Did you listen to the webinar How to ‘Get to Know’ Your Audience - Building Target Personas by The International Center for Exhibitor and Event Marketing?  It was good - and I am giving you my two cents on this webinar from a trade show marketing perspective:

Basically, the webinar focused on building a better connection with your target audience no matter what you are doing.  My twist (since that is our focus) is on trade show events.  Do you really know who the attendees are at each show and who you really want as a prospect?  If not, you SHOULD!

During the discussion, the speaker provided some tools to collect information about your audience to build a target personas to identify the type of person you WANT to attract to your trade show booth:

1.  Go through your customer database and develop a "typical" customer including title, geography, industry, etc. 

2.  Conduct some market research.  Go to the show page and obtain a profile on their typically attendee.  Understand WHO is coming to the show and figure out WHY.

3.  Meet with your customers (or talk to them on the phone) and identify what keeps them up at night - what are their goals and objectives for attending a particular trade show event.  Are they going? If so – why?

After you do this - right a summary that describes that perfect attendee to your trade show booth and then match your messaging at the event to their needs/wants and objectives.

Then Viola!  A great show!