Exhibit and They Will Come

By far the most common assumption of exhibiting at a trade show is the Field of Dreams analogy – “Exhibit and They will Come”.  This simple thought creates a chain reaction that affects every aspect of your trade show marketing. Your goals center on gaining leads, any leads and providing them to sales to show that you have done the job you were expected to do. Sales takes these leads and based on the last several shows, shoves them into a folder never to be called on. Sound familiar?

 70% of all trade show leads are NEVER called or contacted after the show. The 30% that are contacted account for either new companies or new salespeople desperate to make a sale. The veterans assume these leads are the same ones they get every year, the person who stopped by to pick up the free item you were mindlessly giving away with each badge scan. The losers in this scenario are the prospects who genuinely stopped by to gain more information on your product or service and the salespeople who failed to make the call.

 So…your asking how do we get the leads we want and need to be contacted?  It starts with the most hated word in most people’s vocabulary – change.  You first have to change your mindset, and then change how you look at trade shows and basically change how you have always done things before. Ouch!

 For a truly successful trade show experience you should work backwards and use our own experiences as a trade show attendee. Which companies and booths made you want more information or did you interact the most? The key here is you don’t just want to be seen at a trade show, you want to be REMEMBERED!