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News
Trade fairs as marketing instruments Calculations recently carried out by the TNS Emnid market research company on behalf of the AUMA - Ausstellungs- und Messe-Ausschuss der Deutschen Wirtschaft (Exhibit and Fair Committee of the German Business Community) reveal that a total of 59,000 German companies are currently appearing as exhibitors at events in Germany that primarily address trade visitors. In the last survey of this type, conducted five years ago, 56,000 such companies were identified. Apparently numerous companies have discovered or re-discovered trade fairs as an effective marketing instrument.
The exhibitor range reflects the structure of the German economy as a whole and thus is characterized by small and medium-size companies. About 37 % of the exhibitors ring up turnover of less than 2.5 million euros per year and for three-quarters turnover does not exceed 50 million euros. Barely one-tenth of the exhibitors can be classed as large companies, with annual sales of more than 250 million euros. About 55 % of the companies exhibiting are involved in the manufacturing trades, 24 % offer services and 19 % are mercantile companies.
Exhibitors obviously realize that personal communications must not be reduced in one´s efforts to generate business. The positions of trade fairs in those communications continues to be strong. 83 % of the companies exhibiting feel trade fairs important or very important (81 % in the past), surpassed only by a company´s own website (90 %). Based on the exhibitor poll, the AUMA is forecasting the numbers of exhibitors at nationwide fairs in Germany to just about hold their own. The numbers of German exhibitors should be just about stable while foreign participation may well decline on an order of magnitude of about 5 %. Accordingly, the amount of floor area booked will shrink slightly. Developments in the number of visitors in 2010 are relatively difficult to estimate, given the prevailing mercurial business situation. following decliens - in some cases quite significant - in 2009, stabilization at a slightly lower level is being expected. It seems unlikely in any case that trade fair indicators will on average return into the positive range for 2010.
A study by the ifo-Institut, concluded at the beginning of October, confirmed the considerable significance of trade fairs for the German business world. Fairs trigger production effects coming to 23.5 billion euros each year and the exhibitions secure 226,000 full-time jobs. Spending by exhibitors adds up to 7.5 billion euros and expenditures by visitors come to 3.8 billion euros. This is augmented by indirect effects on almost all the industries in the German economy.
