Trade Show Fails?

Read this blog about trade shows then read on with this.

I've done a dozen or so trade shows in the last two years (both local and remote - we do sell a video conference product) and for us it's always 'all hands on deck'. We're not Cisco, who can rotate cozy shifts between their 70,000 employees, so this blog obviously struck enough of a nerve to write about it.

Do not eat or drink in your booth

How in the hell do you think I'm going to have enough energy to get through 8 hours of handshaking and networking? I'm the engineer who is supposed to be locked up in his cubicle designing things. I need to eat, and yes I am sorry I need to drink. In trade shows it's hard to find time to take a piss, let alone eat or God forbid take a drink when you work for a company with only a handful of people. I'm not gorging on a pizza and I try to be as discreet as possible, but I need to eat something.

"Make your booth stand out, booth graphics, overhead signage, listing in the Show Directory are all good ways to help people find your booth."

Money, money, money. Getting carpet for your booth costs a ton. Overhead signage costs N+ton

"If you are from another Country, have people in the booth who natively speak the language(s) of the place you are in."

So for ISE, we should have hired someone who speaks Dutch. Got it. I'm sure hiring an interpreter is cost effective. My guess is the author is a native English speaker and pointing out non English speakers having booths.

"Break time is for email, drinks and lunch outside of the booth. NEVEReat or drink in the booth (yes I said it twice)."

Break time. That's cute. Should I leave my booth empty?

We have to do our best, no matter if the company has five or five thousand employees. Booth visitors luckily, at least in my experience, haven't been judgmental on our situation as a start up.