Industrial Trade Shows: A Review of What We Know

Industrial trade shows are the second most widely used promotional tool in the marketing mix for industrial firms, ranking after personal selling but well a head of advertising and direct mail. Use of this medium continues to grow in number of shows, number of companies exhibiting, and dollars spent by vendors. Yet, with few exceptions, little research has been performed on trade shows. This paper reports results of a study, discusses the value of trade shows to an industrial firm’s performance, and offers recommendations.