The trade fair 4.0 solution with pocket booth – pandemic-ready
Published on: December 9, 2021 / Update from: April 12, 2022 - Author: Konrad Wolfenstein
Trade fair solution 4.0 with Pocket Booth – Image: Vuframe
We have been struggling with the corona pandemic and its effects for almost 2 years now. There is currently no end in sight. The hope that the crisis will not last and will pass has long since given way to disillusionment.
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In the area of trade fairs and events, there was hope for a short time that trade fair operations could be resumed regularly with security concepts developed. With the Omicron variant of the corona pandemic, this is now completely in question again. In many companies, budgets have already been planned for next year. With great hopes of presenting ourselves at trade fairs again and informing and winning over potential customers. There is now great fear that many important trade fairs will be canceled again for the third year in a row.
And just like every year in management, the question arises as to what the ROI (return of investment) or the benefits of such trade fairs and events actually are? Is it worth it or is it just “throwing money out the window”? Many people are almost forced to analyze the effects of the canceled trade fairs from the last two years and answer the question for themselves.
In addition to observing the competition, it is also about positioning in the market. A trade fair is the ideal stage to present new products. After every trade fair, due to insufficient verifiability, the question remains as to whether the new contacts gained and the incoming feedback reach the right places and are adequately looked after. Do you know the problem?
Thanks to digitalization, many areas of industry, trade and commerce were able to react very quickly to the changes caused by the corona pandemic.
Examples include the shift of work to the home office area and the previously common business meetings worldwide, which have largely found a very good replacement through the use of video calls. While these services had a shadowy existence before the Corona pandemic, this has now completely changed with Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Zoom and a few others. They have become an integral part of digital communication.
However, there is still a big question mark about how to proceed with trade fairs and events. In an internal study commissioned by the customer, it was analyzed that products and services for strategic orientations, trade fairs and events remain important, especially for consulting-intensive products and services.
Survey: How are trade fairs used in your company’s B-to-B communication?
How are trade fairs used in your company's B-to-B communication? – Image: Xpert.Digital
This survey shows how trade fairs are used in B2B communication by exhibiting companies. Around 22 percent of the companies surveyed in November 2019 stated that they see trade fairs as a supplement to other tools in their marketing communication.
This question was asked in the survey as follows: “In addition to the question about the importance of the individual instruments, we would like to know from you what position you see trade fairs in compared to other instruments in your marketing communication.
Which statement do you agree with?
- For us, trade fairs are at the center of our marketing communication.
- For us, trade fairs are on the same level as other instruments and are used in parallel.
- For us, trade fairs complement the use of more important instruments.”
Use of trade fairs in the B2B communication of exhibiting companies in 2019
- As a central instrument – 22%
- As a complement to other instruments – 50%
- Equal ranking to other instruments – 28%
Survey on the importance of trade fairs in the next five years
Survey on the importance of trade fairs in the next five years 2020 - Image: Xpert.Digital
This statistic shows the results of a survey on the future importance of trade fairs in companies' marketing mix over the next five years. Around 59 percent of the companies surveyed in November 2019 stated that, in their view, the importance of trade fairs will remain constant over the next five years.
How will the importance of trade fair participation in your company's marketing mix develop over the next 5 years?
Importance will increase
- October 2010 – 13%
- November 2012 – 13%
- November 2014 – 10%
- October 2016 – 11%
- November 2017 – 12%
- October/November 2018 – 9%
- November 2019 – 8%
Meaning will remain constant
- October 2010 – 68%
- November 2012 – 64%
- November 2014 – 64%
- October 2016 – 66%
- November 2017 – 65%
- October/November 2018 – 65%
- November 2019 – 59%
Importance becomes less
- October 2010 – 15%
- November 2012 – 20%
- November 2014 – 23%
- October 2016 – 22%
- November 2017 – 20%
- October/November 2018 – 24%
- November 2019 – 30%
Survey on the development of trade fair participation by German companies
Survey on the development of trade fair participation by German companies – Image: Xpert.Digital
These statistics show a survey on the development of trade fair participation by German exhibiting companies. A total of 14 percent of the companies surveyed in November 2019 stated that they were planning more trade fair participation domestically for 2020/2021.
Will your company's participation in trade fairs increase, stay the same or decrease in 2018/2019 or 2019/2020?
inland
- More investments – 14%
- Equal number of investments – 61%
- Fewer investments – 22%
Abroad
- More investments – 11%
- Equal number of investments – 72%
- Fewer investments – 16%
Another important aspect is that despite researching product details online, a final decision is not possible due to inadequate product descriptions and images.
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The fact that potential customers agree to take the time and make the effort to come to the trade fair shows that there is not only great interest here, but that goals are being pursued, which provides the trade fair exhibitor with an ideal starting point and conditions .
However, the latter proves to be a very difficult hurdle. On the one hand, the competition is in the same hall, but on the other hand, the hustle and bustle and noise at the trade fair are not ideal conditions for winning over interested customers in the last few meters.
