How to Stand Out in A Sea of Booths

The Trade Show. A massive room filled with hundreds of booths, all wanting to lure in the same passers-by.

Most booths are using the same old methods they always have: the freebies, candy, “try our product!” to nab attention. There are trinkets everywhere. By the end of the day all you see is a glazed look on attendees’ faces as they attempt to find the exit (and preferably the nearest bar).

There’s something missing from this scenario. Something that can set you up for authentic connections and hook your potential clients.

Here’s the secret: people don’t just want a sales pitch, they want to be heard. They are yearning for genuine human connection in a sea of people trying to get their business.

Secret Part Deux? You can have it all: listening to your customers, interactive and engaging displays, freebies, and authentic human connection.

All you have to do is partner with a graphic recorder.

I love chatting with attendees, asking for their ideas, and seeing them light up as they watch their story come to life. Then they want a photo with their drawing, which is the perfect opportunity to ask them to tag the business I am working for when they share it on social media. Boom.

Bonus: Major human connection opportunities, and if you play your cards right, you can get valuable market research data collected in real-time.

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers, Karina

Heading to a trade show next year? Let’s make a plan to help you stand out in a sea of booths!

Yes!

Where in the World is ConverSketch?

New Orleans with LeadingAge

I spent last weekend outside the National WWII Museum gathering stories about how visitors wanted their lives to be when they got older. From "no regrets" to "aging like a fine wine", I captured visual stories over the two days!

Nashville with Gates

Today I'm headed to Nashville to do some more story capturing for Gates. We haven't started yet, but here's a snippet from work I did with them earlier this fall!

An artist, a scientist and an entrepreneur walk into a bar…

Hello!

Thanks to everyone who shared feedback on my last email. Based on what I heard, this week I’ll return to your regularly scheduled insights & drawing tips. My goal with these emails is to equip you with tools to spark ideas and creativity, so as always, if there are things you’d like to hear about or have been yearning to draw, please let me know!

When was the last time you laughed? Almost certainly it was with other people, and likely not even at a joke. It turns out that laughter is something we as humans use to bond with each other, rather than something we learn. This means it’s actually an instinct, and one that makes us feel closer with one another. Plus, it helps relieve stress and often improves your mood.

So, laughter can help us build great teams. But let’s be real here. Laughter isn’t something you can manufacture or fake, we know when it’s not genuine.

How can you create a space that inspires more laughs, and therefore more synergy between you and your team?

Try adopting a playful mentality. One way to cultivate this is with doodles and drawings. Approaching things from a place of playful curiosity tends to lead to a more optimistic and laughter-prone conversation.  The next time you find yourself tensing up and getting ready to defend something, see if you can take a moment, relax your shoulders, and ask yourself if you could take a more playful approach.

“Smile. It makes people wonder what you’re up to.” - Anonymous
 

View fullsize

Once again, thank you from my heart and soul for your support, great senses of humor, brilliant minds, collaboration and what you're each doing to make the world a better place.

Cheers, Karina



You've got the team, I've got the markers. Click to get in touch about your next meeting or event that could use a touch of visual storytelling humor & magic.
 

Where in the World is ConverSketch

View fullsize

Research in Action! Last week I got to graphic record stories and insights from researchers at CU Anschutz Medical Campus who had spent a week immersed in two communities around Denver. They built relationships and heard needs and perspectives from people in historically underprivileged groups about how medical research could be better done and shared in their neighborhoods.