Global Exhibitions Day is 3 June 2020

GLOBAL EXHIBITIONS DAY

Global Exhibitions Day (GED) is 3 June 2020. GED is the exhibition industry’s largest day of awareness and advocacy, held annually on the first Wednesday of June since 2016. GED is supported and promoted by 41 industry associations, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry (UFI) and their members around the world.

Global Exhibitions Day this year will focus on the message: Exhibitions are key to rebuilding economies. The message concentrates on the idea of connecting, reconnecting, starting and rebuilding communities and economies. Face-to-face exhibitions are the fastest way to reconnect with your marketplace, and that the connections made at exhibitions will lead to the renewal of our economy.

GED 2020 is a unification of the industry, an occasion to share hope and optimism, and a focus on the important role of exhibitions in reconnecting and rebuilding communities and economies.

“In the spirit of creating an opportunity out of a crisis, I challenge all of us to promote our industry at every opportunity and to ensure that everyone knows the role we play in an economic recovery. The first opportunity to do that is on 3 June — Global Exhibitions Day!” UFI President Mary Larkin said.

To get involved in the celebration of GED, visit globalexhibitionsday.org, where you will find GED messages, visuals, infographics, logos and other information.

HOW EXHIBITIONS CONTRIBUTE TO YOUR BUSINESS

* Exhibitions are a very versatile, multi-purpose marketing tool. They reflect a particular market in a particular location at a particular moment, bringing together suppliers, buyers and professionals. Seasoned exhibitors say that profitability of the investments resulted from a successful exhibition is difficult and often impossible to compare with those resulted from other marketing tools.

* They allow you to meet potential customers, become a person they recognize and want to keep in touch with. Talking by phone is half as effective.

* They allow you to meet existing customers face-to-face. Although most of today’s business is conducted via a mailbox or phone, face-to-face meetings are undeniably effective.

* Exhibition is a place where customers can meet you to share their long-term plans and make large orders, which can be extremely beneficial to you as an exhibitor.

* Exhibition a place for businesses to announce and showcase their latest innovations that can have a major impact on the entire industry.

"I do not believe you can do today’s job with yesterday’s methods and be in business tomorrow" (Nelson Jackson).

"Innovation is the specific instrument of entrepreneurship, the act that endows resources with a new capacity to create wealth" (Peter Drucker).

* They allow you to learn about brand new solutions and opportunities they create. Invite your colleagues to exhibitions and attend presentations together to keep up with new technologies, methods and trends in the industry.

"Modern business requires that its salesmen be businessmen in the best sense of the word – men who know the ins and outs of the product or service they are selling... men who can make an intelligent and effective presentation… and most of all, men who have the modern concept of service to the cust" (Hugh W. Coburn).

* Exhibition is one of the few business environments where you have the same access to potential customers as your competitors.

"Hold your customers close but your competitors closer"

* They allow you to observe what your competitors are doing right, and apply their tactics to your own business. Is there a particular competitor that seems to be growing rapidly? While your team uses the exhibition as an opportunity to meet existing customers and get across to potential ones, spend time looking at other exhibitors to see what they are doing differently.

* Exhibition is one of the best ways to learn about competitors, understand their pricing and sales strategies, and the reasons for their success.

* Exhibitions provide you with feedback that contributes to expand and improvement of your business. An excellent way to get feedback is to conduct a short poll at your stand and reward the polled people with gifts.