Exhibitions offer the opportunity to do more than display a product and talk to current customers. Some trade shows have expanded into large venues for greater exposure and networking to strengthen awareness and relationships with partners.
IMTS in Chicago has transformed into such an exhibition. This year, the show took place between September 10 – 15.
For the Dormer Pramet team, the six-day event was successful not only because of the record quantity of sales leads generated on the show floor, but also because our team members were active in various networking programs throughout the week.
Our team took advantage of the large attendance to celebrate Precision Twist Drill’s 66th birthday with a celebration on Tuesday, September 11. The booth was packed from 3pm – 5pm with customers, distributors and partners toasting 66 years of High Speed Steel leadership with our PTD brand of cutting tools. I was honored at the brand loyalty of booth visitors who said that they would never use a HSS drill other than a Precision Twist Drill.
On Wednesday (September 12) morning, Dan Murrell (National Sales Manager, Canada), Russ Reinhart (National Sales Manager, US), Rafael Isaias (National Sales Manager, Mexico), Stefan Steenstrup (President, Dormer Pramet) and myself woke up bright and early to run in the Miles for Manufacturing (www.imts.com/show/5kRun.html) race which raised more than $60,000 for area middle, high and technical schools promoting careers in manufacturing.
During the week, our team also supported strategic distributors at their events. Fastenal had their after-hour Baseball Bash on Wednesday evening at Wrigley Field and, as a prime vendor to Fastenal, Dormer Pramet and our product brands had optimal visibility to Fastenal employees and customers.
What the show and these events highlight is that by leveraging activities off the exhibition floor, we can strengthen sales and increase brand awareness.
Brian Norris
President
Dormer Pramet North America
