As a customer focused, value driven distributor and manufacturer of fastening solutions Optimas must find a way of delivering our services led proposition to the market, we are not simply a distributor and that there are many layers to what we can do and offer. Industry exhibitions provide us with that opportunity.
There are a number of benefits to exhibiting that have supported our business’ presence in the fastener distribution industry. Exhibiting at trade shows provided us with a great platform to meet new and existing customers, as well as building our brand to become more established within the industry.
Optimas has exhibited at numerous trade shows across the globe, and we have compiled four key reasons why we exhibit.
- Develop Our Business’ Brand
A huge aspect of a business’ success can be down to its branding, especially in an industry such as fastener and small parts distribution which relies heavily on reliability and reputation. Exhibiting at a trade show is a commitment to show why our business is serious about working in the fastener and small parts distribution industry.
An exhibition is the chance to show everyone what our business is all about. Using eye-catching stand displays and in-hand marketing material has helped to make it as easy as possible for our stand to be noticed.
Furthermore, it is imperative to activate the opportunity to maximise the impact. We have found it vital to share information about our presence at the exhibition before, during and after, this can be through a combination of social, advertising and email marketing campaigns, ensuring we can attract attendees online and in advance of the event.
Following the exhibition, customers or fellow businesses within the industry will learn and understand more about what benefits our business can bring around supply of fasteners & small parts requirements, the full suite of services we can offer and the benefit of partnering with us to reduce the costs of purchasing this commodity and as a result our brand will continue to grow.
2. Research and Industry Trends
Exhibitions has provided us with a great opportunity to find out what direction the fastener distribution industry is going in. Hundreds of exhibitors attend many of these trade shows, so it is the perfect time to look around the halls and see what we think our competitors are doing and learn from them.
At exhibitions, certain booths and displays will attract more attendees than others, but why is that? Through our numerous experiences at exhibitions, we have found using props, competitions, games and using creative eye-catching designs, as well as thoughtful give aways for attendees helps attract people at the exhibition.
Another key aspect we have found from attending exhibitions has been to obtain data during the event. Each year we are moving further towards obtaining contact details of attendees through more sustainable methods such as apps and QR codes, rather than the more traditional pen and paper. There is a clear link that the more data collected from the event, the more success we secure from our experience exhibiting there.
Many businesses showcase new technologies or messaging for the first time at exhibitions. This provides us with the opportunity to have our industry at our fingertips, we also find it is the ideal scenario to unveil the latest products and services we have to offer.
3. Generate Business Leads
One reason why we began to increase our presence at exhibitions was to find new, profitable business leads to further expand our customer reach.
In attendance at industry relevant exhibitions are people who will be motivated and interested in similar products and services we can provide, hence their presence. As a result, participation at these events has provided us with many opportunities to generate new business leads. An important point to take into consideration is to not limit what data we collect from these events. Scanning QR codes from attendees such as students who are still learning their trade at university or college is key because they may not be ready right now to utilise our services, however in future years once they have begun their working career, that contact could be an important one who already knows our name, capabilities and offering.
In addition, communicating to attendees enables us to understand more about how our services and products are seen by our own fastener distribution industry as well as multiple customer vertical industries, providing us with extremely useful competitor and customer research. Post exhibition, it is important to analyse the feedback and information gained from our research and use it to stay competitive within the industry.
4. Advanced Engineering 2023
We have found Advanced Engineering to be a great event for us as a business in the fastener and small parts distribution industry, and we recently experienced this again at this year’s event.
Advanced Engineering is the UK’s largest annual gathering of engineering and manufacturing professionals – an ideal client base for business’ involved in fastener and small parts distribution, including up and coming talent for the industry.
The exhibition was free to attend and with over 400 exhibitors it provides us with a great platform to exhibit to our target audience and utilise the benefits of exhibiting for fastener and small parts distribution. We used the opportunity to speak to attendees around the services we provide whilst collecting new business leads in the process.
As mentioned, exhibitions provide you with a fantastic platform to engage with your target audience, and we used the opportunity to launch our latest innovation, OptiSpec, which is a bill of materials management solution and engineering tool for our customers, helping to prevent part proliferation and maximise volume efficiencies. Seeing the success of launching new technology at an exhibition has certainly provided us with a great insight into how best we plan for revealing our latest innovations.
We created a bright, open space to make our stand look inviting to attendees, as well as featuring a Racing Superbike from our partners TAS Racing to further draw interest from those attending. Appealing to the interests of those attending will certainly help bring more people to your stand, and motor vehicles are perfect for exhibitions full of engineering and manufacturing professionals.
