sales
Create a plan.
Define your ideal prospect profile. Set up appointments before you arrive. Review the attendee list, and see who’s there that you want to meet for the first time.
Decide whom you want to meet. Go beyond the initial criteria to include visitors from companies who outsource services in your category and have a current need.
Decide what you’re looking for before you head to the trade show, and take the time to train your team to pursue only those prospects who fit your profile.
Consider the best way to meet prospects. Can you, for example, have people find you because you are a speaker?
Identify which booths you want to see. Study the exhibit layout and map so you don’t waste time and energy.
Offer your services as a speaker. You will gain much free publicity by presenting yourself as a fountain of knowledge. Capitalize on the opportunity by
informing your prospects and customers that you are a featured speaker and therefore an expert
inviting them to hear you speak
sending them a list of the ideas you presented, once the show is over, and letting all your customers know how your presentation went
Offer to write an article for the show’s Web site or magazine. Try to have your picture printed with the article to encourage greater recognition. Be sure your contact information is included. If the show has a Web site, ask to be listed.
Send a press release. Contact media in the host town about your hot new ideas. You could be interviewed in the paper, on TV, or on the radio. Have a toll-free phone number for people to order products or to get a free sample. You could offer a tip sheet on the top 10 ways to use your kind of service or “The 10 Myths of …”
Volunteer to introduce a speaker or panel. This is a great opportunity because you don’t have to prepare much, you have visibility and credibility, and your name could be in the program.
If you don’t have the funds for a booth on your own, consider sharing space. If there is an exhibitor at the show who sells to the same kinds of prospects as you, but who is not a competitor, ask whether you can pay a modest fee (say $50 or $100) to set up a rack of your brochures in their booth.
Arrange as many appointments as you can in advance. Send a personalized invitation to prospects. Find a way to express, in as few words as possible, why customers should take time to meet you. For example, offer them
a “show special” or advance news of an exciting product development
new solutions to some of their concerns
a new state-of-the-art system
a cost-cutting device
Follow up with a call to set up a meeting. Remember, many people would rather “float” at the show and not be tied down. Secure in advance the appointments you’re able to, and when you get to the show, immediately work on getting more.
Meet with existing customers, too. Some will expect you to give them special attention. Each category will require specific preparation on your part. Give attendees a reason to make meeting you a top priority.
Track down potential customers who are not exhibiting. They go to shows to see the exhibits and attend the sessions. Your best way to meet these people is through the seminar and presentation sessions. Take a look at the trade show agenda and try to determine the most popular sessions. Plan to attend them yourself.
Many shows help you to identify potential buyers by having different color tags for exhibitors, press, buyers, etc. Watching out for these will help you zero in on your target group.
Collect business cards of potential customers by offering a draw. People who submit their cards know that they will be contacted, so you’re assured of a reasonable return by following up with these people. Many shows rent hand-held card scanners, which allow you to quickly scan people’s business cards and download them daily onto your computer. Using such a scanner will allow you more time to focus on making as many contacts as possible instead of spending time on data entry activities.
Spend an extra day or two meeting other contacts in the city you have travelled to. Make them feel as if you are coming into town especially to see them. This is a great way to leverage the time and cost of the show.
Trade Shows: Maximizing the Opportunity
If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.
MILTON BERLE, AMERICAN COMEDIAN
A good way to find new prospects is to exhibit at trade shows. You have a booth where people come to find out more about what you do. You talk to prospects and you hand out literature. But what if you don’t have the financial and other resources to be an exhibitor? Can you still use a trade show to develop good sales leads? The answer, of course, is yes. Here are some tips for prospecting at trade shows:
If you are a non-exhibitor
Take the opportunity not only to network but educate yourself about the newest developments and trends. Here are three ways to accomplish this.
Carry a small tape recorder. Record things you want to remember to do or the names of people to see. Capture new ideas. Adapt ideas from other industries.
Ask interesting exhibitors lots of questions. Look at the brochures and ask the exhibitors to clarify anything you don’t understand. Take or record notes.
Spread out your resources. Don’t roam the room with your co-workers.
If you’re not exhibiting, have an advertising specialty to give away. People may throw out brochures and papers from booths, but they rarely throw out an advertising specialty (other than one more pen or key chain). Learn from those who attend as well as from those who exhibit.
Ask the exhibitor the name of the person you should contact for your specific goals. Write that name on the exhibitor’s card. Ask if you can use the exhibitor’s name when calling your contact person (so you won’t be making a cold call).
Network at every opportunity.
Talk to people who wander from booth to booth. Find out their interests. What draws them in?
Use the buffet as a networking venue, not as if it were your last meal. It’s hard to speak with a full mouth. It’s hard to shake hands while you balance a plate and a glass. And it’s hard to exchange cards when you’ve got dip-covered fingers. Try not to carry more than one thing from a buffet table. It will give you a free hand to help someone else — a great way to start a conversation and introduce yourself.
Attend educational sessions with the people you want to meet. Introduce yourself, talk, and share your learning experience. Now you have something in common. You’ve already begun a relationship. Visit before the seminar. Ask for the cards of the people sitting on each side of you. Turn around. Who is sitting behind you? Who is in front of you? If you decide to respond to a question or ask a question, say your name, company, and/or what you do when you respond. For instance: “I’m Karen Susman, national speaker, trainer and coach, and I’d like to ask …”
Rest. Freshen up often. Your discomfort and pain can show on your face.
Stay organized. Discard unnecessary materials at the end of each day.
Evaluate the best prospects at the end of each day. Use this approach:
Using the floor plan in the show literature, go back over your tour, booth by booth. Think about each of the people you met, the companies they represent, and how likely they are to be a prospect for your products and services.
Create “A,” “B,” and “C” lists for prospects. Put the hottest prospects into the “A” list, moderate prospects into the “B” list, and the rest into the “C” list.
Develop a battle plan to turn contacts into selling appointments. For your hottest prospects, make a note on
what you know about them
how you might best start a conversation with them
what you could say that would be of interest or importance to them
who the key decision-makers are
how you might get to the decision-makers
when the best (quietest) time to approach each prospect is
Implement your plan. Start by practicing your strategy on a few of your “B” list potential clients. When you feel comfortable with your approach, turn your attention to the “A” list.
Remember, the people you are approaching are there to sell, not to buy. So don’t expect people to spend much time with you at the show. You are doing well if you have
introduced yourself
confirmed their agreement to meet you later
taken their business card
Send postcards from the show site to key people in your network. Tell them you’ve got some great new ideas for them. Follow up when you return home.