Exhibition Publicity

[MarkSG]

Prompted by comments elsewhere in this section, I was wondering what people's thoughts are on exhibition publicity and marketing. In particular...

 

Exhibition organisers:

 

What publicity methods do you generally use?

 

Do you do any kind of research to determine which is the most effective?

 

If so, what do you find is the best at getting people through the door?

 

Exhibition visitors:

 

What types of publicity attract you to an exhibition, particularly one you've never visited before?

 

Where (apart from RMweb) do you go to find out about exhibitions?

 

Would you go a new (to you) exhibition solely on the strength of the publicity, or would you also want to get opinions from people here on RMweb who are familiar with it?

 

Conversely, would you be put off going to an exhibition if the publicity and marketing material seems amateurish or non-existent, even if it has good word of mouth reviews on RMweb?

[Coombe Barton]

What types of publicity attract you to an exhibition, particularly one you've never visited before?

RMweb mainly - although handouts at other exhibition do serve to bring things onto my radar. Magazines are mainly duplkicating what's on RMWeb, and much later in issue. I can't be at an exhibition every weekend - I do want to do things around the house.

 

Where (apart from RMweb) do you go to find out about exhibitions?

RMweb is my principal source of information by a long chalk.

 

Would you go a new (to you) exhibition solely on the strength of the publicity, or would you also want to get opinions from people here on RMweb who are familiar with it?

Opinions on here matter, but I wouldn't go unless the publicity (below) was up to scratch.

 

Conversely, would you be put off going to an exhibition if the publicity and marketing material seems amateurish or non-existent, even if it has good word of mouth reviews on RMweb?

Yes, most definitely. Let's take an example:

 

1) Layouts:

 

Dunelm Mill in 00

 

That's it? no indication of size, period, no link to a website, no photos, nothing to want me to come to see Dunelm Mill in 00 - c'mon, I need to be sold to.

 

2) This is better, but not nearly there yet

 

Dunelm Mill in 00 - 16' * 9' 1980-1990 in West Yorkshire.

 

3) I much prefer:

 

Dunelm Mill in 00 - 16' * 9' 1980-1990 in West Yorkshire. Built by Fred Bloggs over a number of years. Fred grew up in Huddersfield and has based his model on a might have been line serving a variety of industries, Photos and track plan below. (and include them).

 

For traders a link to their website is essential - a name "Stupendous Scenix" might mean something to anyone who's ever heard of them, but if I've never heard of them what good is it? I want to know that I'm not going to waste my time.

 

With the last examples I know what I'm going to see, and it's easier to persuade a day pass out of SWMBO.

 

Overall comment - if organisers can't get to market their wares by GIVING THE PUNTER THE INFORMATION TO MAKE A PURCHASE (caps intentional) then why should I (the punter) take time, money and effort to go? My money is hard earned, my time is limited. If an exhibition organisation doesn't have anyone who can write websites then in this day and age it's unusual. (And yes, I do know about Wild Swan, but that's a one off.)

 

And I also need to know what's on at an exhibition some months in advance in order to make my decisions in a timely fashion. Yes, I do expect changes, but I have to make my travel decision so that I know I can get to the other exhibitions I want to go to. If the website is not up until a couple of weeks before the show then you won't find me there because I will have made other plans.

 

So summarising:

1. Is the show on RMweb? If so I'll know about it.
   
2. I take feedback from people here BUT
   
3. If there's no decent and informative website then it'll be off my radar.
   
4. Magazine ads don't matter.
   

[Coombe Barton]

And whilst we're on the subject of shows, exhibition guides sized at A5 are a darned sight easier to access at a show and more pocketable than an A4 guide,

[Kenton]

As a punter:

 

It used to be RM back pages but these days more so RMWeb - BUT far too many shows fail to advertise on here and when they do there is too little information. The exceptions being the big shows RailEx, Manchester, York ... where the organisers are otherwise very active members here and have always made the effort (much appreciated) to keep the other members informed.

 

For a show I have not been to, the recommendation from other RMWebbers (particularly on the previous year's show) carry a lot of weight - especially respected members and especially if considerable travel to the show is required.

 

What attracts me most to a show is firstly: Trade secondly:Layouts thirdly:Parking anything else is a bonus or deterrent. So tell me about them in that order. Preferably with weblinks (RMWeb is an online resource - so I expect online links)

 

I also pickup flyers at shows but seem to lose them long before I need reminding.

