If the only thing an attendee can do inside a booth is look around, then the exhibitor has missed opportunities to get the attendee involved with the booth staff, participating in educational opportunities, or having a path to get important items delivered to them.  Calls to action enhance attendee engagement, keep them in the booth longer and accomplish what the exhibitor values most...valuable sales leads. 

As someone who has worked closely and trained with a lot of exhibitors, I always recommend they utilize the following calls to action to boost attendee engagement, and really get the most value for their time, energy, and money.  

#1 is to unlock a show special, discount or pricing

Exhibitors should promote special pricing, discounts and create offers that attendees only get because they entered the booth AND gave their contact information to unlock the show special or pricing.  Get creative with specials to include discounts, free samples, free shipping or free trials.

#2 is to jump into a meeting lounge

All exhibitors have used video conferencing and there is no reason not to fire up a Zoom room during the event.  Keep a Zoom meeting open and invite attendees to visit with you inside your virtual meeting lounge.  Make sure to publish the hours, who they will meet, and what they will learn when the click the link to join.

#3 is to setup a meeting with booth staff

You have attendees all in one place and they have breaks between sessions creating the perfect time to make your team available for meetings.  Use the virtual booth technology to schedule meetings.  If that functionality doesn’t exist, link the attendee to your online calendar to pick a short meeting time to talk to you one of your representatives.

#4 is to provide ways to ask questions or get help

Make it easy for attendees to ask questions once they are in the booth by filling out a form or having chat available.  Consider adding an FAQ section to make it easy to get answers to the most commonly asked questions.

#5 is to attend a demo

In-booth sessions are a must-have to engage attendees.  Offer demos on new products or new features in the existing product line and remember to keep them short and focused.  Register attendees for a raffle or giveaway if they attend.

#6 is to register to win a prize or giveaway

A good percentage of attendees in a live event are attracted to exhibitors because they are raffling an iPhone, Laptop or gift certificate.  Make sure to think about a prize that motivates the attendee to give up their information to enter the drawing. Make it fun by embedding a trivia game as the barrier to entry.