From the Small Business Administration

Trade shows are designed to let entrepreneurs meet many potential customers face-to-face in a brief period of time inexpensively. According to the Trade Show Bureau, more than 4,300 were held nationwide in 1994, attracting 85 million visitors.

Trade shows help level the playing field for smaller firms, since booth space is generally inexpensive ($13 per square foot on average, with the typical small booth covering 100 square feet), and even small companies can usually afford attractive displays. With creative marketing and booth design, small businesses can actually appear as substantial as much larger corporations.

The Trade Show Bureau reports that of the firms exhibiting at business-to-business shows, 44% have fewer than 50 employees. Sophisticated exhibitors do well at trade shows no matter what their size, while the naive and inexperienced can waste thousands of dollars and countless hours - and possibly do more harm than good. Using trade shows effectively takes only a little effort and planning.