Process
- Beginning at 9:00 AM, students will be allowed to set up their tradeshow booths. Booths must be finished and students ready to begin answering questions by 11:30 AM.
- Judges will have two-minutes to listen to student share the highlights of their business plan and business or product idea, including time to provide samples or handouts, and ask questions
- Judges will visit students for 90-minutes. If you are not at your booth when the judges visit, you will be disqualified.
- Non-participating students and community members might also be invited to the tradeshow, and you should be at your booth, ready to network and share with all those in attendance.
Judging
Judges may be potential investors or potential consumers of your product or service; be ready to answer questions of either type. Judging will reflect a business’s performance in the following categories:
- Product or Service Description:
- What need does your product or service fill in the community, how did you identify this need, what kind of feedback have you gotten from potential customers; in short, why your product or service
- Business Description:
- What product or service will you provide, where will your business exist, when will it happen; background on your ability or qualifications
- Presentation:
- Poise, confidence, comprehension, ability to answer judges’ questions, proper attire for a business presentation, captures attention, is within time limits, etc.
- Booth Display:
- Creative, neat, easy-to-understand, relates to your business, engages judges, etc.
Please review the Tradeshow Rubric for full judging criteria.
Additional Resources:
Contact Jim MacGregor, jmacgregor@wbcounty.org for access to the Kansas State Center for the Advancement of Entrepreneurship online course. Challengers who complete the course receive a Certification of Completion from Kansas State and are eligible for an additional $50 award if they reach the state competition in April 2022.