In last month’s post, ‘Trading on Tradition’, we explained what makes German trade fairs so special. If you run a successful business in the UK and you’re thinking of creating opportunities across the North Sea in Europe’s biggest market, then trade shows are a must. And not just for the entrepreneurial exporters, but importers too will need to stay abreast of what’s new and successful. Germany is one of the world’s top three exporters, after all.

In this article though we want to crystallise our experiences of attending German trade fairs with our typical customers from the small to medium enterprise sector into a number of practical steps and thoughts. There are at least three ways in which you can plan and approach going over and exploiting one of Germany’s numerous fairs (‘Messe’ or ‘Ausstellung’ are the two commonest words for fairs and exhibitions in German).
The first, most straightforward approach would be to employ a company such as ours to go out for you in order to do reconnaissance on agreed objectives such as important players, possible partners, trade media, or latest developments, and then receive from us a detailed report on your market segment. That will give you a factual platform from which a more objective analysis can be undertaken.

An alternative approach is for your company to organise a visit accompanied by well briefed, fluent speakers of German to a relevant trade show, i.e. regional or international, and visit stands, collect literature, compile names and facts, and, very usefully, note the specialist terminology (‘Fachsprache’) necessary to fully exploit the linguistic medium through which to then place your own product on to the market.

The second possible approach or, maybe stage, is best embarked on when a firm decision has been made to enter the German market. Then the typical German exhibition presents lots of concrete opportunities. Well ahead of this strategic visit, meetings with as many important German companies as possible are arranged, product descriptions translated into German, and companies you are meeting researched as thoroughly as possible in advance. Rest assured that your German counterparts will have done their homework on you thoroughly too.

Finally, when one has already started to develop trade links with Germany, then a stand could be booked and careful preparations made for exhibiting your products. Here are some points to bear in mind with your planning:

• The Germans often talk about ‘Fachmesse’, i.e. a fair specialising in one area and aimed at the informed and professional visitor, the so-called ‘Fachbesucher’. Many German trade are only open to these ‘Fachbesucher’ on certain days, whilst the general public is excluded and only welcomed on specified days.
• The fact that so many fairs pride themselves on being ’Fachmessen’ aimed at the ‘Fachbesucher’ means that the visitor to your stand is looking beyond the glib promotional phrases and seeking precise and comprehensive information, as technical as you wish to make it. It certainly helps to create a more favourable impression if that information is in German as well as English. As we have stressed in other posts, not every German understands technical English spoken at normal speed. Providing him and her with German-language explanations of the company, its philosophy and its products is an expression of courtesy, cultural etiquette awareness and communicative clarity, and is always greatly appreciated.
• Inform German companies well in advance that you are planning to exhibit and invite them to your stand, perhaps pre-arranging more formal meetings. It’s possible to do nine meetings in nine hours, from 9 till 6 p.m.!
• Germans interested in your products will want to see them, and will expect you to exhibit, especially if the products are big and bulky.

In short, a trade fair is just as much about face-to-face communication, leading to mutual trust, as it is about looking at the stands or having one of your own. Rather than rushing prematurely into a ‘Messe’ with a big splashy stand, navigate the entry into this dynamic market of Germany step by step, and get a sense of the German way of doing business and doing exhibitions.

Maybe your first experience of doing business the German way was at a trade fair. You might have been a visitor or you might have gone as an exhibitor yourself. The Germans in fact seem to have a monopoly on trade fairs, as you can see from the post called “Upcoming Trade Fairs in Germany” containing a list of most important or interesting shows for 2011/2012.

Germany is a federal country and each of its sixteen states likes to have stake in this particular market place. So you’re as likely to find a trade fair in Düsseldorf as you are in Hannover. Or it may be in the Hanseatic city of Hamburg or its northern rival Bremen. Frankfurt is almost synonymous with exhibition centres, and we haven’t even mentioned the capital city Berlin yet!

