Trade Show Promotion, Lead Gathering and Follow-Up

Article by Angelita Menchaca of Polaris, Inc.

Trade shows can yield a significant return on the investment, but measuring your degree of success is often easier said than done. When put under pressure to collect leads, companies often resort to crazy schemes and giveaways that simply don't produce quality leads and don’t accurately measure the public's reaction to their products or services. So how can a company still gauge show effectiveness without misinterpretation? It all comes down to communicating with your customers before, during, and after the event.

Pre-Show Promotion--It Works!
In order to be effective, people need to know when and where you will be exhibiting. Use email, snail mail, contests, phone calls, web ads, magazine ads, press releases, press conferences, etc. -- whatever it takes to get your name out there to the attendees. Also, check with the show promotions committee. They sometimes have free or low-cost marketing kits available that include magazine sponsors, in-house tabloids, show advertising deals, show logos for promotional use, attendee registration lists, media contact lists and other noteworthy marketing opportunities to help you.

Once you know the promotional tools you're going to use, create a publicity schedule for yourself and stick to it. Be sure to space each promotion out over the course of about two months before the show, saving the big push for about one month before the event so you'll be fresh in your client's minds. For your biggest potential accounts, have your sales people telephone them a week before the show -- it lets them know your company will give them the attention they deserve. This extra attention can yield big results.

In preparation for the show itself, don't forget about your fellow exhibitors. Seek out businesses you have working relationships with or those with whom you could develop a symbiotic association. Work with them to place your products in their booths. Not only does this allow you to get to know other industry players, but you get wider floor exposure as well.

Remember--keep your design consistent throughout all your visual media promotion and, if possible, tie it into your booth design*--this will help people remember you and your products/services when they see you at the show.

Boothmanship and Leads
So you did all your pre-show promotion and now you're ready to see how it will pay off. Don't just hand out brochures and gifts in exchange for business card "leads" to meet your prospect quota. While it's important to set measurable goals, try not to place too much emphasis on the number of leads you collect. Instead, the importance should be placed on the quality. After all, it's better to get fifty qualified, hot prospects than 250 leads that just wanted your free giveaway. Accomplishing this is as simple as just talking to your booth visitors.

More than ever, the most effective exhibitors are the ones who are willing to spend time with visitors. People go to shows wanting and willing to learn, so they are much more open to sharing their concerns and needs than at other time--take advantage of this. Actively greet your customers (but not too strongly--you don't want to pressure them), get to know them, learn from them, help solve their problems with your product or service NOW, or at least lay the foundation for a future relationship. This one-on-one time is invaluable if properly utilized and can lead to much bigger things.

As you speak with your prospects, this is a good time to subtly gather information about how they know your company, whether from a pre-show ad, one of your other promotional efforts, or industry talk. Take mental notes during the conversation but keep a working tally on paper as the day progresses. This is where an inventory of all your promotions can come in handy. A simple tic mark will tell you which effort was most effective and more detailed notes will let you know what was the most memorable.

Eventually in this process, you will need to gather more concrete lead information. While it is tempting, especially when you have other potential clients waiting in the wings, do not create a centralized lead gather area. This is where customer relations break down most often and the prospects wander off. Instead, have several writing areas ready and collect the forms yourself. This will allow you to keep notes about the prospect, which will help later in sorting your lead forms. Once the information is gathered, don't sign off that prospect just yet either. Many times, the short break of filling out the lead form sparks their memory of other issues they have that you can solve.
Timely Follow-Up and Promotion
Follow-up is one of the most important steps in the trade show process and is often a failed venture or is skipped altogether. I cannot emphasize enough how critical this step is. Follow-up includes contacting all the people you met at the show to thank them, provide quotes, answer questions, offer more services, assistance, etc. Let them know they didn't get lost in the crowd and your efforts to gain their business were sincere. Many times it's this kind of service that leads to a sale.

Post-show promotion is also important. Extend your show-only offers or run a post-show special. This will draw in the interested but hesitant crowd that has now had the chance to digest everything they saw at the show. All this can be done using the same venues as your pre-show promotions (email, snail mail, phone calls, trade magazine ads, etc.).

Finally, make sure all your new leads are put into your company database and will continue to receive mailings from you for at least the next six months. This kind of continued relationship can result in sales that, while not immediately evident, may be nonetheless significant.

Ultimately, the success of trade shows all comes down to communication. You have to be on the ball before, during, and after the show or you're going to lose business to someone who is willing to put in the extra effort. Consistently remind your prospects that you are at their service and eventually, if not immediately, you will see results.

About the Author: Angelita (Angel) Menchaca has worked as a freelance writer, served as the Senior Editor for a national magazine publisher, has a BA in Creative Writing, and we are pleased to say that as of September, 2001, she has become a full-time Project Coordinator and writer with Polaris, Inc. Angel is currently working in the Polaris Portland office.

Copyright © 2002 by Polaris, Inc. All rights reserved.

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