Motivations and Performance of Exhibitors:An Exploratory Study of a Destination Marketing Event

The tourism industry is going through challenging times. Innovative marketing tools are required to promote business for the firm and the destination. Trade shows have proved to be a successful destination promotion tool and is increasingly forming part of the marketing strategies in the tourism industry. The purpose of this empirical study is to identify the motivations and outcomes (trade show performance) of a destination trade show from the perspective of one of the main participants of a destination trade show i.e.exhibition attendees. Systematic sampling survey method was used during a destination trade show, Kerala Travel Mart, (KTM) 2012. Giving information on products emerged as the main motivation and developing and maintaining relationships as the second main motivation of exhibitors. Projecting an image of being a strong and solid company and fostering relationships are perceived as the most important outcomes for exhibitors. So it is evident that KTM has been a success as KTM has achieved one of the main motivations - building relationships. For quality of trade shows, quality of service and the competence of the organizers and staff were ranked the highest, followed by choice of venue.The managerial implications of these findings for destination managers, exhibition organizers and exhibitors are discussed in detail.