The fact that Germany is a distinctively regional country is one reason for the many different types of trade fair. Another factor in its favour is its shared borders with no less than nine other countries. Poland, for example, to the east. France to the west. Austria and Switzerland in the south connecting it with Italy and the Mediterranean countries. All roads lead to, no, not Berlin, but Munich and Stuttgart, Leipzig and Cologne. Just to add a few more international centres to the impressive list of places where you can do business in Germany.

Did we just say ‘all roads’ lead to these regional centres of commerce? Of course, the transport infrastructure of Germany is impressive, with so many regional airports boasting international flights and the railway network linking every area of the new post-1990 Germany, and connecting Germany itself to every part of the now substantially enlarged Europe. And to complete this model of smooth infrastructural mobility there are the ubiquitous over-ground and underground transport systems that get you rapidly from airport to city centre, from railway terminal out to the gleaming new trade fair centres, often sitting side by side with an airport.

Regional pride and rivalry, tried and tested infrastructures, fortuitous geographical location as a country to all points of the European compass, these are all very well, but do they guarantee successful trade fairs? Not necessarily. At least three further elements need to be added. The first is the attention paid to the numerous details of satisfying the exhibitor and the visitor alike. The provision of space, of information, of logistical support, of a coherent concept, of basic facilities for refreshment, is of a generally high standard.

The second is a natural wish to make people, especially from other countries, welcome, and an ingrained knowledge about their needs and how to satisfy them. We are reminded when saying this, or rather claiming this, of that pithy slogan dreamt up for the highly successful 2006 World Cup in Germany: “Die Welt zu Gast bei Freunden”, meaning “We welcome all the world to feel at home as our guests.”  Trade fairs need that magic ingredient called ‘atmosphere’ or ‘ambience’ to become real and touch more than our material or commercial senses.

Dr Vivien Hacker at 2011 Didacta Show in Stuttgart

Maybe then the third of the added elements is the real key: tradition. Despite all the traumas of its history, Germany has retrieved from its quite distant past many still vital remnants of customs, celebrations and festivities which bring communities together, which bind and allow for fruitful exchanges, social and commercial. The commonest word for  ‘trade fair’ in German is ‘Messe’. And, if you will pardon the pun, you would be forgiven, for thinking of something vaguely religious. Yes, its root is actually ‘mass’, a religious service. In the early middle ages when a German church celebrated the day of a venerated person, such as a saint, and the day declared a festival or day of feasting, the special market that would be set up next to the church gradually took over the term ‘Messe’. ‘Mass’ and ‘market’ became interchangeable for such occasions.

The earliest documented reference to the Frankfurt trading ‘Messe’ was 1338. Now that’s what we really call ‘tradition’!

As you can read in the accompanying post “Trading on Tradition”, German trade fairs are amongst the biggest and best in Europe. So to help you decide which one is the best for your company, we have listed over 50 different international trade fairs taking place throughout Germany over the coming nine months.

If you don’t find the trade fair that you are looking for on our list of selected upcoming German exhibitions, just go to the website of the Association of the German Trade Fair Industry (in German: Ausstellungs- und Messeausschuss der deutschen Wirtschaft e.V., abbreviated to AUMA), which you will find a very useful tool for checking on regional and international trade fairs in Germany and other countries.

The AUMA list, which we have used ourselves in compiling the 50 or more trade fairs below, covers almost every trade and branch of industry and technology. The website is: www.auma.de.

Eureko Associates Limited will be happy to give you further advice and information on getting the most out of visiting and exhibiting at German trade fairs as you will see by turning to the page “Representation – Support at German Trade Fairs”.

