Improve Your Exhibiting Skills (IYES): An International Labor Organization (ILO) Training Guide
The IYES training guide was created by the ILO to facilitate women micro-entrepreneurs’ participation in and success at trade fairs and exhibitions. The training is designed to be implemented by NGOs, government support agencies, women's entrepreneur associations, and trade and industry associations. Training sessions should be offered to groups of 20-25 women who run small- or medium-sized enterprises, including informal-economy participants.
The training guide helps improve women's success at trade fairs in three main ways:
- Trade fair participation;
- Trade fair facilitation; and
- Trade fair evaluation and follow-up.
These training materials have been adapted for use by the ILO in Indonesia and are available in English as well as the Bahasa language.
- Session 1: Introduction, Collecting Baseline Information and Conducting Personal Entrepreneurial Assessments
In the opening session, participants will undertake a number of introductory activities to help prepare them for the course. They will list the types of products they plan to bring to the trade fair, provide information on their personal entrepreneurial profiles, businesses, and products; and test their entrepreneurial capacities.
- Session 2: Identifying Market Access Constraints For Women Micro-entrepreneurs
Session 2 focuses on market constraints facing women entrepreneurs (WE). In this session participants will identify key gender-related constraints and make a list of ideas for overcoming such restraints.
- Session 3: Developing and Adapting Your Marketing Strategy to a Trade Fair
In Session 3, participants will learn how to best market their products at trade fairs. They will be asked to develop an overall marketing and promotion strategy, describe how trade fairs can fit into that strategy, and decide which trade fairs would best complement this strategy.
- Session 4: Setting Focused Objectives for Trade Fair Participation
Session 4 is about trade fair objectives. Participants will be asked to identify the difference between sales and communication-related objectives as well as to set reasonable goals for their participation in an upcoming trade fair.
- Session 5: Improving Your Product Design and Development Skills
In Session 5, participants will describe three of their proposed products and explain the market need for these products. They will then be asked to come up with ideas and strategies for improving these products.
- Session 6: Costing and Pricing Your Products
The activities in Session 6 relate to cost and pricing. Participants will be asked to perform several activities relating to accurately gauging the cost of their goods. They will then attempt to price one of their products, begin setting promotional prices for the trade fair, and prepare a price list and attractive price tags for their items.
- Session 7: Preparing for, and Getting the Most from, Trade Fairs
Session 7 focuses on trade fair promotions. Participants will undertake activities that help them set a promotional theme for the fair, list promotional activities they plan to use, and identify appropriate occasions for distributing promotional materials.
- Session 8: Getting a Suitable Site, Designing and Decorating your Stand, and Preparing your Display
Session 8 entails preparing participants for designing and decorating their trade fair stand. They will be asked to identify a secure site where they can set up their stand; brainstorm decoration, model, and demonstration ideas; and practice stand decoration and display.
- Session 9: Managing Your Stand During the Trade Fair
The focus of Section 9 is on effectively managing time with potential customers at the trade fair. Participants will learn effective phrases and methods for enticing onlookers and quickly disengaging with certain visitors.
- Session 10: Recording Your Trade Fair Participation
In Session 10, participants will identify methods for creating a Business Contacts Form and filling out Daily Sales Records. They will also become familiar with the exhibitors’ section of the Daily Record Form.
- Session 11: Evaluating Your Trade Fair Participation
The activities in Session 11 are aimed at urging participants to evaluate their trade fair participation. They will list five reasons for evaluating their own participation as well as learn three tools for performing such evaluations.
- Session 12: Your Own Market Access Network
In Session 12, the participants will define the characteristics of a successful women entrepreneurs network, identify the benefits and risks of keeping such a network, and decide on ways to form and strengthen each other’s networks.
