Do you remember all the hype about that movie "The Blair Witch Project"? There was some great buzz generated and it turned into a cash cow for the movie studio and creators. Creating a buzz about your product or program can be sometimes hard to do, but with a little work it will pay off big time. Buzz is what helped Hotmail gain over 12 million subscribers in 18 months!

Why is it so powerful? We have a need to share information. People are more likely to get interested in something by word of mouth instead of marketed by a company. We do it all the time on the boards, people ask us our opinions all the time about certain products and we will react by judging others comments.

Here are just a few ways to help you create a buzz in your company offerings.

Brainstorm all possible groups of people who might be interested in your products/services. Consider including the media, opinion leaders, influencers, lead users, etc. Don’t forget chat rooms and newsgroups although buzz still spreads primarily by personal interaction.

Research how information spreads among your customers. Ask them how they usually learn about new products/services. Who are their major information sources? Who’s information do they value? You’re primarily looking for groups of people rather than individuals.

Use as many ways to spread the word as possible. Never rely on just one means of connecting with you target audience. Your credibility is enhanced through different marketing mediums. For example, exhibit marketing could include pre-show advertising, at-show sponsorship and post-show, a trade publication article. The more ways people can hear and see you the better.

Offer prospects easy ways to try your product/service. The tradeshow floor presents excellent opportunities for this.

Come up with other creative ideas to enhance tradeshow show demonstrations. What can you give people to take away to remind them of your company, products and positive show experience. Think about something that will help create the buzz. It’ll have to be more creative than a keychain or stress ball. The more product-related the better. You want people to remember and talk about you – positively!