15.03.-19.03.2011: ISH – The World’s Leading Trade Fair. The Bathroom Experience, Building, Energy, Air-conditioning Technology, Renewable Energies

Frankfurt/Main

16.03.-22.03.2011: INTERNATIONALE HANDWERKSMESSE – The Leading Trade Fair for the Craft Trades and Medium-Sized Enterprises
Munich

17.03.-20.03.2011: Leipziger Buchmesse – Leipzig Book Fair
Leipzig

17.03.-20.03.2011: new energy husum – International trade fair for the use of renewable energy sources
Husum

18.03.-23.03.2011: INTERNORGA – International Trade Show for the Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Baking and Confectionery Trades
Hamburg

25.03.-27.03.2011: I.L.M. – International Leather Goods Fair Offenbach – Winter Styles
Offenbach/Main

27.03.-29.03.2011: ProWein – International Trade Fair Wines and Spirits
Dusseldorf

04.04.-08.04.2011: HANNOVER MESSE – The world’s most important technology event
Hanover

04.04.-08.04.2011: Wind / HANNOVER MESSE – Leading Trade Fair for Wind Generation Technology, Components and Services
Hanover

04.04.-08.04.2011: Industrial Automation / HANNOVER MESSE – Leading Trade Fair for Process, Factory and Building Automation Systems and Solutions
Hanover

04.04.-08.04.2011: Energy / HANNOVER MESSE – Leading Trade Fair for Renewable and Conventional Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution
Hanover

05.04.-07.04.2011: Aircraft Interiors Expo
Hamburg

13.04.-16.04.2011: AERO – International Trade Exhibition for General Aviation
Friedrichshafen

14.04.-17.04.2011: NUFAM – Trade fair for commercial vehicles
Karlsruhe

02.05.-06.05.2011: CeMAT Hannover – The World’s leading Fair for Intralogistics
Hanover

10.05.-13.05.2011: TRANSPORT LOGISTIC – International exhibition for logistics, mobility, IT and supply chain management
Munich

24.05.-26.05.2011: Techtextil – International Trade Fair for Technical Textiles and Nonwovens – and Material Vision – Materials for Product Development, Design and Architecture
Frankfurt/Main

08.06.-10.06.2011: Intersolar Europe – The World’s Largest Exhibition for the Solar Industry
Munich

28.06.-02.07.2011: NEWCAST – International Trade Fair for Precision Castings
Dusseldorf

26.08.-04.09.2011: CARAVAN SALON DÜSSELDORF – The No. 1 Show for motor homes and caravans
Dusseldorf

26.08.-30.08.2011: Tendence
Frankfurt/Main

02.09.-07.09.2011: IFA – Consumer Electronics Unlimited
Berlin

04.09.-06.09.2011: GÄSTE – International Trade Fair for the Restaurant, Hotel and Catering Business
Leipzig

04.09.-06.09.2011: spoga + gafa/spoga horse (Herbst/autumn) – The garden trade fair, Cologne /International trade fair for equestrian sports, Cologne
Cologne

08.09.-10.09.2011: Eu’Vend/coffeena – The International Trade Fair for the Vending Industry/with coffeena – International Coffee Fair
Cologne

14.09.-17.09.2011: ELEKTROTECHNIK – Leading Trade Fair for the Electrical and Electronics Industries
Dortmund

15.09.-25.09.2011: IAA – International Motor Show Passenger Cars
Frankfurt/Main

17.09.-25.09.2011: INTERBOOT – International Water Sports Exhibition
Friedrichshafen

22.09.-25.09.2011: RENEXPO® – International Energy trade fair
Augsburg

27.09.-29.09.2011: WTT-EXPO – Trade Fair for Industrial Heating and Cooling Technology
Karlsruhe

27.09.-29.09.2011: INTERGEO – Conference and Trade Fair for Geodesy, Geoinformation and Land Management
Nuremberg

27.09.-29.09.2011: COMPOSITES EUROPE – European Trade Fair & Forum for Composites, Technology and Applications
Stuttgart

30.09.-03.10.2011: INTERGEM – International Trade Fair for Gems, Jewellery and Gemstone Objects
Idar-Oberstein

05.10.-07.10.2011: oils + fats – International trade fair for the production and processing of oils and fats made from Renewable Resources
Munich

06.10.-09.10.2011: EXPOPHARM – International Pharmaceutical Trade Fair
Dusseldorf

08.10.-12.10.2011: Anuga – The leading trade fair for the global food industry
Cologne

11.10.-13.10.2011: BIOTECHNICA – Europe’s No.1 Event for Biotechnology and Life the Sciences
Hanover

