Every year, LEAP brings together thousands of technology companies from around the world, all competing for the attention of customers, investors, partners and the media. In 2025, LEAP hosted 200,000+ attendees, including enterprise leaders, founders, engineers, investors, government officials and international delegations. While these participating businesses invest heavily in securing a stand or speaking slot, it is only one part of the equation. Without a clear communications strategy and preparation days ahead of LEAP, even the most innovative companies can struggle to stand out. Sherpa Communications advises on PR essentials every company needs before the event.
1. Identify Your Key Messages
Before participating at LEAP, define what you want to achieve from the event. Whether you want to highlight a new product, enter a new market, showcase your industry expertise, or reinforce your broader company vision, defining your priorities early gives your team a clear direction for conversations throughout the event. From there, develop three or four key messages that communicate your value proposition and make it easier for audiences to understand what your business brings to the market.
2. Build Your Spokesperson Profile Before the Event
The people representing your business can be just as important as the products or services they are presenting. Before LEAP, update your spokesperson’s profile to reflect their expertise and identify the topics they can speak on with authority.
Build a bank of relevant industry insights and topics, and identify media opportunities where their expertise can add value. Where needed, media training can also help spokespeople communicate the company’s key messages clearly and confidently, making conversations during LEAP more meaningful and productive.
3. Prepare Industry Insights, Not Just Company Updates
Company announcements have their place, but journalists attending LEAP will also be looking for expert perspectives on the trends shaping the technology sector. Before the event, identify the topics your leadership team can speak about and support those views with relevant research and industry data.
Having these insights ready gives spokespeople more substance to bring to interviews and conversations, while helping position the business as a knowledgeable contributor to the wider industry discussion.
4. Create a Media Engagement Plan
LEAP brings together journalists from regional and international publications, often working to tight schedules. Waiting until the event begins to approach the media can mean missing opportunities.
Plan your media engagement in advance by identifying the journalists and publications that matter most to your business and developing angles that are relevant to their audiences. It is also important to match the right spokesperson to each media opportunity based on their expertise and the publication’s audience.
In the GCC and Middle East, an effective media strategy should also consider both English and Arabic publications to ensure your business reaches a wider regional audience. Reaching out before LEAP can help secure interviews and create interest around your key stories before the event begins.
5. Develop Announcement Opportunities
Being at LEAP requires more than simply exhibiting. Check what your business can bring to the news cycle around the event, whether the story is ready to share before LEAP, breaks during the event, or follows it afterwards.
The announcement should have genuine news value and give journalists a clear reason to cover it. Strong numbers, research, or evidence of business impact can make a story more relevant. Clearly explaining the problem your company is addressing helps show why the announcement matters to the wider market.
6. Plan How to Maintain Momentum After LEAP
The attention generated around LEAP should not end when the event closes. Following up on media and business conversations helps maintain the momentum built during the event and keeps your company part of the conversation.
The insights and discussions from LEAP can also create new opportunities for media engagement. Key takeaways can shape follow-up interviews, expert commentary, and thought leadership, while continued conversations with journalists, customers, and partners can help turn initial interactions into longer-term relationships.
LEAP is not just about being present. It is about making every conversation count. With the right preparation and communications strategy, businesses can turn a few days at the event into opportunities that continue well beyond the exhibition floor.
