One of the best ways to give your business a boost at the start of its life is to host a public event. Showing your face (and your product or service) in public is a fantastic way to get some early exposure. Be it attending a trade show, visiting an exhibition or making an appearance at a local mall, make sure you’re using public events to your advantage. To give you some starting ideas here’s some handy advice.

Don’t make the mistake of showing up with nothing

Sure, you might be a startup with limited funds and a cracking idea, but there’s no point showing up to an event just to let people know you exist. It feels like a cry for recognition and more often than not it’ll backfire on you. Make sure you turn up to an event with your product in hand, samples to give out and business cards to distribute. If you turn up with just a great idea and nothing to show for it, then you’ll just be laughed at and made fun of.

Ensure your staff are well-equipped

You need to take some staff with you to help you promote your ideas and product, but you can’t make the mistake of attending without being prepared. Make sure you print out name badges for your staff so they’re easily recognisable and so your visitors can talk to them more comfortably. Ensure they have business cards to hand out and ample knowledge about your product so that they can converse with people and lure them into your business. They should also practice their communication skills if they haven’t already. Public events are fantastic networking opportunities, and it makes sense to speak to as many people as possible.

Prepare contact information

One of the common marketing mistakes people make at events is using placeholder contact information. Make sure your website design is finalised and that it as all of the relevant information about your business on its pages. Don’t neglect the importance of giving a proper contact number or email to the customers.

Produce sample products

Though it might cost a bit of money to produce samples, you need to prepare them so that you have something to hand out to the event attendees. Try to gauge interest on social media before you attend the event so you have a rough estimate of how many you need to produce. If you’re setting up your own public event at a location such as a mall or a busy street, then pick a date that matches a holiday to get the most attention. No one wants to produce samples that won’t be handed out, so it’s always better to have less and efficiently use your budget than produce too many and run out of cash.

Don’t forget to network

As the business owner, you should be the one initiating conversations with people, not waiting for them to come to you. Speak to as many people as possible and try to scout out the competition and other businesses that you could strike deals with. Get to know your surroundings and the industry and you’ll find it becomes far easier to run a business.