11.10.-14.10.2011: inter airport EUROPE – International Exhibition for Airport Equipment, Technology, Design and Services
Munich

12.10.-14.10.2011: efa – Fair for Building Systems, Electrical Engineering, Air Conditioning and Automation
Leipzig

12.10.-15.10.2011: DRUCK+FORM – Trade Fair for the Graphic Industry
Sinsheim

12.10.-16.10.2011: Frankfurter Buchmesse – Frankfurt Book Fair
Frankfurt/Main

18.10.-21.10.2011: interlift – International Trade Fair for Elevators, Components & Accessories
Augsburg

18.10.-22.10.2011: Fakuma – The International Trade Fair for Plastics Processing
Friedrichshafen

22.10.-24.10.2011: EnergieSparTage – Messe für energieeffizientes Bauen und Modernisieren
Hanover

25.10.-27.10.2011: DKM – International Trade Fair for Finance and Insurance Industry
Dortmund

29.10.-06.11.2011: hanseboot – International Boat Show Hamburg
Hamburg

04.11.-06.11.2011: Plaza Culinaria – Culinary Event and Consumer Goods Exhibition
Freiburg

09.11.-11.11.2011: Brau Beviale – Raw Materials – Technologies – Logistics – Marketing
Nuremberg

13.11.-19.11.2011: AGRITECHNICA – International DLG Exhibition for Agricultural Machinery (Preview Days 13/14 November 2011)
Hanover

15.11.-18.11.2011: productronica – International trade fair for innovative electronics production
Munich

16.11.-18.11.2011: EXPONATEC COLOGNE – International Trade Fair for Museums, Conservation and Heritage
Cologne

30.11.-04.12.2011: HEIM + HANDWERK – Building, Furnishing, Living
Munich

Germans have two words for “the meeting”. One is “das Treffen”, and by the way you have three different genders for nouns, but don’t let that put you off learning this very ordered, logical language! The other word is “das Meeting”, and is probably used more often than “das Treffen” these days. Like thousands of other words borrowed from us in present-day usage in German, it sums up perfectly how open-minded and receptive the country is towards the English-speaking world.

Despite the cosmopolitan outlook though there is still a strong German business etiquette and it pays to heed that when preparing for a meeting with German business people and taking part in one. Germans will go into a meeting well-briefed and well-organised having done their research on you. They don’t normally indulge in a lot of small talk and banter during the meeting but like to use the time efficiently. Over strong cups of coffee and glasses of mineral water already laid out on the table, they’ll quickly get down to brass tacks, almost literally. Small details will matter, specific factual information about the product will be sought, potential issues and problems paid special attention from the outset.

Your German business partner will raise the critical points pretty quickly. To the British ears this frank, plain speaking can seem at first mildly offensive or impolite, but this is certainly not intentional. Rather it is to save time and money by being straight from the start. Simply put, the Germans prefer meetings to be based on an exchange of clear signals. In fact you can expect business meetings to be like the description of the language above: ordered, systematic and inherently logical. The individuals conducting the meeting will also know their place within the overall structure and systems of their company, however large or small, and will understand how a new British product might fit in or not. That doesn’t mean that they’ll be able to give you a clear ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on the spot, but rather they will want to discuss everything with other – sometimes more senior – figures in their company. Your discussions at the meeting and ensuing discussions will focus on substantial issues rather than, for example, on how best to dress up and market the product. This will take time and patience.

Sorry to bring the analogy up at this juncture, but …erm …have you watched the Germans play football recently!? May we mention the ‘W’ word? World Cup? The German international team has always had its great, almost legendary individuals. Kaiser Franz Beckenbauer, to name but one. But no individual is greater than the team. The team plays to a system and each player knows exactly what the requisite pattern is. If necessary, that system can be, and will be modified during the game. Flexibility, intelligence, attention to technical detail in the pre-match home work, plus the will to succeed, all blend together impressively. We’ve mentioned to you the word “Treffen” already, haven’t we? Do you know what a “Treffer” is? In various ball sports, including soccer, it is a “goal”.

