Trade show marketing checklist (pre-show, show week, post-show)

Short answer: Run trade show marketing on a 90/60/30/7 pre-show calendar, a daily show-week block (posts, DMs, landing-page traffic, CRM notes), and a post-show day 0–14 follow-up schedule — outreach, content, landing page, LinkedIn, capture fields, and nurture only. Booth freight, travel, and layout belong on the separate 90/60/30 exhibitor ops checklist, not this page.

When I audit exhibitor folders before a Tier A fair, marketing tasks are rarely missing — they are scattered. Sales sends one hook in email, marketing schedules a different LinkedIn graphic, and the landing page goes live after outreach already started. I built this checklist after pairing dozens of show briefs with our 15-minute content batch workflow: one phased marketing timeline with checkboxes you can paste into the show plan. Confirm the fair scores on ICP fit via ExhibitionsVoice at 90 days — no checklist saves marketing hours on the wrong show.

Marketing checklist vs full exhibitor ops

This page is marketing only: who you reach, what you publish, where meetings book, how leads are tagged, and when follow-up sends. It deliberately excludes freight deadlines, hotel blocks, booth layout proofs, and staff dry runs — those milestones live on our first-time exhibitor checklist.

I see teams merge both lists and then skip landing-page QA because "we were busy with crates." Split the documents. Marketing owns this checklist; operations owns the other. Both reference the same demo hook and meeting windows so copy stays aligned.

90 days out — strategy, tier, and outreach lists

Ninety days is when marketing earns pipeline, not when graphics go to print. Check each box before moving to 60-day asset work:

• ☐ Confirm show tier (A/B/C) and rebook vs test-show decision for 2026
• ☐ Shortlist the fair on ExhibitionsVoice; verify ICP buyer density vs calendar alternatives
• ☐ Build ICP attendee and account outreach list — CRM owner named, not "the team"
• ☐ Lock one demo hook and two bookable meeting windows; ban channel-specific rewrites
• ☐ Assign marketing RACI: founder posts, company page, AE connection/DM quotas
• ☐ Define post-show asset library (case study, one-pager, recording) before anyone writes copy

Tier C fairs get a shortened list — one save-the-date, targeted DMs, no full landing-page build. Tier A gets every checkbox. Score tier before you commit calendar slots.

60 days out — content batch, landing page, capture schema

Sixty days is asset production, not outreach launch. Marketing should finish the infrastructure warm accounts will hit at 30 days:

• ☐ Fill the 12-field show brief; run the 15-minute content batch (four LinkedIn posts, two email snippets, three booth-day posts, recap outline)
• ☐ Publish pre-show landing page — one headline, one demo hook, booking link, privacy line per our landing page playbook
• ☐ Set UTM parameters per channel (LinkedIn, email, QR) and confirm analytics ownership
• ☐ Load email snippets into CRM with personalization tokens for line one only
• ☐ Schedule LinkedIn 30/14/7 posts with named owners per LinkedIn strategy guide
• ☐ Define CRM capture fields: tier tag, booth note hook, show source, consent timestamp
• ☐ Pre-write booth-day captions in a shared doc accessible on the show floor

If the landing page is still a wireframe at 30 days, delay outreach — sending traffic to a TBD URL burns list quality.

30 days out — launch outreach and QA

Thirty days is when outbound starts. Every channel should pull the same hook from the show brief:

• ☐ Send pre-show email invites to warm CRM accounts — reference demo hook and both meeting windows
• ☐ Launch LinkedIn 30-day founder post and begin tier-scaled connection requests
• ☐ QA landing page on mobile: load time, booking link, form fields, privacy/consent line
• ☐ Test UTM links from email draft; confirm events fire in analytics
• ☐ Assign post-show CRM owners by tier (hot AE, warm SDR, cold marketing nurture) — before travel, not Monday after
• ☐ Align capture workflow with marketing tags so follow-up tier is set on the floor

