It’s tradeshow season, kid!

Ali Glemser

Hopefully, you caught the “Wedding Crashers” reference there. 

Our firm helps many of our clients plan for tradeshows every year. If your organization is exhibiting at any tradeshows this year, don’t forget what a great opportunity these events can be for media coverage. To make sure you are getting the most out of this experience, create a detailed plan with designated responsibilities focused on pre-show, during-show and post-show activities as I have done below.

Pre-show
First, understand the show’s media landscape by researching what media outlets will be in attendance. Sometimes, the show’s coordinators will release a media list, other times they won’t. If the media list is not being shared, research who covered the show in the past through Google and on Twitter (reporters may tweet about tradeshows in advance using the show’s designated hashtag). 

Once your media list is solidified, reach out to reporters letting them know that your organization is exhibiting and invite them to stop by your booth (include the booth number). Always have a show-specific press release with something newsworthy to discuss. Each show is different, but many will distribute releases to attending media or upload to an online pressroom. 

Lastly, make sure you have an updated press kit to submit to the show’s media room in both electronic and paper form. Each show has its own guidelines, so refer to the pressroom section of the tradeshow website to ensure you have all the details. 

During the show
At the beginning of the show, verify that your approved press kit is in media room and replenish the supply throughout the show. Remember, many media rooms have rules that don’t allow you to hang out there. So, don’t get banned for stalking the media room!

However, do make a point to reach out to reporters again via email to remind them of your organization’s booth number and invite them to drop by for a visit or demonstration. You can always reach out to them via Twitter, too. That shouldn’t be hard because you should be live-tweeting the event anyway. #tweetforexposure

Even more important, talk to as many contacts present at the shows as possible because building relationships is much easier in person than over email.  

Post-show

Follow up. Follow up. Follow up. Make sure to reach out to reporters you met in person and provide answers to questions they had during the show or to say thank you for stopping by the booth. Remember not to neglect contacting those who you did not connect with in person. Recaps of the show or updates, like awards the company may have won, make for a good final opportunity to reach out.  

While tradeshows are a great way to gain sales prospects, the chance to garner media coverage is just as important. The key is planning ahead! Identifying your key messages and keeping contacts on alert for interview opportunities are necessary to make the most of trade show media opportunities. The relationships you begin and reinforce at the shows will grow over time with continued communication. 

Mothers Teach Us So Much…

Daniel Wade

Not too long ago, most of us set aside a day to honor our mothers. Depending on your life circumstances, this could have been a joyous or a difficult occasion. My perspective on motherhood up to this point in life has been almost entirely shaped by my own mother – truly a blessing from God. This is about to change due to the fact that, as I write this post, my wife is two short weeks away from giving birth to our first child. Like so many things in my life, my appreciation for mothers across the world is about to change. So, mothers, here’s hoping that this recent day in your honor was a happy one. 

Not unlike other holidays in our country, Hallmark and other popular gift spots made a killing. I purchased a Mother’s Day card for almost $8 after tax and was nearly sick. As is my annual tradition, I bemoaned the fact that some schmuck is also making a killing off holiday cards that are subpar at best. Nevertheless, I purchased cards and gifts for my mother and the mother types in my life and proceeded to do the next logical thing…that’s right…wish these wonderful ladies a “Happy Mother’s Day” via social media. Come on – it’s 2014 – don’t tell me you didn’t do the same! 

And here, fine folks, is where our public relations reminder comes for the day. PR 101: Consider your audience! It doesn’t matter how sweet or funny or witty your collection of 140 characters was on Twitter – your mother never saw it because she doesn’t use the medium. I observed (and I wasn’t the only one) many great admonitions of love and proclamations of the “best mother on the planet” titles belonging to certain people on Twitter – my social medium of choice. Here’s hoping they also wrote that card or picked up the phone. A few savvy folks in my timeline had the presence of mind to point this out, and I couldn’t agree more. 

It’s an easy parallel to your brand, your product and/or your service. Start by knowing your audience or your tribe, as renowned marketer Seth Godin calls it. Where and how do they consume their news? Who do they trust as opinion leaders in the industry? What are they passionate about? What moves the needle for them? If you don’t know your tribe intimately, how will you ever really reach them? It’s 2014, folks. The same old advertising buys and email newsletters aren’t cutting it. Build equity in the form of relationships with your tribe, invest in truly understanding them and yield the currency of trust. Yes, content matters (another talk for another day), but at this point, you’ll know where and how to effectively communicate to a tribe that is truly engaged.  

Now, go back and make sure the mothers in your life got your Mother’s Day message – the way they would understand it best!

Electing a Pope in the Modern World

Kelli Eason

Eight years ago, I was sitting in my trigonometry class at St. Louis Catholic High School in Lake Charles, La. While I usually dreaded the math class, that day was different. That was the final day the 2005 papal conclave – the first in my lifetime – which elected Pope Benedict XVI. We watched the white smoke billow out of the Sistine Chapel live right there in my class. Little did I know that I would experience another rarity (a papal abdication) and another conclave so soon. Nor did I realize how much would change.

Just like the most recent Olympics and presidential election, the digital world we live in makes this papal election quite a different animal than it ever was before. Consider the following:

·   Fantasy Conclave – This friendly competition is not unlike fantasy football except there is no money involved, and prizes are provided by sponsors. You choose the cardinal you believe will be the next pope, the day on which he will be elected and the name you think he will choose. (I went with Cardinal Rivera Carrera from Mexico, day three, and said he would choose the name Leo.) I’m sure my grandmother never expected something like this.

·   Pope Alarm – This digital notification service is only for the most dedicated conclave watchers. It sends a text message, email or both to registered users to notify them as soon as the white smoke appears, confirming the next pope. This may include a text in the wee hours of the morning as Rome is anywhere from five to eight hours ahead of the United States.

·   Papal watchers on Twitter – Mashable published a handy dandy list of five of the top papal watchers to follow during the conclave. The list includes a reporter who first broke the news of Benedict XVI’s abdication because she understands Latin.

This papal conclave also brought to the forefront the idea of campaigning for certain candidates. Although the church works very hard to maintain the secrecy of the ballots and the conclave, it seems that the more connected we are, the more speculation there is. I found several interesting articles on this phenomenon:

·   The Sweet Sistine – Tapping into the popularity of March Madness, the Religion News Service put together this bracket of what they believe is the most likely list of candidates. They even included odds provided by Irish bookmaker paddypower.com.

o   If you’re interested, here’s the final bracket developed from more than 40,000 votes.

·   A possible American pope – There has never been an American pope, but it seems that the American media was pretty excited about the fact that…there could be. There was a lot of buzz surrounding Cardinal Sean O’Malley from Boston and Cardinal Timothy Dolan from New York.

·   A wide open field – There was no clear favorite, which may be why so many people were campaigning and speculating and hoping to influence the outcome.

The church hasn’t changed much in the last few hundred years, so I didn’t count on social media, citizen journalists or the 24/7 news cycle altering the process or the outcome. Still, it made for quite an interesting conclave, and it sure was fun to feel like a participant…even if it is just part of the Fantasy Conclave! Unfortunately, I was nowhere close to winning the fantasy league. Not many people were. Only 0.7 percent of participants, or 41 people, chose Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio. Only six correctly predicted that he would be chosen on day two, and no one was anticipating that he would choose Francis as his papal name. But I guess congratulations are in order for Michael Brennan of Wisconsin, who officially won and gets bragging rights for the remainder of Pope Francis’ tenure!