 

I usually get to 20 odd shows a year - most of them never seem to be publicised well - some of them I find I even have to post on RMWeb though I have nothing to do with the show, so have no idea of the details just that no one else has bothered. I get the impression that some clubs have not yet heard of RMWeb !

[298]

Exhibition visitors:

 

What types of publicity attract you to an exhibition, particularly one you've never visited before?

 

Where (apart from RMweb) do you go to find out about exhibitions?

 

Would you go a new (to you) exhibition solely on the strength of the publicity, or would you also want to get opinions from people here on RMweb who are familiar with it?

 

Conversely, would you be put off going to an exhibition if the publicity and marketing material seems amateurish or non-existent, even if it has good word of mouth reviews on RMweb?

 

1- Layouts, then trade.

 

2- I might look for a calendar in a magazine or be aware of an event from a leaflet picked up at a previous show, but generally I'd look for info on the internet. If I was travelling by train I'd be looking for cheap tickets about 3 months beforehand, and would expect final details to be available by then.

 

3- If I was travelling any distance I'd try to find out as much as possible.

 

4- Possibly, it would depend on the reviews on RMweb. I have a pretty good idea what to expect from a village hall show who'd charge £2, and would see through such posts as "Bob's layout is there, it's really good"...

 

As I've said before, a show doesn't need to have a brilliant website, just something that is easy to reference, accurate, and gives me all the information I need to know. We all know which "League" shows would fit into, and probably base our decisions regarding how far to travel and how long to stay there even before reading all the information available.

 

Can I also add, as an Exhibitor, I'm reluctant to accept invites until I know about the show in question, such as the venue, access, accomodation, and lighting in the hall. I'd even go so far as to say I wouldn't consider exhibiting at a show that I'd not been to before, either with a layout or as a punter.

[Edwin_m]

I visit exhibitions as a punter, usually with my seven-year-old who has a shortish attention span. Hence I go to a few of the "church hall" type events if they are reasonably nearby, but I need a lot more persuading to attend a more distant event. Occasionally the presence of a specific trader will influence me, if there is something I need from them.

 

My main source is the listing on ukmodelshops, which usefully gives all exhibitions in chronological order. I like to see the basic details there with a link to more information, preferably as suggested some details of each layout/trader or an onward link to their own site. A downloadable exhibition guide would be good - if I get one at the show then I normally don't look at it until I've gone home, then often kick myself for missing something interesting! But then again if it's on the web I probably won't pay extra for a paper copy so you probably lose some revenue by doing this.

 

I may see topics on here but they tend to arrive months beforehand and often turn into conversations between the organiser/exhibiters, which is fair enough in its way but doesn't do much for getting other people interested, so I've normally switched off from the thread well before the actual date. If you're starting one of these topics then now we don't have sub-titles, please put the exhibition date in the main title!

 

Magazine ads, listings, posters and flyers aren't of much interest to me. Occasionally I might discover an event that I didn't know about, but I'll then wonder why they didn't promote it more effectively online.

[bbishop]

I'm unsure how accurate the responses are going to be. A majority will quote RMWeb, but that is because RM Web is the medium on which the question has been posed.

 

At a wild guess there are 1,000 regular visitors to RM Web, plus occasional lurkers, say another 1,000. Someone will have a reasonable figure but I suggest 2,000 is a reasonable figure.

 

This needs to be compared with the sales of Railway Modeller, plus those of us who leaf through it in W H Smiths..

 

We publicised the German Railway Society exhibition which took place last September. Perhaps not the best example, because it is a specialist show, but I'm unsure if RM Web generated footfall in double figures.

 

Bill

[The Dorset Wanderer]

Having organised a scale specific exhibition the comments recieved so far are seemingly to the extent of 'I want to go to an exhibition that will save me postage and sell stuff I want to buy'.

The main magazines are helpful and it is useful if an exhibit has recently been in one of the publications recently.

Fliers are a waste of money, copies picked up do not result in as many feet across the threshold.

As a visitor I expect to learn something, methods of doing something are not gauge specific. Many small shows are poorly attended because this or that celebrity layout isn't attending- this is a mistake! One show I exhibited at gave me (with permission I may add) the idea for a one day show layout which is achievable in any scale.

