Trade Show Entertainment
Author: Kim Wist
Trade shows offer a different but very interesting venue for
various entertainment artists. Because people move around and
performances are very seldom arranged at specific times, a
performer’s main job is usually to attract and keep customers by
the stand.
However, a skillful performer can attract a big group at the
same time and develop a good overall feeling about the company
he’s working for. I often found that some people don’t come
immediately to visit the stand after the performance, but
interest is awakened and they come later the same day.
As a magician I have worked on many trade show events and found
different ways to promote the client and their products. Magic
is good because people are generally very interested in it and I
have found that the company message is easy to deliver disguised
in a magic trick. The magic performed can use the company name
or product, thus linking the sales message with magic itself.
Different attraction methods has been used by companies;
musicians, jugglers, loud sound effects and even theater but
nothing works better than a seasoned performer who can gather
big crowds in minutes. As in street magic, we need sound, color
and movement to attract attention, it is a good idea to work on
a slightly elevated stand from time to time, but once some
onlookers are attracted, the interest is developed and more will
come.
Once the customers are around the stand, the sales staff has a
better chance to move in on them. This is why magic is good,
because it can hold peoples interest for many minutes and those
few minutes might be the difference between a sales person
making a contact or not.
I have had special cards printed with the company’s logo and
message printed on the other side. When doing a card trick I
make a visual card change in the customers hand and give the
changed card as a souvenir to keep. This is very strong, because
first of all the customer has an object to keep that changed in
his hands impossibly and he will show it to others and tell them
the story. The others will hear where this happened; the company
name and the magicians name get free promotion. If he tells this
story to his mates at the trade show café, one simple card trick
can attract many more free customers per day to the stand. This
is the power of good magic!
A magician at a trade show stand can create a much more
memorable image of the company than a standard, often boring
stand could ever do. Many trade shows stands are uninspiring,
except to those particularly interested in the product. People
walk around and see the same type of stands over and over again,
and we need something to really awaken their interest, get them
to stop, wake up from their day dreaming state and visit this
interesting stand. Using a magician as an attraction creates a
different image and can easily make this company stand out from
the others offering the same product or services. It also makes
you memorable, and sometimes at trade shows this is all you
seek.
The best way to do this, for me as a magician, is to use close
up magic and impromptu stand up performances by the stand. I
might start slowly with close up and get some people interested
and then slowly turn it to a more public performance. For the
stand up shows, I use a wireless microphone, some colorful items
in the beginning that change fast and some custom build sound
effects in between effects. Humor is also very important, and
once a good crowd is gathered, the important message is simple
to deliver. If done correctly and professionally customers will
remember this company and they get many new potential clients.
About the author:
Kim Wist is a professional magician and one of the most
successful performers in Finland, web site: Kim Wist
