment meeting at the Del Mar fairgrounds. But support and involvement from the surf industry was suprisingly muted at the hearing. So what gives?
09/24/2008

New Faces: Kane'ohe Bamboo Provisions

Building their company philosophy around the belief that the natural beauty of the Hawaiian Islands is as irreplaceable as it is inspiring, Kane'ohe Founders Bryan and Kyle Harris built a brand that would embody island beauty, luxury, and environmental responsibility.
09/13/2008

Volcom’s Atomic Jigsaw On A Stick

“This was the best am contest ever. No, seriously, write that down: best ever.” Well. .. okay! That's cool.
09/13/2008

5th Annual WakeAwards Bash Goes Off At Surf Expo

WakeBoarding, the world's number one wake sports magazine, hosted the 5th Annual Wake Awards presented by Rockstar Energy Drink, on September 12 in Orlando, Florida during Surf Expo.
09/12/2008

Surf Expo Staff Anticipates Solid Show

After a few nervous days carefully monitoring weather reports, the skies over Orlando are clear and this show is shaping up to be on par with Surf Expo's largest September show ever.
09/11/2008

Surf Expo Golf Tournament

Fourteen fearless foursomes braved the fickle Central Florida elements during the annual Surf Expo Golf Tournament at Shingle Creek Golf Course.
09/11/2008

Liquid Nation Ball 5 Raises Funds for 14 Surf-Related Humanitarian Organizations

Surf industry business executives, professional surfers, and La Jolla VIPs gathered at the ocean-front home of Fernando and Vicky Aguerre in La Jolla, Calif. to help raise funds for 14 surf-related humanitarian organizations and honor the first ever SIMA Humanitarian of the year, Dr. Dave Jenkins, CEO of SurfAid International.
09/10/2008

Catching Up With: Origin Skate Trucks

Origin Skate Trucks was started by Richard Wooten and Todd Palmer with a new design on a truck, a truck the owners says is designed for performance because it has a 40% larger grinding surface and weighs the same as a standard Indy truck.
09/08/2008



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Syndicate  

 
How to Select and Train Your Booth Staff



Since the memorability of your exhibit is directly tied to attendees’ face-to-face contact with the exhibit staff, shouldn’t we be concentrating, or at least putting as much budget and effort into our staff’s performance as we do our exhibit design or new show signage?

Sadly, training our exhibit staff for peak performance doesn’t always happen and the visitor is the one who pays the ultimate price – a less than favorable experience with our staff and poor image for our company. Somehow show logistics hog our time and resources, and when it comes to staff training, it gets buried in a pile of undone “to-do’s”. But nothing pays off in qualified leads and positive company image as well as a well-trained staff!

1. Recognize that your exhibit staff’s knowledge and professionalism are the most memorable parts of a show attendee’s experience with your company.

2. Determine the exhibit staffing levels (rule of thumb: 1 staff person per 50 sq. ft. of open space in your exhibit), shift length (adequate breaks and no more than ½ day shifts) and roles (sales, product management, PR, etc.) that need to be filled.

3. Based on staffing requirement, work with your company’s management to get the most knowledgeable and enthusiastic staffers available.

4. Communicate the show’s goals and objectives, messages, and personnel logistics including mandatory pre-show training sessions prior to the show with your exhibit staff. Make them part of your team!

5. Determine who will train your exhibit staff. There are three basic options: 1) do it yourself with the help of other corporate staff, 2) purchase “canned” exhibit staff training tools, or 3) bring in a professional exhibit staff trainer who can provide customized pre-show training, role playing and in-booth coaching.

6. Plan an in-booth orientation session for all exhibit staff, covering your exhibit layout; promotions; collateral; demonstration and presentation previews; the lead capture system; staffing issues such as work schedules, attire, and badging; and housekeeping details like show-provided transportation, location of show hall entrances, concession stands, restrooms, and partners’ exhibits.

7. Plan an off-site meeting in a private setting to review confidential company strategy, goals and objectives, and key messages; product review; show specials being offered; any difficult issues; and introduce exhibit staff by expertise.

