One of the biggest technology-oriented trade shows, CES, is only a few months away. Are you ready?
At this point in the year, you should be starting to solidify your CES goals, messaging and planning to ensure a successful presence at this renowned consumer conference. Listed below are a few additional helpful hints to guide you through the CES home stretch.
Don’t overlook the PR golden nuggets
CES has a number of PR-related opportunities for vendors. From press conferences to product showcases, if you’re exhibiting at CES, make sure to review all of the CES e-newsletters that are beginning to flood your inbox. Each holds a number of valuable PR opportunities that you need to take advantage of quickly before others beat you to the punch.
Lock down your messaging early
By now, your overarching messaging themes for CES should be complete. Getting an early start on your messaging plans for CES allows you to spend the next few months creating and fine-tuning your press release, press list, pitch and other key messaging materials. Also, keep in mind that there will ALWAYS be last minute issues, questions and/or opportunities that arise and need your attention and precious time. If your messaging is ready to go, then you’ll have the time to focus on these additional items.
An organized and detailed CES briefing book can save your life (or at least your meetings)
Large conferences have a tendency to be quite overwhelming and the time can slip away from you. A clean, yet detailed briefing book will help you and your spokesperson stay organized, informed and punctual to all in-person press briefings. This is also a very busy conference for press; so don’t forget to send email reminders to all your contacts that have confirmed meetings with you. Sure, you’ve sent them a calendar invite, but it never hurts to send a “friendly reminder” email that morning to guarantee they don’t have an excuse to forget about you or the meeting.
Post-CES – there’s more to do!
Once CES is over, you might want to relax and kick up your sore feet…but your work as a PR professional is not over yet. One of the most important parts of pitching CES is the email follow-ups, post-conference. This is your opportunity to secure a phone briefing with press contacts that were too busy to commit to a meeting during the conference. You’ll also run into many writers that prefer not to fill up their calendars with meetings during the conference. The best time to catch them is right after the conference ends, when they’re working on their post-CES write-ups.
Did you miss CES helpful hints, part 1? Please click here.