Tradeshows are getting more expensive every year. Floor space, freight, drayage, labor, travel, hotels. The investment keeps climbing. Yet one thing hasn’t changed in decades: most exhibitors still don’t know how to produce measurable ROI from that investment.
When their results fall short, exhibitors complain, shrink their space, skip a year, question the value of the show, or quietly disappear. FACT: Organizers don’t lose events because the carpet color was wrong. They lose them because exhibitors don’t hit their numbers.
Here’s the disconnect. Organizers deliver attendees. Exhibitors expect revenue. When the revenue doesn’t materialize, frustration sets in—and the blame often lands on the show. But the uncomfortable truth is this: most exhibitors are undertrained. Especially since Covid due to company downsizing. They don’t set measurable objectives. They don’t properly prepare their booth staff. They don’t qualify leads with discipline. And they don’t execute consistent post-show follow-up. No amount of foot traffic in the aisles fixes a broken lead management process.
Some organizers will argue that, “Exhibitor success is the exhibitor’s responsibility.” Technically, that’s true. Strategically, it’s not. If exhibitor ROI drives renewals—and renewals drive floor space revenue for organizers—then exhibitor performance becomes an organizer issue whether anyone wants to admit it or not. Better exhibitors produce better show outcomes. Better outcomes drive renewals. Renewals grow the show. That’s not theory. That’s math.
If organizers want stronger retention, larger booth upgrades, and healthier long-term growth, they need better-performing exhibitors. Performance improves through structured, practical education—not motivational talks or trend reports—but real training tied to measurable results. When exhibitors win financially, organizers win strategically.
There’s also a competitive reality. If organizers don’t step into the role of training as a strategic partner in their exhibitor’s success, someone else will. And when third parties become the trusted advisor, the organizer risks being viewed as little more than a realtor and floor space provider. The stronger position is to make exhibitor success part of the show’s value proposition. In that specific regard, offering training can be included in new exhibitor acquisition.
Education and training isn’t a favor to exhibitors. It’s revenue insurance for organizers. And the shows that embrace that mindset will be the ones still growing—while others keep wondering why booth sales get harder every year.
About the Author
Richard (Rich) Erschik is a tradeshow industry veteran and pioneer known as “The Voice of Trade Show ROI.” He founded and sold a national marketing services company built on a proven post-show lead response process that bridged the gap between marketing and sales to prove ROI. After training more than 45,000 exhibitors worldwide—and speaking for 18 years at the EXHIBITOR Show—he now works exclusively with organizers to improve exhibitor performance and retention through focused education on pre-show marketing, effective booth engagement, lead qualification, and 100% post-show follow-up.
