Word on the Street — June 22nd thru June 26th

Trade Show Blog

Word on the Street by Kevin Carty

Word on the Street by Kevin Carty

What’s Your Value Proposition?

This was a frequent topic of conversation this week as I traveled. Both in my meetings and in a conversation with the person sitting next to me on my flight back to Portland.

Wikipedia defines Value Proposition as: “A Value Proposition consists of the sum total of benefits which a vendor promises that a customer will receive in return for the customer’s associated payment (or other value-transfer).”

Whether you are a manufacturer trying to secure a new distributor relationship or a distributor trying to sell a new exhibit, your Value Proposition is often one of the most important deciding factors whether a customer decides to do business with you.

It does not have to be one product, one service, or one quality. As a matter of fact, it should consist of several attributes and qualities. At Classic, we try to live by several that make up what I believe is the Classic Value Proposition.

Here are two examples:

1. The first is simple and many of you have heard me say it many times, “We do what others are unwilling or unable to do.” A great example of this is how we approach our CNC metal bending process. Our competitors generally shy away from bending aluminum extrusions along the “hard edge.” A good example can be seen in the VK-1043 Magellan Hybrid Display. Often, kits like this are born from projects that came to us because an existing provider could not or would not produce the unit the way the client wanted. I am proud to say this is how we have attracted so many new Classic Distributors.

2. The second is equally important, Our Customer Service Philosophy. At just 15, I started working for Nordstorms as a stock boy. You may not all be familiar with Nordstroms. It’s a department store chain, based in Seattle, that has locations in many major U.S. cities. The renowned Nordstoms’ Customer Service Philosophy was impressed on me at a very early age. The Nordstroms Way, a book by Robert Spector and Patrick McCarthy, quotes James Nordstroms, prior to his death in 1996, telling his eventual successors, “Continue to think long-term. If we give a better value today, five years from today we will be a better company.” It sounds easy enough, and it is, if you view service “as an act of faith!” I encourage you to read the book and discover what I learned by working at this remarkable company.

These are just two of the Value Propositions at Classic. I plan to explore others in in the weeks ahead. Are these two set in stone? Yes . . . but others are not. As a company and as a team, we need to be flexible to meet the needs of our customers.

How about you? What are the core attributes that create your Value Proposition? Excluding things like your stunning good looks, great sense of humor, and expense account, why do customers do business with you? I look forward to hearing from you.

Be Well!

–Kevin Carty
https://twitter.com/kevin_carty
https://www.linkedin.com/pub/kevin-carty/3/800/32a

Filter by Category

Filter by Year

Recent Posts

The Complete Guide to Trade Show Services (Offsite & Onsite)

Onsite trade show services include all services available at the show site. Contractors typically provide these services for show management. Turnkey services are particularly valuable for first-time exhibitors, companies with limited internal resources, or those participating in numerous shows where efficiency and consistency are paramount.

What You Should Know about Trade Show Exhibit Budgeting

Companies should define a workable exhibit marketing budget, one that includes all related costs. However, the line between marketing expenses and exhibit marketing expenses can be somewhat fuzzy. You will want to create a well-defined budget that separates them.

The Top 10 Design Mistakes of Trade Show Graphics

You decided on your new trade show display . . . but you’re not done yet. Now, it’s time to design the graphics. You want AMAZING!. Below are 10 tips to consider when designing your next trade show graphics.

If Puppies Ran Trade Shows and Events

The following are 11 reasons why our lives would be better if puppies ran trade shows and events. To the ferret, goldfish, and lizard owners, you’re on your own.

If Kittens Ran Trade Shows and Events

If kittens ran trade shows and events, experience would be respected, every booth would have toys, two hours naps would be mandatory, and everyone would be cute and adorable. And we would all trust our instincts.

Baseball Terms for the Trade Show Industry

Baseball season is upon us once again. That means it’s time to refresh yourself with our BASEBALL TERMS – CLASSIC STYLE! Whichever team you root for please keep in mind these three non-bendable rules:

“I’ll Know It When I See It” — Every Designer’s Nightmare

For Exhibit and Graphic Designers, delivering a design that meets all the client’s needs — functionally, aesthetically, and fiscally — is the ultimate goal. But . . . that doesn’t mean the process is always flawless. Here are a few “Design Red Flags” from a Designer’s perspective which can delay the process (and increase your design fees).

What You Should Know as a New Exhibit Buyer

For the sake of simplicity, let’s assume that exhibit marketing is a new experience. Exhibit marketing is certainly not rocket science. You don’t need a marketing degree to be successful at exhibit marketing. However, it helps to get advice so you make the right decisions.

10 Tips for Designing Large Format Graphics for Trade Shows

Most designers rarely design a layout larger than a corporate booklet or perhaps a 20″ x 30″ poster. Designing for large format, like trade show graphics, is actually quite simple once you know the basic steps. All it takes is a leap of faith… and trust in my advice.

Trade Shows and the Desire to Change

Are trade shows are relevant? Is there a future for industry trade shows? Are companies willing to spend their valuable marketing dollars building a temporary structure just to attract new customers or meet with existing ones?

Buying a Trade Show Exhibit? Ten “Must Ask” Questions

It’s common to express remorse after a big ticket purchase. Typically when the purchase is infrequent, such as a home, car, or expensive equipment. Buying a trade show exhibit is that type of purchase, especially an inline or island exhibit for a large trade show. .

An Honest Conversation about Trade Show Rentals

Recently, what I thought would be a simple, straight-forward conversation left me scratching my head. I was meeting with exhibit industry colleagues, and the topic turned to rentals. Admittedly, rentals shouldn’t be puzzling. Rentals have exploded at a rate 3 to 4 times faster than exhibit purchases. What surprised me was the perception and the language used to define the exhibit rental landscape.

What’s Your Trade Show Kryptonite?

We shouldn’t but we do. We hope hope hope that the next attendee who walks in our booth is Superman. Not Superman Superman, but the sales equivalent of Superman. Faster to sign a contract than a speeding bullet. More powerful than the VP of Purchasing.

How To Make Your Trade Show Backdrop Stand Out!

Many exhibitors assume a backdrop is a simple two-dimensional graphic along the backwall of an exhibit. But it can be so much more. A backdrop in a 10 x 10 or 10 x 20 booth space doesn’t have to be basic. Modern inline displays come in various shapes, heights, and configurations.