| The question is often raised as to whether or not realtors can profit from attending the various trade shows. This depends largely on what one means by profit here. If by profit one means that he or she is placing before a highly-targeted consumer audience his or her services and/or products with the goal of conversions in mind, then no it isn’t profitable. And this is so in that the trade shows tend to be vendor oriented as opposed to consumer oriented.
However, the trade shows can be profitable to the realtor in numerous other ways. Such venues are an excellent means for one to establish his or her personal brand and to develop marketing networks. The trade shows also give one the opportunity to see what the current marketing trends are country-wide as well as what the future seems to hold with regard to the market trends. It also, and this is of utmost importance, allows one the chance to see exactly what the competition is up to.
By means of networking the tradeshows, one can ask questions of those working from within the same or similar niche, see what is working for others as well as what is not, obtain fresh ideas, share your own ideas, and so forth. One can form alliances with others who may share an area of niche overlap such that one can refer to the other when he/she himself/herself cannot meet a particular need (such referral networks increase one’s own value in the marketplace). It is also possible to form client-oriented networks with other vendors and service providers that would benefit all involved (you the realtor, mortgage brokers, moving companies, appraisers, etc.)
The realtor can also obtain more market-specific professional education at such venues as education tends to be a common theme. And the more knowledge one has the more valuable he or she will be to their customers. Unfortunately, many realtors neglect such trade shows and miss out on the valuable education offered and thus will, sadly, result in the underserving of their clientele.
As there are many such trade shows, however, one should research them all carefully before planning to attend. The trade show should have something to offer the realtor that will be of a benefit to his or her own particular niche market. As such events tend to be costly (costing from $100s to $1000s of dollars to attend when one factors in the cost of the show itself with travel, lodging and other expenses) this research should be thorough. This is extremely important as this is an investment and one wants to ensure a substantial return on such an investment.
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