Morgan Kagande

The boardroom debate rages on and is now getting hotter. The majority of marketers nowadays are more focused on winning exhibition awards than achieving the marketing objectives of the organisations. In so doing, the practitioners are becoming very creative in ensuring that their exhibition effort is top-notch in terms of relevance with the event theme rather than the core identity of their company.

Thus, exhibition organisers have also realised this tendency and have responded by increasing the number of categories to ensure that more participants walk away with an accolade, in a move aimed at ensuring future repeat participation. No wonder the exhibition invitations now emphasise the usual, “a platform to network and showcase your products,” as the return value to companies. In the end, exhibitions are turning out to be publicity events for businesses where they pour so much money and, in return, obtain an A4-sized certificate and a floating trophy to show for the investment.

In the boardroom, a marketer’s hands will be full, but the company’s bank balance and bottom line will be telling a different story, which is why the finance manager will be seething with rage. Marketing functions in most organisations are now the biggest cost centres for marketing activities with very little return on investments, and for this reason, there is no end in sight for the conflict between the finance and marketing departments.

It is high time marketers take deep introspection into their efforts so that they consider cost-effective and high-return programmes such as market activations, where the exchange of value takes place instantly. I have witnessed with enthusiasm how mobile service providers like Econet Wireless and Netone have converted exhibitions from merely being a platform to showcase products to becoming shops or service centres where customers can actually transact and get services during events. In such scenarios, award or no award, the marketing practitioner will walk in and out of the boardroom with their head held high because the exhibition report will be speaking the same language as that of the finance manager or better in terms of dollar value returns.

Forty percent if not more, of companies that participate in exhibitions do so merely to “showcase,” “win,” and network and rarely get a financial recovery from the investment they have put into the event. I am not advocating for not partaking in international exhibitions, but rather advising my fellow professionals in marketing departments to change the mindset and focus more on the company bottom line than merely seeking theme relevance and awards. The world of business nowadays has changed, especially in Zimbabwe, where a dollar spent by any company is hard to recover, and it takes blood and sweat for the sales team to translate it into revenue. Hence, my call is for marketers to first consider their companies’ marketing and business goals, then look into what value the exhibition brings to the bottom line and align their products and services to suit the platform so that they balance both ends.

It does not give any finance director relief that the company won the best exhibitor award at a show when there is no corresponding financial return on the investment made in participating in the event. He will continue to regard the marketing department as a money-eating machine of the company. Therefore, it is also of paramount importance to assess exhibitions to establish the ones which are more relevant to the company’s business marketing objectives so that the exhibition effort speaks to your target audience.  

Exhibitions of today should be merely outside shops for companies where it is business as usual with a captured audience, rather than a vacation for marketers to enjoy themselves while outside the office at distant venues. In the same vein, exhibition organisers also need to engage a lot with exhibitors so that they create a platform that supports companies’ marketing focus in terms of creating dollar-value spaces more than being traditional and ceremonial events for business retreats. After paying for space, I do not see why stand visitors should also be charged a premium to enter the exhibition venue because once one spends money at the gate, chances are they will spend less while inside, thereby limiting economic benefits for exhibitors to whom the visitor was likely to be a potential customer. An exhibition must benefit the exhibitor more than the organiser because they pay huge sums in stand rentals and the development of such stands. It is quite mind-boggling that because there is a musical act, gate charges will be hiked, and for exhibitors who may want to interact with potential customers, that on its own is restrictive already. Those entertainment acts actually benefit visitors more than they do businesses.

Basic questions marketers need to be asked when planning to participate in an exhibition include: What are the marketing goals for the company? What is the theme of the show? How can the theme resonate with our goals? Who are our potential clients from such an event? What is the call to action to stand visitors that can bring financial value to the company?

By so doing, marketers can align the exhibition to the company objectives while at the same time understanding the theme for the show without overlooking the other. In identifying the audience, you come up with specific tactics that create rapport with the potential clients that you are targeting rather than adopting a one-size-fits-all approach. Networking today has to be meaningful and fruitful.  It should not just be mere socialising. So to my fellow marketers, let us be wary of such when invited to exhibit. Let us prioritise our marketing objectives and targets as well as the company’s bottom line ahead of exhibition awards.

• Morgan Kagande is a seasoned marketing practitioner, public relations expert, and big data analyst with a decade of experience. He has worked extensively in real estate, retail, and transport services sectors across both government and private sectors. He holds a Master of International Relations degree and is a certified digital marketer. Morgan has completed a basic Russian language course from St. Petersburg State University in Russia. He can be contacted on: morgankagande@gmail.com.