Advice Needed Facebook or Forums or Expo?

[kjd]

Originally Posted by mexham

Where and how do you make your money? Through selling advertisements on your website? I didn't see any products for sale there..

If so I'd be more focused on getting people to your website than Facebook. It's nice to have the 'likes' but don't get too fixated on that, particularly when Facebook doesn't bring in any income.

You are right mexham, I make money via advertising.

I understand what you are saying about facebook. I post a link to every article on facebook and facebook is by far and away the biggest traffic referrer I have.

People see an article they are interested on facebook and click the link. Which is why I am thinking of investing more money in facebook as it does help our traffic dramatically. Its not about the 'likes' but more of getting our content in their fb feeds.

Infotainer,

That's where I have a lot of trouble, my customers are both my site readers and advertisers.. Only one of them pays however but I can attract more advertisers with higher traffic to my site.

[The Infotainer]

you probably wont need to exhibit to gain benefit from the expo

I assume the exhibitors are your customers

so with that in mind

work out a deal in advance 20% off your advertising (or whatever)

get your hit statistics (how many people look at your site per month) and also if possible catergory statistics- how many people serach for shotguns v's how many people search for bullets (you know your industry better than me) and this will alllow better sales to advertisers,

1: you could sell to the at the stand - always pick a dead part of the show
2: wait till the end as guests are leaving and bring a few mates to leave brochures at their stand after day 1, so in the morning they come in and see your advert- you would want to make this an offer they can't refuse
3; go through the exhibitor list and call to make appointments with exhibitors at the show in the cafe, tell them you'll buy them a coffee (or if the advertising costs alot buy them lunch) and this would be ar cheaper than having a stand you chat and eat at the same time.

realisticly a trade show will set you back

$3K space
3 banners $700
or a portable display = $2000
brochures

not really worth it, best to set appointments with potential advertisers, and possibly arrange sponsorship not of the expo because that will cost a small fortune (10K) but with one of the exhibitors providing them with premium advertising space on front page for some exposure at the show- a small area of a larger stand.

The first year you consider exhibiting- don't exhibit- first go to the show and see what it's like, if it's all seminars then don't exhibit, if no one is walking through the isles- don't exhibit, check it out first and if your happy- exhibit the next year

[Steve_Minshall]

First off: great post Welzman on trade shows, very insightful.

Although I found myself agreeing with Mexham about where you were 'aiming your rifle'.

Your product is eye balls on your website from a specific market that you can then sell to advertisers. You are not selling friends on FB

FB gets traffic that is great but don't lengthen the funnel by directing traffic to it in the hope it will continue on to your web site. You should be adding different ways in to your website and widening your funnel.

Do you have a separate budget for actually getting customers (advertisers) or are you hoping that if you build it they will come?

The forum sounds good value and at $500 for a year I reckon worth an experiment. However, I would be making enquiries about buying it and incorporating it into your own website that is what you need to get real traffic. Look at Flyingsolo as a blueprint, they have nailed what you are trying to do within a different interest group.