Lets not forget that venues are expensive, unless as in my case regular useage for meetings swelled the venues coffers. Budgets must be made and adhered to, success rarely comes first time, it is the continuity and quality that gets punters to come back.

Getting society members to get off their a**** and support a venture can be difficult BUT if you are determined to succed then give it your best shot, publicise where you can- for free if possible. Contact local newspapers, radio stations their publicity can be free and of course use the web to your advantage.

Me? For under £100 we had over 150 visitors, made a profit and had a good day out- Thats what its all about.

Steve

[Guest Natalie Graham]

but I'm unsure if RM Web generated footfall in double figures.

Just lots of one-legged visitors.

[edcayton]

Not a lot to add, except that my main/first source is the Chiltern Model Railway Association (CMRA) web site. Habit really, but I was using this before I knew about RMWeb.

 

Ed

[David Bigcheeseplant]

Exhibition organisers:

 

What publicity methods do you generally use?

 

As much as you can, there is plenty of free places such as forums you can get the message accross, plus mag diary entries etc. we also use flyers sent to traders that come to our show (Railex) and put out at otrher shows,we also place paid for adverts in some of the mainstream magizines and societiy publications.

 

Do you do any kind of research to determine which is the most effective?

 

We do a survey that has tick the box "where did you hear about Railex" the top result most years is RMWeb, Railway Modeller, Model Railway Journal and exhibition flyers plus the comment "been the previous year." There is also feedback on RMWEB and other forums after the show that give feedback too.

 

We have placed advets in Model Rail but each time we have done this it has had no effect on numbers. on the other hand an advert in Hornby Magizine at the opposite effect!

 

If so, what do you find is the best at getting people through the door?

 

Make sure publicity is kept upto date throughout the year, and people know about your show, if there is an important update use this to update the forum pages and keep the show in the public eye. While I am at it Inkerman Street is know confirmed at Railex 2012.

 

Hope this helps

 

David

[bbishop]

Just lots of one-legged visitors.

Yeah,

 

As I posted, I thought of the "Pete and Dud" sketch.

 

Bill

[Kenton]

It must be remembered that publicity on RMWeb is FREE (thanks to Andy) and takes very little effort - so there is no excuse.

 

 

For one of the big nationals it is going to be a very targeted advertising for modellers but is not going to be of any use for the mums and dads brigade. (but then are these big and usually more specialised shows really dependent on this category of punter or the avid modeller who is going to spend at the trade stands and therefore sustain this industry and dependency? For a local show I think the importance of RMWeb is still there (It is Still FREE and covers the area and more) But now possibly attracting the mum's & dads brigade is as/more important. The trade is probably going to be more "box shifter" focused, the layouts less "state of the art" and more "Thomas Tank".

 

 

You are probably never going to get me to a 10 layout, church hall type show in some remote town like #### but a 20+layout with top level trade in some big Hall and a well established reputation - I might try to get there. A local show in a school hall 25 miles away will still get my support - but ONLY if I get advance notice.

 

 

So surely it must be a case of targeting the marketing spend according to the type of show and balance of punter expected, whilst always making use of the free resources out there?

 

#### [Edited to remove the specific town named as so many members seem to be from that town and have taken umbrage at the thought that I was slighting their show - you can stop the barrage of PMs now - I've given up replying to them all. I take the hint that particular place doesn't like any publicity. Sorry I caused you folk offense I thought you had thicker skins. Thanks to Pennine MC for trying to close the issue down and Mod4. Everyone please just insert some place name for #### remote from where you live (take care only to whisper it to yourself) and you should pick up what I was trying to say.

[PaulRhB]

Answering as one who supports our exhibition committee with various publicity materials:-

What publicity methods do you generally use?

Free adverts in the Railway mags, on RMweb and other relevant specialist forums, flyers at shows our layouts attend and local poster advertising.

 

Do you do any kind of research to determine which is the most effective?

Not as such but we do listen to feedback, we were going to drop flyers but the comment was made by several that they are used to remind them to stick it on the calendar when they get home so they only need to be effective for a day or so.

The local posterboard outside the Fire station brings in a lot of locals because it's such a prominent position and used by many local societies for a small donation to the Fire station's charity.

Advertising in the mags exhibition calendar also brings in quite a lot of local enthusiasts.

