PaperTube Trade Show Geofencing Strategy
Overview
During the March 2026 marketing review, Asymmetric proposed a geofencing ad strategy to help PaperTube capture trade show audiences without incurring booth costs. PaperTube attends 3–4 trade shows per year in a "walking" format — a rep (Amy) networks the floor and collects business cards — but has never run concurrent paid media to amplify that presence.
The immediate context was Natural Products Expo West (Anaheim), where Amy generated ~40–50 leads. The next near-term opportunity identified was a show at McCormick Place (Chicago).
See also: [1] | [2]
The Problem
PaperTube participates in trade shows by walking the floor rather than exhibiting, which is significantly cheaper but limits reach. The sales rep's personal outreach cadence (sample kits, emails, phone calls) is the primary follow-up mechanism for leads collected. There is no paid media layer to:
- Build brand awareness with attendees before or during the show
- Reinforce the rep's outreach with additional touchpoints post-show
- Reach exhibitors or attendees who weren't personally contacted
Proposed Geofencing Approach
Platform
Meta (Facebook/Instagram) is the recommended primary platform. Attendees tend to scroll Instagram and Facebook during slow periods at shows, making Meta well-suited for in-event reach. Google geofencing is also viable.
Ad Set Structure (Two-Layer)
| Ad Set | Targeting | Timing |
|---|---|---|
| City-wide | Target persona (job title, industry) across the full metro area | Before and during the show |
| Geofenced | Anyone within ~1-mile radius of the event center | During show dates only |
The city-wide set captures attendees before they arrive; the geofenced set hits them while they're on-site and most contextually receptive.
Creative Direction
When PaperTube has a booth presence in the future, ads can drive traffic directly to the booth (e.g., "Visit us at Booth #X"). In the current walking format, ads should focus on brand awareness and a soft CTA (e.g., landing page with a quote form or sample kit request).
Exhibitor List Strategy
PaperTube has access to the Natural Products Expo West conference brochure listing all exhibiting companies. This list can be used for:
- LinkedIn: Company-level targeting is native to the platform — upload the list directly.
- Meta/Google: Requires contact-level data (names + emails). Options include data enrichment to pull contacts per company, or matching against the ~50 specific contacts Amy collected with business cards.
Note: Enriched contacts may not be the same individuals who attended the show, but they represent the right companies and personas for targeting.
Post-Show Lead Nurturing via Ads
For the ~50 specific contacts Amy collected at Natural Products Expo West, Asymmetric proposed augmenting her personal outreach cadence with paid ads:
- Remarketing: Serve ads directly to the contact list on Meta and/or Google to reinforce email and phone outreach.
- Lookalike audiences: Meta can build a lookalike audience from the contact list to expand reach to similar prospects.
The goal is to increase touchpoints without stepping on Amy's personal outreach. The rule of thumb cited: ~7 interactions before a prospect reliably recognizes a brand.
Action Items (from March 2026 meeting)
- [ ] Karly Oykhman — Send Parag geofencing overview; evaluate McCormick Place as a pilot opportunity
- [ ] Parag — Send Karly/Sebastian the exhibitor brochure from Natural Products Expo West + the ~50 specific Amy contacts
- [ ] Karly/Sebastian — Develop a formal ad plan using the exhibitor list and contact list once received
- [ ] Parag — Resolve Meta Business Manager access so Asymmetric can execute Meta campaigns
Open Questions
- McCormick pilot: Will PaperTube greenlight a geofencing test for the upcoming Chicago show? Decision pending Parag reviewing the geofencing overview Karly will send.
- Meta access: Parag needs to complete the second admin approval in Meta Business Manager before any Meta campaigns can launch.
- Booth vs. walking format: Geofencing creative strategy differs depending on whether PaperTube has a booth. Worth establishing a standard playbook for each scenario.
Related Notes
- [3] — Source meeting
- [4] — Parallel ABM email strategy discussed in the same meeting
- [5] — General remarketing approach referenced by Sebastian