For the UK company wanting to export its goods to Europe’s biggest market it’s essential to prepare for the German business pitch methodically and with technical finesse. If you want the “Treffen” in Berlin or Hamburg or Frankfurt to produce the “Treffer” then adopting the German business mentality and etiquette as far as you can will be crucial. If you don’t pay attention to it, then it’s a case of, yes, missed penalties and, even worse, own goals.

The great North German city of Hamburg has always enjoyed a close relationship with the United Kingdom, and its ties to its neighbour across the North Sea have thankfully survived the bad times when allied bombing raids left much of the city devastated nearly seventy years ago. Industrial, commercial and social life was ghostly quiet in 1945.

By the late 1950s though, just a decade or so after the end of the war, the Hanseatic port on the River Elbe was buzzing to the sound of the Economic Miracle. This is the word Germans proudly coined to describe the unstoppable rise of the West German industrial machine from 1948, the year of the Currency Reform, to the early 1960s when the very first migrant workers from countries such as Italy had to be recruited to come and maintain the tempo of economic growth. They were known in the early days as ‘Gastarbeiter’ or ‘guest workers’.

Five English “guest workers” from Liverpool arrived there in 1960, called John, Paul, George, Stu and Pete. They were young, keen, hard working and ready to learn. And their trade? The booming entertainment industry which the Economic Miracle had helped to revive.

To earn their wages they learned how to please the many different kinds of visitors to the bohemian and red light district of St Pauli right next to the docks by playing rock ‘n’ roll in the little cellar clubs there. The boys returned several times to the city, right through until the end of 1962. By then Stu had tragically died, and Pete the drummer was replaced by a young man called Ringo from another band in Hamburg. The four young men had served their hard apprenticeship in Hamburg and were about to Please, Please the world as The Beatles.

In November 2010 eight young and keen men and women wanting to impress Lord Sugar on the BBC’s ‘Apprentice’ show were given the task of selling British crisps to the Germans, and sent to Hamburg to drum up export trade. Watching them scurrying about the city was fun, but at times painful too. Fair enough, they were thrown into a tough foreign market place with little warning, and this highlighted some basic issues about exporting.

The first predictably is communication. Only one out of the eight apprentices really tried to use German, and though his knowledge was limited he did at least understand the symbolic importance of acknowledging that he was a guest in Germany trying to win over German customers by attempting to speak a little German. In contrast, one of the other members of the same project team paid no attention to the importance of communication in a sales meeting and rattled off her sales pitch at breakneck speed. Alan Sugar later in the boardroom analysis chided her and spoke convincingly of the need to employ “export English” which he defined as a mode of communication “where you slow down and accentuate all of your words”.

Slowing down and learning to be patient are general rules to think about when doing business with Germans. They don’t like doing business fast and furiously, but want to be informed about the product factually and about the company selling it before making their decision. They are not hoodwinked by flashy design and smart talking. And as we heard several times in the course of the sales teams’ exchanges with the German on the street and the German in the boardroom, Germans will listen carefully and then deliver an often surprisingly frank reply.

Of course it helps if you leave your prejudices about Germany behind in England. When arriving by car at the German embassy one of the apprentices remarked “I hate the Germans”, and later back in London defending himself against Lord Sugar’s criticisms of his performance repeated that he “didn’t speak German, I don’t particularly enjoy going to Germany”. Incidentally he was the gentleman who got fired.

The Beatles knew a thing or two about the uses of communication. Even when they were starting to enjoy world-wide adulation in 1964 they were still happy to record songs in German to please their numerous fans there. ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’ was translated as ‘Komm, Gib Mir Deine Hand’ and ‘She Loves You’ as ‘Sie liebt Dich’.

In conclusion, the rewards for thinking seriously about business etiquette, subjective and counter-productive stereotyping and crucially about how to approach communication hurdles are there for all to see and profit from. Meeting German partners half way in the spirit of ‘Komm, Gib Mir Deine Hand’ is a good starting point.