 

If so, what do you find is the best at getting people through the door?

Reputation of the previous shows, with the date provided though the flyers and magazine adverts.

 

Exhibition visitors:

 

What types of publicity attract you to an exhibition, particularly one you've never visited before?

Good eyecatching posters with an informative website on layouts and traders.

 

Where (apart from RMweb) do you go to find out about exhibitions?

Society and show websites

 

Would you go a new (to you) exhibition solely on the strength of the publicity,

Yes reasonably locally if the spread of layouts and traders looked appealing.

 

Conversely, would you be put off going to an exhibition if the publicity and marketing material seems amateurish or non-existent, even if it has good word of mouth reviews on RMweb?

Not if there was enough info on the content.

 

Your last point raises one of my personal bugbears about posters and flyers.

A page full of text doesn't grab anyones attention, a good picture and succinct details is much better. Feature one or two well known layouts for those in the know to be attracted and then "plus 15 more layouts" works much better. These days backing it up with a website is a very good idea as you can feature pictures and links that are bang up to date. If you don't have a good picture then go out and take one remembering that it needs to say Trains to joe public, don't nick one off the net as you will infringe copyright as it's used in public.

If you want inspiration for a poster look at old railway posters and flick through a magazine and see which ones grab your attention and then think, why? Our show poster was inspired by an LNER poster even though we were limited to black and white printing, It provides a lot of contrast though and is easy to read the basics from a distance. Grab their attention then draw them in. If you want to see if it works then print it out and stick it on the opposite wall of the living room and see if you can get the gist.

[Andy Y]

At a wild guess there are 1,000 regular visitors to RM Web, plus occasional lurkers, say another 1,000. Someone will have a reasonable figure but I suggest 2,000 is a reasonable figure.

 

Actual figures are in excess of 20,000 unique visitors per month with most of those visiting the site on multiple occasions.

 

The facilities on here have been freely available but there are some major events that don't even bother to lift a finger to engage with a potentially large source of punters and stick to a formulaic approach to ads in mags. Mind you such shows also tend to have lousy websites that don't give full or appealing info. Such shows are likely to see an erosion in the floating visitor over forthcoming years.

[Pennine MC]

You are probably never going to get me to a 10 layout, church hall type show in some remote town like Hull

 

Oi

 

Not only is Hull a city, our show is not a 'church hall' and has significantly more than 10 layouts. Please do some basic research before quoting wild examples.

[t-b-g]

Having taken the late Peter Denny's "Leighton Buzzard" to a few shows over the past year it has really brought home to me the way that exhibition managers/publicity people vary in their approach. It is the first time that I have personally exhibited a layout that is probably a big enough "name" to make somebody decide whether to attend a show or not.

 

For Wakefield show, I was approached by the exhibtion manager, who had spoken to Railway Modeller and arranged that if I would write an article, it would appear in the magazine just before the show. As I see it, everybody gains something from that. We had a good crowd all weekend and a healthy number had specifically come to the show to see the layout because of the article.

 

At another show, I was astounded by the number fo people who opened discussions by saying that the layout reminded them of one of Peter Denny's and asking me if I had based the layout on his design! When I told them that it was actually Peter's layout they were looking at, they pretty much all said "If we had known this was here my mates would have come too". We had a distinctly average number of visitors round the layout and I have wondered since how well the show did for the club as there were some big (ie expensive) layouts on show.

 

It makes no difference to me whatsoever how many people are standing in front of the layout but I can't help feeling that the organisers missed marketing opportunity there.

 

One final word here, those rather insulting comments about Hull show were totally out of order! I exhibited there this year and will be taking Leighton Buzzard next year. It is an excellent example of what a club show should be all about. We were looked after splendidly by the very friendly people there. There were a good number of high quality layouts (including several featured on RMWeb and in magazines), some interesting trade and demos and pretty much everybody I spoke to there reckoned it was a very decent show. Hull may be a bit remote but that is no reason to talk about the show there in such terms! Hull deserves an apology for that crack!

[kipford]

I put the SHMRC exhibition on RMweb every year. For our last November show I made sure that links to layouts where available were included. We advertised in all the model mags the specialist society ones, the local paper and with signage outside the venue. We had just under 800 paying visitors (kids under 5 are free) for a one day show, not bad in these austere days. The evening prior to the show the number of hits on the exhibition thread was around 300, so at best we possibly got around 25% of the attendance from here, showing that extensive advertising across ALL the mediums is required for a successful event.

