Summary: Explore five of the top remaining 2025 trade shows to boost brand exposure, generate leads, and forge partnerships—essential for maximizing your company’s presence in the evolving trade show landscape.
Trade shows hold immense opportunities for businesses both small and large. The ability to promote directly to would-be partners, customers, and beyond is more valuable than any grand marketing promotion you could ever plan.
But with so many trade shows on the books every year, it can become hard to decide where to spend your time. But noodle no further! Imprint Engine has a diverse list of trade shows in 2025 that are worth your time and your budget!
Table of Contents
- Why attend trade shows in 2025?
- Key trends shaping trade show events in 2025
- Top 4 best trade shows to attend this year
- Choosing the right trade show for your brand
- Pro tips for getting the most out of 2025 trade shows
Why Attend Trade Shows in 2025?
Some of us enjoy getting out of our houses (and our comfort zones) more than others, but there are numerous perks of attending 2025 trade shows beyond spending a few days outside of your routine. The format of these events is evolving quickly, so it’s important to keep up with what all the hype is about.
In-Person Benefit
In this post-digital boom we’re experiencing, in-person trade shows are more important than ever before. 90% of expo attendees have not met face-to-face with any companies exhibiting at the show in the 12 months prior to the event, so attending in-person is a great way to quickly build a stronger rapport. Plus, you can get instant feedback and immediate responses from potential customers or partners.
Brand Exposure
The best trade shows are the kind that amplify your brand. Whether you’re exhibiting or attending to learn and network, trade shows are powerful tools to establish your presence and introduce yourself to new audiences. (Make sure your brand consistency is dialed before showing it off to the world! Here’s how Imprint Engine can help.)
Lead Generation
Trade shows allow you to thoroughly demo and showcase your products or services to the right people. Industry-related networking events often attract those who are already willing to make purchase decisions and are open to new business relationships. Beyond your product or service, come prepared with unique branded event merchandise that will make your interactions unforgettable!
Relationship & Partnership Opportunities
A brand conference is a great place for forging new relationships and exploring potential partnership opportunities. Conferences are packed with networking events where face-to-face interactions make connection much more attainable, and you’ll get the opportunity to strengthen existing relationships with the clients you typically only speak with virtually.
Key Trends Shaping Trade Show Events in 2025
2025 is the year of digital integration, immersive experiences, AI-powered solutions, and sustainability. These are just a few of the many trends to look for this year. Trade show events are moving beyond traditional booths to create engaging experiences. Let’s dive into how these trends are transforming dull trade shows of the past into powerful conferences that transform attendees into industry leaders.
Digital Integrations
Brand conferences continue to offer hybrid and online access, but they’re continuously adding more digital integrations for an enhanced experience. These include event apps, virtual networking spaces, digital storefronts, and interactive sessions.
Immersive Experiences
Gone are the days of dull exhibits and boring workshops. Events are incorporating more immersive experiences through virtual or augmented reality technology, personalization, gamified experiences, and interactive installations. These immersive experiences serve as impactful brand touchpoints that contribute to brands’ overall image.
AI-Powered Solutions
AI is transforming our world in real time, and everyone wants to answer the same question: How will this impact me? AI will not only be used to plan events and track attendee engagement, it will be a major focus at professional development sessions and keynote presentations.
Sustainability
Event organizers have consistently emphasized sustainability in recent years, and for trade shows in 2025, that’s no different. Conferences will continue minimizing their carbon footprints through opting for sustainable materials and event merch. Curious about how merch can be sustainable? Read up on how we do it.
Top 5 Best Trade Shows to Attend in the 2nd Half of 2025
Here are 5 of the top trade show events serving a range of industries to consider attending in upcoming months this year. Whether you are on a sales, creative, human resources, IT, or leadership team, there’s something here to help you grow. (You may even run into our Imprint Engine team at some of these!)
1. Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)
What: The world’s largest human resources conference where HR professionals can network, gain insights to current trends, and learn how to incorporate the latest advancements in technology.
Where: San Diego, California
When: June 29th – July 2nd, 2025
Who should attend: Mid- to-senior level HR professionals and people ops executives across industries (HR directors, VPs of HR, talent acquisition leads, HR managers).
Industry focus: Human resources management and workplace strategy
Why you should go:
SHRM25 will equip HR professionals with the latest information to elevate their expertise. Here, attendees will learn how to integrate AI into HR tech, stay ahead of changing labor laws, compliance requirements, and ethical workforce strategies, address workforce culture shifts, and connect with thousands of HR professionals, CHROs, and industry pioneers. Bradley Cooper will be featured as this year’s main stage speaker.
2. HubSpot INBOUND
What: An immersive conference hosted by HubSpot that covers marketing automation, content marketing, sales enablement, and business growth strategies.
Where: San Francisco, California
When: September 3rd-5th, 2025
Who should attend: Mid-to-senior level marketing and sales leaders, business development executives, and HubSpot users/partners. The crowd includes many tech and SaaS company marketers.
Industry focus: Inbound marketing, sales, and customer experience technology
Why you should go:
INBOUND is designed for connection. Beyond keynotes and workshops by industry experts, it explicitly encourages networking by organizing immersive sessions and social events. Each of the 11 keynote stages features speakers and demos that are meant to motivate, inspire, and launch attendees into professional and personal growth.
3. Content Marketing World (CMW)
What: A conference that brings together leading content marketers, content creators, communications experts, and creative professionals from across the globe to network, partake in sessions focused on the latest trends and strategies, and learn from keynote speakers.