8. Review best practices with your exhibit staff for visitor interaction: greeting and engaging, qualifying, demonstrating, recording lead information, and dismissing.

9. Don’t skip the basic “boothmanship” etiquette review. Make sure your staff knows your rules i.e. not talking on cell phones, no food/beverages/gum while working, no sitting in your exhibit, watching your body language for negative signs, no talking in closed circles, etc.

10. Stress that TIME is your biggest competitor at the show. The goal is to move attendees more rapidly through the sales process toward the sale with follow-up commitments, not to actually close sales at the show.


Additional resources:

Exhibitor Magazine’s “Exhibit Staffing Formula”

Candy Adams’ “How to Train Exhibit Staff: Ten Topics to Cover in your Pre-Show Meeting”

Dick Wheeler’s “Trade Show Booth Staff Training Essentials”

Candy Adams’ “Exhibit Orientation” in Exhibitor Magazine:

Charles Pappas’ “Seven Sneaky Ways Exhibit Staff Sabotages Your Booth: A Case Study”

 

 

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Author: Sean Obrien
 
 
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  press releases
 

Halloween Wakeboard Day With Keith Lyman at the Carlsbad Lagoon

Wakesports will host a Halloween costume party at the Carlsbad Lagoon on Saturday, October 18th. The fun will kick off around noon and continue until sunset. Liquid Force is flying professional wakeboarder Keith Lyman out to join in the festivities.
10/10/2008

Buckle, Inc. Reports Comp Store Sales Up 19.7%

The Buckle, Inc. (NYSE: BKE) announced today that comparable store net sales, for stores open at least one year, for the five-week period ended October 4, 2008, increased 19.7 percent from comparable store net sales for the five-week period ended October 6, 2007.
10/10/2008

C4 Waterman Team to Go Big at Battle of the Paddle

C4 Waterman and their distributor, Boardworks, have rallied a red-hot team of stand up paddle (SUP) racers for this Saturday's $25,000 Battle of the Paddle at Doheny State Beach, Dana Point, California.
10/10/2008

Rip Curl promotes Brian Bosson to VP of Merchandising Operations

Rip Curl is excited to announce the promotion of Brian Bosson to Vice President of Merchandising Operations. In his new role, Bosson will expand his responsibilities overseeing the Tech Product Division into the production and development business.
10/10/2008

Bikini Flavors Gives Conservation a High Fashion Makeover

Bikini Flavors is proud to announce its partnership with the Caribbean Conservation Corporation (CCC).
10/10/2008

Steamer Lane Prepares For Oakley Pro Junior Series Finale

The nation's top professional junior surfers will compete at the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) Grade-3 North America Oakley Pro Junior Championships at the 2008 O'Neill Cold Water Classic at Steamer Lane, Santa Cruz, Calif. Oct. 21-26.
10/10/2008

Zumiez Total Net Sales Up 4.8% While Comp Store Sales Dip

Zumiez Inc. today announced that total net sales for the five-week period ended October 4, 2008 increased 4.8% to $33.6 million, compared to $32.1 million for the five-week period ended October 6, 2007.
10/10/2008

Jetpilot Announces Website Launch

The Web site is designed with efficiency and clarity in mind. The goal was simple: Create a window into the world of Jetpilot and what the brand is all about.
10/06/2008

Grenade Launches Footwear Collection

Grenade Footwear was designed to cover our feet when the days grew colder and so we could stop rummaging through the bins at Goodwill for the next good pair to skate.
10/06/2008

Furl TV To Conquer Colorado On Comcast

Exciting new Fall snowboard series “The Adventures of Danny & The Dingo” and “Standard Snowboard Show” perfect for new market.
10/06/2008

Sign Up For SIMA's HR Boot Camp Today

Registration open for 4th event in SIMA’s new educational Coot Camp Series: HR Boot Camp.
10/06/2008

DC Supports "Movember" With Limited Edition Sandal Release

For the second consecutive year DC is proud to support Movember, an annual charity ‘mo’-vement committed to changing the way men think about, discuss and treat their own health issues.
10/06/2008



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