 

Dave

[Kenton]

 

Oi

 

Not only is Hull a city, our show is not a 'church hall' and has significantly more than 10 layouts. Please do some basic research before quoting wild examples.

Just knew whichever "Anytown" I'd use as an example would end up being wrong - perhaps to the Hull'ites more so.

 

Just to state for those that didn't quite get the point - Hull is a 'city', Hull show does tend to put up some info on RMWeb, their show is attractive to me (but I have no first hand knowledge because it is far away (impossible day trip) which if I had used say Reading as an example would not have been the case.)

 

But have to add as an aside I'll never consider Hull as a city, a bit like Bournemouth, Portsmouth, Plymouth, Brighton it just doesn't feel like one (yes I have been there).

[johnb]

One final word here, those rather insulting comments about Hull show were totally out of order! I exhibited there this year and will be taking Leighton Buzzard next year. It is an excellent example of what a club show should be all about. We were looked after splendidly by the very friendly people there. There were a good number of high quality layouts (including several featured on RMWeb and in magazines), some interesting trade and demos and pretty much everybody I spoke to there reckoned it was a very decent show. Hull may be a bit remote but that is no reason to talk about the show there in such terms! Hull deserves an apology for that crack!

 

I too have exhibited at the Hull Show and would fully endorse the comments by t-b-g. It is an excellent show put on by a first class bunch of people. I really enjoyed my visit there and was made very welcome. If anyone is in the area it is very well worth visiting!!!!

[Pennine MC]

Just knew whichever "Anytown" I'd use as an example would end up being wrong - perhaps to the Hull'ites more so.

 

So if you 'just knew', why not make up a name? I'm not offended K, I appreciate it was meant to be an abstract example, but really you should know that comments like this can soon become accepted as fact.

 

Tony, John - thanks for the support there, probably best we dont divert the thread any longer.

[Black Sheep]

I look in the back of Model rail magazine (other magazines are available) for exhibitions local to myself, Or information in local model shops.

 

Forgot to add,

 

I'd consider visiting a show I'd not heard about if it's local and I'm able to be there.

 

had been looking forward to maidenhead's (I'm new to the area, Wakefield was my local) but I'm no longer able to be there.

[Coombe Barton]

One thing that no one seems to have mentioned directly yet is timeliness of the advertising. Many of the successful shows (and RMweb events) confirm dates on the web just after their previous event. They may not have the detail, but it's a date in the diary, and you keep coming back to find out. I've just been looking at a show I think I'll be attending in just under six months time and there's a selection of layouts and traders, the vast majority of them having website or photographic links. This allows me to have confidence in planning my visit schedule. There are other events around that time and spacing them out is vital.

 

Conversely a similar exhibition in the same direction of travel from me, six weeks away has links to traders websites but nothing in terms of layouts other than names of layout and builder and scale. And from this I'm going to make my decision whether to attend or not? I've already had to make my decision based on my time available.

 

So with Andy Y's post about the readership of this site, people who ignore such a well informed market and/or have a "that'll do" approach to marketing their shows and ignore the web market should not in the future expect to attract the same sort of numbers, I cite here Modelling Inspiration, the various joint efforts that Andy's involved in with manufacturers and magazines. Why? Because in reading it it's something to do! It's more than just information.

 

Now a lot of shows have got it right when it comes to attracting me as a visitor - and these I'll be going to - but there's a lot that haven't.

 

And there's also SWMBO to be considered. She's happy coming to shows tthat are more local - yes, she's interested from the building and scenic part. And I can persuade her to come if I can make the prospect seem attractive. Photos online do a lot to achieve that. The benefit for the hosting club is that you''ve doubled the revenue for admissions from my presence.

[The Dorset Wanderer]

But have to add as an aside I'll never consider Hull as a city, a bit like Bournemouth, Portsmouth, Plymouth, Brighton it just doesn't feel like one (yes I have been there).

 

Bournemouth is the odd one out- not a city.

[Mod4]

Please keep this thread on topic or further posts will be deleted, it has already been established that the reference made to Hull was an unfortunate generalisation and not a direct comment about the Hull show itself.