Want to build some hype for your next trade show? You can effectively hone in on your target audience without spending a ton of your marketing budget. While organic posts can help, these Facebook ad tactics will be more effective.
Leading up to the event, consider promoting your booth in two ways. First, see if the trade show brand or the organization that runs the show is an available interest group you can target. Layer on the appropriate location and demographic targets to start building pre-show awareness. The second consideration is to use attendee contact information you may receive from the show ahead of time. Custom audience lists can be created in Facebook with email addresses or phone numbers. The audience size might not be big, but it will be extremely relevant, giving you the best bang for the buck. When your audience targeting is set, create ad content promoting your appearance at the show and what you’ll be showcasing.
Facebook’s Local Awareness ads are my No. 1 recommendation. While the trade show is going on, you can target ads to users who are physically within a mile of the convention center by dropping a pin on the location (consider a wider radius to capture nearby hotels). Facebook advertisers can then set an ad schedule, as well as layer on more targets, like the interests discussed earlier, to make the campaign as focused as possible. Finally, create ad content to promote your booth number, showcase any swag you’re giving away or just promote why attendees need to check you out. Since you’re only running these ads for limited hours to a hyper-focused audience, you won’t break the bank promoting your booth.
It doesn’t take a big budget to drive traffic to your booth, no matter how large the convention. Consider using Facebook ads to build awareness, both before and during your show. If you find the right audience, you could be the envy of all the other vendors around you.
-Joe Martinez is senior manager, paid media and community at Milwaukee-based Granular.
