Case Study: Exhibition Success with Personalised Pre-Event Mailers

Exhibitions are expensive. Stand costs, staffing, travel, accommodation, branded materials, the bill adds up fast. Yet many exhibitors treat pre-event marketing as an afterthought, relying on the organiser’s generic attendee emails and hoping people stumble past their booth.

This case study reveals a smarter approach. A Sussex-based B2B software company used Variable Data Printing to create personalised pre-event mailers that transformed their exhibition ROI, driving qualified booth traffic, pre-booked meetings, and measurable sales pipeline, all from a print campaign that cost less than their stand carpet.

The Challenge: Standing Out at a Crowded Trade Show

The client, a cloud-based project management software provider, had booked a mid-sized stand at a major construction industry trade show in London. Expected attendance: 8,000 people over three days. Competitor stands: 15 direct rivals, all fighting for the same buyers.

The challenge was clear. How do you ensure the right people visit your stand when thousands are wandering the halls, most with no idea who you are?

Generic approaches were not going to cut it. A social media post gets lost in feeds. An email blast disappears into crowded inboxes. A last-minute LinkedIn message feels desperate. They needed something that would break through the noise, feel personal, and create genuine intent to visit.

Print Lord proposed a targeted VDP campaign: personalised mailers sent to a curated list of high-value prospects and existing customers attending the event.

The Strategy: Personalised Pre-Event Mailers That Demand Attention

Working with the client’s marketing team, Print Lord designed a campaign built around relevance, urgency, and exclusivity.

Step One: Identifying the Right Recipients

The client pulled together a list of 350 contacts: prospects who matched their ideal customer profile, lapsed customers who had not renewed, and active customers they wanted to upsell. Each contact had confirmed attendance at the show, either through LinkedIn activity, event registrations, or direct conversations.

Step Two: Personalising the Message and Design

Each mailer included:

• – **Recipient’s name and company**, prominently featured in the headline and body copy
• **A personalised message** acknowledging their attendance at the show and inviting them to the stand
• **A unique stand map** showing the exact location of the booth relative to the main entrances and key attractions
• **A personalised QR code** linking to a landing page where recipients could book a meeting time, avoiding queues and guaranteeing dedicated attention
• **A tailored offer** based on recipient type: prospects received a demo incentive, lapsed customers got a win-back offer, existing customers were invited to an exclusive product preview

The design was clean, professional, and tactile. Printed on premium stock with spot UV finish on the logo and QR code, the piece felt like an invitation, not junk mail.

Step Three: Timing the Send

Mailers were posted ten days before the event, timed to arrive on desks whilst the show was top of mind but before attendees finalised their schedules. A follow-up email was sent three days later to those who scanned the QR code but had not yet booked a meeting.

The Execution: Print Lord’s Role

Print Lord handled the entire VDP setup, from data file preparation to print production and postal fulfilment.

The client provided a spreadsheet with names, companies, addresses, recipient type (prospect, lapsed, or active customer), and preferred contact details. Print Lord cleaned the data, set up the variable rules for messaging and QR codes, generated unique landing page URLs for tracking, and produced proof samples showing different recipient variations.

Once approved, the full run was printed, finished, and posted within five working days. Every piece was checked for accuracy, every QR code tested, every address verified.

No technical headaches. No design chaos. Just a seamless, professional campaign delivered on time.

The Results: Measurable Success Across Every Metric

The numbers speak for themselves.

Response Rate: 42% of recipients scanned the QR code to view the landing page. Of those, 28% booked a meeting slot in advance.

Booth Traffic: Over the three days, 97 of the 350 recipients visited the stand. Of those, 68 had pre-booked meetings, meaning the team could focus on meaningful conversations rather than chasing passersby.

Lead Quality: Sales teams rated the quality of leads from the VDP campaign as significantly higher than walk-up traffic. Pre-event engagement meant visitors arrived informed, interested, and ready to discuss specifics.

Pipeline Impact: Within 30 days of the event, the campaign generated £240,000 in qualified sales pipeline. Three deals closed within 90 days, totalling £78,000 in revenue.

Cost per Lead: Total campaign cost, including design, print, postage, and landing page setup, came to £1,850. Cost per engaged lead: £19. Cost per meeting booked: £18.90. Cost per closed deal: £616.

Compare that to the cost of the stand itself (£12,000) or the cost of acquiring similar leads through digital advertising, and the ROI becomes undeniable.

Why This Campaign Worked

Several factors combined to deliver exceptional results.

Personalisation Created Relevance: Every recipient felt the mailer was created specifically for them, not mass produced. The use of names, company references, and tailored offers made the message impossible to ignore.

Tangibility Cut Through Digital Noise: In the weeks leading up to the event, attendees were bombarded with digital marketing. A physical, high-quality mailer stood out precisely because it was different.

The Stand Map Added Practical Value: Including a personalised map was not just a gimmick. It removed friction, making it easier for recipients to find the booth and reinforcing the message that the company wanted to make their visit effortless.

QR Codes Enabled Tracking and Follow-Up: Each unique QR code allowed the client to track who engaged, when, and from where. This data informed follow-up strategies and helped the sales team prioritise conversations.

Pre-Booked Meetings Improved Conversion: Walk-up traffic at exhibitions is unpredictable. Pre-booked meetings ensured the sales team could prepare, research each visitor, and deliver tailored pitches that converted at far higher rates.

Timing Was Precise: Sending mailers ten days before the event hit the sweet spot. Too early and people forget. Too late and schedules are locked. The timing created urgency without pressure.

Lessons for Other Exhibitors

This case study offers clear takeaways for any business investing in exhibitions or trade shows.

Do not rely on event organisers alone. Their generic emails are not enough to drive traffic to your stand. Take control of your own pre-event marketing.

Target strategically, not broadly. A highly personalised campaign to 350 ideal prospects outperforms a generic blast to 5,000 random attendees.

Make booking easy. QR codes, landing pages, and calendar links remove friction and increase conversions.

Use print to stand out. Everyone else is doing digital. Personalised print creates differentiation and commands attention.

Track everything. Variable QR codes and landing pages turn print into a measurable channel, giving you data to optimise future campaigns.

Follow up fast. The campaign does not end when the mailer arrives. Email and phone follow-up to engaged recipients multiplies results.

How Print Lord Makes VDP Campaigns Simple

This level of personalisation might sound complex, but Print Lord handles the technical heavy lifting.

You provide the data and goals. Print Lord sets up the variable rules, generates unique QR codes, designs the layout, produces the print, and manages fulfilment. You approve samples, then sit back whilst the campaign goes live.

No specialist software. No data nightmares. No production delays. Just results.

Whether you are exhibiting at a trade show, hosting a conference, launching a product, or running a customer reactivation campaign, VDP transforms how you connect with your audience.

Ready to Make Your Next Exhibition Count?

Exhibitions are expensive. Wasting that investment on poor pre-event marketing is costly and avoidable.

Personalised pre-event mailers, powered by Variable Data Printing, turn exhibitions from expensive gambles into predictable, profitable marketing channels. You control who visits, when they visit, and what conversations happen.

This case study is not an outlier. It is what happens when you treat print as a strategic, data-driven marketing tool rather than an afterthought.

If you are planning an exhibition, trade show, or industry event, Print Lord can design, print, and deliver a VDP campaign that drives booth traffic, pre-books meetings, and generates measurable ROI.

Want to replicate these results for your business? Print Lord can set it up for you. Get in touch at printlord.co.uk, and let’s make your next event a success.

Print Lord. At your service. On brand. On time.