The study also showed that trade fair visitors and trade fair exhibitors do not recognize any major differences between the exhibitors. At large trade fair stands, the company's self-presentation dominates; at smaller stands, there is no clear added value or difference to the product information from brochures and the Internet, except that a contact person can be found directly on site. In general, the trade fairs are the same from year to year. Sometimes the mottos created for the trade fair are perceived as forced or a makeshift and many supposed novelties then disappear into nowhere. The problem with large companies is that their impressive product portfolio cannot be physically represented at the trade fair. Either the available trade fair space is too small or the trade fair space actually required is not available at all. The price also plays a very important role here. It is precisely this balancing act and the question between costs and benefits that keeps coming up.
With Pocket-Booth comes a solution that seems paradoxical at first glance. A trade fair stand from your pocket that can be used anywhere and immediately is like a premature April Fool's joke. The fact that it is also supposed to solve the problems described arouses mistrust, but also arouses curiosity!
Explaining and telling someone what weightlessness feels like to someone who hasn't experienced it themselves is difficult. We have already seen and read a lot about it, but we can still only imagine the beginnings of weightlessness.
I have a similar experience when I try to explain the trade fair concept 4.0 with Pocket Booth to someone. Describing and imagining it is not difficult. But the emotions that come with it, the enthusiasm and the WOW effect actually outshine anything we've seen and experienced at trade fairs so far.
The technology with augmented reality on tablets and virtual reality with special VR glasses has already been seen occasionally at various trade fairs. The fact that it has not yet become established is mainly due to the complexity of the technology and, essentially, the costs. Up to 80,000 euros were not uncommon for an impressive implementation. Follow-up costs were inevitable because technical changes to the devices and technology are normal and the content therefore had to be adjusted accordingly. Consequently, constant support from the external agency in charge was also necessary, which once again drove up costs. For these reasons alone, she was unable to establish a sustainable and permanently integrated trade fair concept. Likewise, it was previously hardly possible to provide product models at the trade fair via the Internet at the same time. The immense data required for 3D visualization could hardly be compressed to a minimum size for the website. In addition, there was no data protection for the technical details.
All the problems and features described are only a small part of what Pocket Booth implements and solves perfectly overall.
Pocket Booth is the most comprehensive and well-thought-out digitalization of trade fair appearances to date
The 3D visualization of the products creates space for product presentations and their solutions. The flexible and mobile application options of Pocket Booth open up new forms of communication with potential customers. Almost anytime and anywhere. No matter where. In the lobby around the corner, when visiting customers or as a valuable extension at conventional trade fair events.
Pocket Booth can be used almost anywhere. Ready for use in any situation within seconds.
You could also call it a trade fair-to-go, event touch point or mobile trade fair stand, but none of these descriptions can reflect the functionalities and possible uses, which initially seems so inconspicuous.
What makes Pocket Booth so powerful?
Pocket Booth – The next generation trade fair solution – Image: Vuframe
- Pocket Booth is part of the product photo 4.0 technology , in which you can present all your products as lifelike 3D models. The exhibition space is infinite.
- All 3D models are protected. This means that these cannot be copied by third parties.
- Pocket Booth uses a self-developed data reduction technology for 3-D visualizations that are lossless to the human eye and can even be used for websites. Up to 97% is possible!
- Pocket Booth uses a content management system in which you can centrally upload content or 3-D data in various formats. The system itself takes care of the rest. The product models are accessible to all devices. Be it via VR glasses, tablet, smartphone or even PC. It's that easy. You do not need any engineering knowledge or anything similar to manage the content and data.
- Interesting tracking data, follow-ups and CRM integration are possible.
- Pocket Booth is a simple, easy-to-use and intuitive complete system that not only gets the most out of your trade fair appearance, but also opens the door to further creative possibilities for trade fair design. It can also be used for comparatively small events.
Not all possibilities and forms of customer contact have been considered yet. It's more than just trade fairs and events.
This means that quasi-spontaneous events in small groups (corona-compliant) are possible. Similar to what we know or have heard from Tupper parties.
Your sales department can also use it to impress customers on-site in a flexible and spontaneous manner.
Pocket Booth is the ideal communication bridge from a simple informational conversation (look what I have there, see what it looks like) to intensive solution discussions (this is what it would look like to solve your problem).
Far away from the hustle and bustle of the trade fair and the noise, with this trade fair presence from your pocket you can calmly explain everything to customers in an individual conversation and convince them with quasi-realistic 3-D scenarios and models, which you can convey to the customer using VR glasses, among other things. To integrate references, you no longer have to travel with the potential customer to the location of the property; you can go through and look at possible solutions and products with the customer in the virtual world.
More about it here:
- Vuframe: Present your products digitally, interactively and
virtually everywhere - platform for 3D, augmented reality and virtual reality in the company - Pocket Booth™ – your trade fair appearance from your pocket
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Konrad Wolfenstein
I would be happy to serve as your personal Pocket Booth consultant.
You can contact me by filling out the contact form below or simply call me on +49 89 89 674 804 (Munich) .
I'm looking forward to our joint project.
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Xpert.Digital – Konrad Wolfenstein
Xpert.Digital is a hub for industry with a focus on digitalization, mechanical engineering, logistics/intralogistics and photovoltaics.
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