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TRADE SHOWS: DRESS TO IMPRESS?

Trade shows attract everyone in the industry, from presidents to product managers, from buyers to board chairmen, and from senior VPs to sales staffers.

Whether you are wandering the exposition hall or working a booth, you will undoubtedly meet many people for the first time each day of the trade show. Every handshake may be an opportunity to make a first impression, to promote your company's products or services or to forge lifelong career networking connections.

TRADE SHOW STYLE & PROFESSIONALISM

Exhibitor or attendee, as you dress for the trade show, you will want to ask yourself a few key questions

PROVOCATIVE OR PROFESSIONAL?

Does your trade show outfit draw attention to you as a qualified and capable professional, or merely as a sex symbol?

Certainly, everyone wants to appear attractive, but sultry and seductive have no place at a trade show, unless you are one of the scantily clad models hired to promote a product. Everyone else aims to look professional at a trade show.

Dressing provocatively, rather than professionally, can surely backfire at a trade show. For example, at the automotive trade show, you do not want to look like a hired model. If you dress like one of the hood ornaments, you cannot expect marketers or attendees to take you seriously.

Exhibitionism is inappropriate in the trade show exhibition hall.

NEAT AND CLEAN?

Is your trade show attire clean, neat, pressed and in good repair? Even at the tractor trade show, attendees don presentable business casual wear. Torn jeans, tattered hemlines, sagging cuffs, stained sleeves or collar, wrinkled jackets and other slipshod fashions are simply inappropriate for trade show attendees and exhibitors.

APPROPRIATE TRADE SHOW APPAREL

Do your trade show clothing choices appear business-appropriate? Baggy trousers, low-riding pants, too-trendy styles and oversized tops speak volumes about the wearer. Well-tailored outfits present well and reflect favorably upon the wearer at a trade show, as at the office. Exposed chest or midriffs are fine for the beach, but not for a business setting, such as the trade show floor. Miniskirts may be fun for dates, picnics and other social occasions, but they have no place at a trade show.

TRADE SHOW CLASS

Consider your career goals, as you dress for a trade show. What would you wear to a job interview or client presentation? Aim for the same level of class and cleanliness for the trade show.

A trade show offers an excellent opportunity for professional

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