Executional Guide · Touring campaigns
How to plan a campaign that moves between towns, venues or stores, so every stop looks, sounds and performs like the first.
Choose the stops for the audience
A tour takes one campaign to many places, so the stops decide who sees it. Start with where your audience already spends time: town centres, retail parks, shopping centres, stations, stores that stock the product, or events with the right crowd.
Roadshow marketing works best when each stop has a reason to be on the list. A town with a big new store, a city with a strong student population or a show with the right visitors will each do more than a stop chosen to fill a gap in the map.
Shorter tours with stronger stops often beat longer ones spread thin. Ten well chosen days can reach more of the right people than twenty days that include quiet locations.
Mix weekdays and weekends if the audience allows it. Weekends bring bigger crowds; weekdays bring calmer conversations and often easier access to space.
Set the timetable early
Decide how many days each stop needs. A busy shopping centre may justify a full weekend; a smaller town may need one good day. The timetable also sets stock, staffing and booking deadlines for every location.
Some sites need permission well ahead. Public spaces may need council approval, and shopping centres and venues book pitches weeks or months in advance, so lock in the dates that matter most first.
Treat the timetable as the backbone of the tour. Dates, stock, staff and permissions all hang off it, and late changes ripple through every stop after.
One look and one message
A touring campaign should feel the same wherever people meet it. The same stand, the same clothing, the same offer and the same few lines about the product make every stop part of one campaign.
A single briefing pack used for every stop keeps the message steady. Add photos of how the stand should look when it is ready, so each day starts from the same picture.
Collect a short note and a photo from each day. Seeing every stop side by side makes it easy to spot what worked and repeat it.
Stock and kit between stops
Work out stock per stop from the expected numbers, then add a margin for the busiest days. Running out at three in the afternoon on a Saturday wastes the best hours of the tour.
Plan where stock and kit are stored between stops, who delivers it and when it arrives. Samples kept chilled need a plan of their own.
Keep a simple checklist of everything the stand needs, from banners to pens, and check it at the end of every day so nothing is missing at the next stop.
Learn as the tour goes
A tour gives you something a one-day event cannot: the chance to test and improve as you go. Compare stops on the same measures, such as samples handed out, sign-ups or sales, and look at what the best days had in common.
Small changes can be carried to every stop that follows: a better opening line, a different stand position, a busier time of day, a simpler sign-up. Share them in the briefing pack so every team works from the latest version.
Keep a running list of questions from the public. If the same question comes up at every stop, the answer belongs on the stand, the leaflet or the opening line.
Formats that tour well
Branded vehicles, pop-up bars, carts and compact stands all move easily between sites. The right choice depends on the stops: a vehicle needs space to park and open up, while a cart can work indoors in a mall or a busy station.
Sampling roadshows take a product from town to town so people can try it, while product demonstrations suit anything that needs showing rather than tasting. Both work as a tour as long as the format fits every site on the list.
| Format | Suits | Plan for |
|---|---|---|
| Branded vehicle | Town centres, car parks, events | Parking space, power |
| Pop-up bar | Venues, events, festivals | Licensing, stock storage |
| Cart or small stand | Shopping centres, stations | Space rules, storage |
| In-store tour | Product already stocked | Store agreement, extra stock |
Before the first stop
- Stops chosen for the audience
- Timetable, bookings and permissions confirmed
- One briefing pack and stand photo
- Stock per stop, with a margin
- A daily note and photo from each stop
What to put in the brief so everyone working the day understands the offer, the people and the aim.
We staff touring campaigns across the UK from 40 staffing hubs, with each team chosen for the brief by our operations team and briefed before each day. See our roadshow marketing page for the formats we cover.