7 days out — booth number and final wave

• ☐ Publish booth number and aisle landmark in all scheduled posts and email footers
• ☐ Send LinkedIn 7-day post with both meeting windows; sales sends final DM wave to warm accounts
• ☐ Run 15-minute daily commenting block on sales calendars for show week
• ☐ Confirm post-show asset files are uploaded and link-ready for day 1 warm sends
• ☐ Print one-page marketing RACI for the booth lead — who posts, who logs notes, who alerts hot leads

Show week — daily marketing tasks

Repeat this block each hall day. Two social touches maximum; the rest is outreach and capture discipline:

• ☐ Morning: doors-open post — booth number, demo time today, demo hook (founder account)
• ☐ Midday: proof moment — 30-second clip or buyer quote with permission; tag show once
• ☐ 15-min block: comment on attendee travel/arrival posts — value only, no pitch in threads
• ☐ AE wave: connection requests and book-a-slot DMs to warm accounts who have not stopped by
• ☐ Landing page check: confirm UTM traffic; fix broken booking links before afternoon rush
• ☐ End of day: CRM notes and tier tags within 30 minutes of last conversation — hook in buyer's words
• ☐ Hot alert: any hot-tier lead without same-day outbound flagged to AE before venue close

Company page posts staff carousel on day one; partner reshare mid-week if applicable. Founder drives meetings; company page supports brand search — same split as the LinkedIn strategy guide.

Post-show days 0–14 — marketing handoff to pipeline

Post-show marketing is timing, not a single blast email. Use this checkbox overlay on the full day 0–14 follow-up timeline:

• ☐ Day 0: hot leads — personal outreach within four hours; marketing ops confirms tier tags complete
• ☐ Day 1: warm leads — promised post-show asset send; marketing verifies link and tracking
• ☐ Day 2: cold tier — marketing nurture sequence email 1 live; no AE manual blast to every scan
• ☐ Days 3–7: escalation rules active — alternate channel for silent warm; manager visibility on silent hot
• ☐ Day 3–5: LinkedIn recap post from show brief bullets — same demo hook, no new writing
• ☐ Day 14: debrief — reply rate by tier, meetings booked, pipeline influenced; marketing vs sales RACI review

Marketing owns cold nurture and recap content; sales owns hot and warm personalization. Blurring ownership is how Thursday hot leads die in a Monday queue.

Tier-scaled marketing effort (quick reference)

Phase	Tier A	Tier B	Tier C
90-day lists	Full ICP list + partner co-marketing	CRM warm accounts only	10–15 target DMs
60-day assets	Landing page + full content batch	Landing page or booking link	Email snippet + one LinkedIn post
30-day outreach	Email + LinkedIn full cadence	Email + 14/7 LinkedIn	7-day save-the-date only
Show week	Daily block every hall day	Days 1–2 full; day 3 recap	One doors-open post
Post-show	Full day 0–14 calendar	Hot/warm through day 7	Debrief only; skip cold blast

Scale effort to tier before you scale spend. A Tier C test fair validates ICP fit — not every checkbox on this page.

FAQ

What should be on a trade show marketing checklist?

Pre-show outreach lists, one demo hook across all channels, landing page and UTM setup, LinkedIn and email cadence, show-week daily posts and DMs, CRM capture fields with tier tags, and a post-show day 0–14 follow-up calendar. Exclude booth freight, travel, layout, and staff training — those belong on the exhibitor ops checklist.

When should you start trade show marketing before the show?

At 90 days confirm tier and build ICP outreach lists. At 60 days batch content and publish the landing page. At 30 days launch email invites and LinkedIn cadence. At 7 days add booth number and meeting windows to every live asset.

What is the difference between a marketing checklist and an exhibitor checklist?

A marketing checklist covers who you reach, what you publish, where meetings book, and how follow-up sends. A full exhibitor checklist adds logistics — booth space, freight, hotels, layout proofs, and staff dry runs. Use both documents; do not merge them into one list that ops and marketing both ignore.

What marketing tasks should exhibitors do 30 days before a trade show?