Where: San Diego, California
When: September 15th-17th, 2025
Who should attend: Brand marketers, content strategists, and digital marketing managers from mid-to-large companies (especially those invested in content as a marketing tool).
Industry focus: Content marketing and content strategy for brands
Why you should go:
CMW is a great place to meet decision-makers in outsourced content and brand solutions. Networking time and social events are planned throughout the conference as well as over 100 sessions and workshops led by top brand marketers. The conference dives deep into content creation and storytelling strategies, SEO, and audience engagement trends.
4. Dreamforce
What: Hosted by Salesforce, Dreamforce is an extensive tech expo with many networking opportunities, from impromptu hallway connections to official parties and the “Dreamfest” concert. Attendees can network without a booth by participating in breakout sessions, industry meet-ups, and partner events that accompany the conference.
Where: San Francisco, California
When: October 14th-16th, 2025
Who should attend: Salesforce customers, partners, and prospects, including sales and marketing executives, IT leaders, and developers from companies of all sizes.
Industry focus: Salesforce ecosystem and broader cloud technology for sales, marketing, and customer experience. Offers content on CRM innovation, sales enablement, marketing automation, and leadership, centered around Salesforce’s platform.
Why you should go:
Boasted as the largest technology event, Dreamforce shows attendees how AI agents, real-time data, and CRM create a digital labor force that scales with them and enhances interactions like never before. Dreamforce offers hands-on demos to apply to AI, CRM, and data resources. Enjoy entertainment including the Dreamfest concert as well as big name speakers including top CEOs, AI pioneers, and global icons.
5. ANA Masters of Marketing Conference
What: ANA Masters of Marketing is known as a gathering of top brand decision-makers in the marketing world. Through industry-shaping keynotes, workshops, and discussions, attendees will gain insights to advance their organization’s marketing impact.
Where: Orlando, Florida
When: October 21st-24th, 2025
Who should attend: Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs), VPs of Marketing, and senior brand executives from Fortune 1000 companies and major brands.
Industry focus: Broad marketing leadership and brand strategy. This is the Association of National Advertisers’ flagship annual conference addressing the most pressing marketing challenges and future trends.
Why you should go:
ANA Masters of Marketing celebrates and explores the future of marketing, including today’s landscape of AI, data, and tech. Attendees will hear from leaders in the marketing industry during in-person or hybrid sessions, keynotes and breakout sessions, conference meals, receptions, and many networking opportunities. Here, you’ll get ahead of industry trends, connect with marketing professionals, and walk away with actionable strategies to implement in your organization.
Looking for more 2025 trade shows? Check out this list of events for all industries.
Choosing the Right Trade Show for Your Brand
It’s not just picking what looks fun; trade shows are their own form of strategic marketing! When selecting the best trade shows for your brand, there are a few key steps to keep in mind…
Define & Align Goals
Goals for attending trade shows may include increasing brand awareness, generating leads, strengthening relationships with clients and partners, forging new relationships or collaborations, networking with industry experts, and more. Identify your goals first and foremost so that they’re at top of mind when choosing which events, sessions, or networking opportunities would be most beneficial.
Identify Costs
Consider every cost that will accompany the event, whether you’re attending or exhibiting. Just a few costs may include travel and accommodations, experiential marketing materials, exhibit fees, and branded materials to make an impression such as flyers, business cards, digital content, or merchandise. Check out our list of best tradeshow swag.
Identify Potential ROI
Once you’ve calculated your costs, compare them with the potential ROI. Consider opportunities to generate leads, boost brand visibility, better understand your competitors, and network with key partners and clients.
Explore & Research Opportunities
Look into past exhibitors and attendees to get a good idea of whether or not the event will attract your target audience. You should also review if the workshops and seminars being offered at each brand conference would be beneficial towards your brand goals. Additionally, explore the events’ allotted networking events and gatherings to see if they would be good opportunities to put your team in front of valuable people.
As long as you make an informed choice that aligns with your goals and brand story, you really can’t go wrong! Just remember to prioritize quality over quantity.
Pro Tips for Getting the Most Out of 2025 Trade Shows
To get the most out of the 2025 trade shows you attend, develop a plan for before, during, and after the event.
Pre-Show Marketing
Once you know your goals of the trade shows, you can prioritize who you want to see and meet. Utilize social media tools like LinkedIn to find out who’s going, download any mobile apps offered by organizers, and plan ahead by making appointments and networking schedules. And let others know that you’ll be there! Boost your presence with social media outreach and geofencing technology to serve digital ads to those in your vicinity.
Booth Strategies
Exhibiting at trade show events is an excellent opportunity to stand out, but to do so you must have some unique booth strategies. To make a positive first impression, make sure your booth not only looks aesthetically pleasing, but tells a cohesive brand story. And don’t underestimate the power of merch!
Imprint Engine works with top vendors to create bold, attractive booths and branded merch to make your trade show exhibition a success. Read more.
Lead Follow-Up Techniques
Develop your follow-up strategy before you even step foot on the showroom floor. Personally follow up with new leads via email or LinkedIn ideally within 24-28 hours of the show. Provide them with valuable info such as case studies or links to articles or blogs pertinent to your conversation. And don’t forget to track your follow-up efforts to measure success and areas for improvement.
Bon Voyage
Making the trek to trade shows is worth it for the experience alone, but with the right strategy and mindset, these events can catapult your business’s success. Take advantage of the priceless opportunity to demo and network in-person and don’t forget to stand out with bold tangible marketing materials!
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