Mastering Effective Communication at Greentech Events: Strategies for Success

Read here how to best present yourself at events so that your messages stick and inspire change. 

June 2023 was marked by many high-profile events, especially in the greentech industry. These included the Greentech Festival, Intersolar and Ecosummit. If you want to create impact, you need to inspire and motivate your audience to move from talk to action. But how do you manage to stay in the memory with your messages and initiate change with so many impressions and conversations?

Refine Your Core Messages:

Whether it's a keynote, a panel, a deep dive, or a conversation at the trade show booth: All of these are opportunities to convey your core messages, your business model, and your solution approaches in a short amount of time. The great thing is that the audience usually doesn't need to be convinced, as they have already arrived with a certain level of interest. At the same time, however, all event visitors are bombarded with a lot of impressions in a short period of time. Here it is important to make the best possible use of the time in order to stand out from the masses at the trade fair. It is therefore advisable to be aware of your own core messages once again. Can the business model be presented in a comprehensible way in one minute and does this also highlight the special nature of the approach? What three things should the audience remember? Ask yourselves: If someone in the audience - or in the best case a journalist - wants to write down a quote from a panel or your keynote or even use it for an article: What would it be? 

Doing this homework beforehand is incredibly important and should not be underestimated. It's best if the key messages are targeted to the different audiences: Journalist:s, Investor:s, Business Partner:s or Service Provider:s - depending on the setup of the presentation.

Storytelling is key

Giving a keynote, sitting on a panel or running a booth is only half the battle. If you really want to make a difference, you should harness the power of emotion and storytelling. With an authentic short story that fits the topic, a completely different connection can be made with the audience. A story or even personal impressions make the presenter more approachable, they make the audience think and at best create an "aha experience". Questions such as "what would you have done?" or "how would you have decided?" help to establish a connection with the audience and make the story more real.  

It is good if the example is retold: "x told on stage that ..." - if the contribution is carried on in this way and the conversation becomes one at the food stand, that's worth its weight in gold! 

Such a story or a lecture does not fall from the sky, of course. That's why the same applies here: Preparation is king. Get your communications experts on board. The effort is worth it in any case. 

Tip: Test your story beforehand with colleagues from the communications department or family and friends. Will what you want to say really get across?

Know your audience: Ask questions!

Especially when talking at the booth, it is important to quickly find out who your counterpart is. A consumer with a private interest? A possible business partner? An investor or a service provider? The sooner you find out, the better you can effectively manage your communication. Looking at the name badge makes many people uncomfortable, so ask who your counterpart is and what brings him or her to you. It is best if you can then individually target your core messages to your counterpart. 

Unfortunately, trade show booth conversations often degenerate into monologues. Here, too, the rule is: use questions to enter into a dialog. That way, everyone quickly knows where they stand and the conversation can be steered along an efficient path. It also doesn't hurt to solicit feedback. Inquire: What do you think, does it convince you? Where do you see critical points? All these questions help to understand the target group and their perspective even better. And in the end, it also adds variety to the conversations.

Use cases: Highlight your impact

Greentech solutions aim to combine impact and business. The community strives to make a contribution to reducing CO₂ emissions, conserving resources, rethinking mobility, energy consumption, nutrition or coexistence, and implementing the sustainability-related areas of responsibility of companies in the fields of environment, social affairs and governance, or ESG for short. Many talk, many want. A real differentiator is to show what successes have already been achieved. Implementation examples or calculations that make clear how much CO₂ has been saved or resources conserved are trumps. The more concrete, the better. These successes are more inspiring than mere theory, so show your successes.

Visibility with a purpose 

We all know the cliché of the blue middle class suit with white sneakers. After all, clichés don't come from nowhere. To make an impression among thousands of people, it may be wise to start with your clothing and your company branding as well. Brand your booth and your colleagues so that you stand out in the crowd. Even a ballpoint pen does not have to be a ballpoint pen. If it has to be merch (sustainably produced and durable, of course), think about what really fits the company - or come up with a story that will stick. 

Trade shows are a big investment: not only in terms of money, but also in terms of time and capacity. So make the most of the opportunity. With these tips, you will definitely be one step ahead of your competitors.