Another show continues in Louisville Kentucky at the National Farm Machinery Show. Wednesday was a little slow because of the weather , but attendance has certainly picked up today. Thanks to Chuck Zimmerman of www.AgWired.com for snapping this pic of myself busy with a client.
How do other exhibitors feel about the quality of attendees at some of these farm shows? When admission is free it certainly brings out alot of people who have never been on a farm, or haven’t made a farm purchasing decision in several decades. While it is a great learning experience to bring high school students in by the busload to be exposed to what agriculture is about, perhaps they need to be doing this at the state fair rather than a show targeting farmer business people.
100′s of companies have each spent thousands or tens of thousands of dollars on promoting their products to bonafide farmers.
With so many non farmers clogging up the aisles, many companies cannot even be seen by the true farmers who attend these shows. The NFMS promotes that over 300,000 people attend over 4 days, I would be surprised if there are any more than 50,000 real, active farmers who walk these aisles over 4 days.
Most people are only here to pick up a free pen and a yard stick. It is a social outing rather than a business conference.
I think that we will soon begin to see the demise of these type of shows, as companies are not getting the bang for their promotional dollars. This is already being seen at many shows where the main line equipment manufacturers are choosing not to exhibit. For example, why does John Deere need to spend $100,000? +/- this week when they have a showroom every 60 miles across the continent and know every potential client in their trading area?
Can you imagine exhibiting at a show when they want 700$ just for Internet access for 4 days?
More of the smaller companies who need to create some brand awareness of their product should be looking at online advertising and targeting their specific demographic. I don’t mean spending thousands of dollars on a website and expecting the world to beat a path to their door. Setup a simple brochure site and seek out marketing opportunities online with progressive high traffic ag related websites. It doesn’t have to be the biggest ag media websites, there are alot of unique websites that are high traffic and may not even currently have paid advertising .
A few hundred dollars a month spread over several campaigns that include banner advertising, product reviews, link placement and PPC campaigns will help drive your business forward into the future.
Look for an advertising venue where you will standout and also has your best interests in mind as an advertiser.