Send pre-show invites to warm CRM accounts, launch the LinkedIn 30-day post and connection wave, QA the landing page on mobile, test UTM tracking, assign post-show CRM owners by tier, and confirm capture fields load tier tags before doors open.

What should exhibitors post on LinkedIn during trade show week?

Each hall day: morning doors-open post with booth number and demo time, midday proof clip or permitted buyer quote, plus a 15-minute commenting block on attendee posts. Founder account for reach; company page for staff carousel. Cap at two posts per day — quality and meeting bookings beat volume.

How do you follow up after a trade show marketing campaign?

Run the day 0–14 tier calendar: hot leads same day within four hours, warm asset on day 1, cold nurture starting day 2, escalation days 3–7 for non-replies, LinkedIn recap days 3–5, and a day 14 debrief on pipeline influenced. Assign CRM owners before travel home — not after baggage claim.

Marketing checklist vs full exhibitor ops

This page covers outreach, content, landing pages, LinkedIn, capture fields, and follow-up SLAs only. Booth logistics, freight, travel, and staff training live in the 90/60/30 exhibitor checklist.

90 days out — strategy and lists

• ☐ Confirm show tier; shortlist on ExhibitionsVoice
• ☐ Build ICP attendee/outreach list with CRM owner
• ☐ Set one demo hook and two meeting windows for all channels
• ☐ Assign marketing RACI (founder, company page, AE outreach)

60 days out — assets and landing page

• ☐ Run 15-minute content batch from show brief
• ☐ Publish pre-show landing page with UTM plan
• ☐ Load email snippets and LinkedIn 30/14/7 calendar
• ☐ Define CRM capture fields and tier tags

See content batching guide and landing page playbook.

30 and 7 days out — launch outreach

• ☐ Send pre-show invites to warm CRM accounts
• ☐ Launch LinkedIn 30/14/7 cadence per tier quota
• ☐ QA landing page on mobile; test booking link
• ☐ 7 days: booth number + meeting slots in all copy

LinkedIn detail: LinkedIn strategy guide.

Show week — daily marketing tasks

Daily checkbox block: morning doors-open post, midday proof clip, AE connection/DM wave, landing page traffic check, end-of-day CRM notes and tier tags.

Post-show days 0–14

Day 0 hot outreach, day 1 warm asset, day 2 cold nurture, days 3–7 escalation, day 14 debrief — full calendar in follow-up timeline.

Common exhibitor questions

What should be on a trade show marketing checklist?

A marketing checklist covers pre-show outreach lists, one demo hook across channels, landing page and UTM setup, LinkedIn and email cadence, show-week daily posts, CRM capture fields, and a post-show day 0–14 follow-up calendar — not booth freight, travel, or layout tasks.

When should you start trade show marketing before the show?

Start at 90 days with tier confirmation and ICP outreach lists. At 60 days batch content and publish the landing page. At 30 days launch email invites and LinkedIn cadence. At 7 days publish booth number and meeting windows in every channel.

What is the difference between a marketing checklist and an exhibitor checklist?

A marketing checklist covers outreach, content, landing pages, social, capture, and follow-up. A full exhibitor checklist adds booth logistics — freight, hotels, layout, staff training, and dry runs. Use both; do not merge them into one undifferentiated list.

What marketing tasks should exhibitors do 30 days before a trade show?

Send pre-show email invites to warm CRM accounts, launch the LinkedIn 30/14/7 cadence, QA the landing page on mobile, confirm UTM tracking, and verify CRM tier tags and capture fields are loaded before doors open.

What should exhibitors post on LinkedIn during trade show week?

Daily minimum: morning doors-open post with booth number and demo time, midday proof clip or buyer quote (with permission), and a 15-minute commenting block on attendee posts. Founder account for reach; company page for staff carousel — per the LinkedIn strategy cadence.

How do you follow up after a trade show marketing campaign?

Run a day 0–14 tier calendar: hot leads same day within four hours, warm asset on day 1, cold nurture starting day 2, escalation days 3–7, and a day 14 debrief tied to pipeline influenced — with CRM owners assigned before travel home.

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