How you plan to work a trade show can determine what you get out of it. These shows are places where long-lasting relationships can be formed that might benefit everyone involved for years to come. However, showing up unprepared to meet and greet people can doom your efforts and make you feel like you just wasted a lot of time and money. Here are four tips to make the event worth attending:
1. Create a Plan
There are three primary groups that attend trade shows: vendors, speakers, and visitors. The vendors and speakers will be listed in the paperwork for the show. This list can be extremely valuable to making the right connections. Study who is coming and make plans to stop by their booth and say hello. You may even want to call a couple of people beforehand and try to set up a time to meet before the show begins or afterwards for dinner or a couple of drinks to get to know one another and present possible opportunities for collaboration.
2. Bring Help
You never want your booth to be unmanned. Every person walking by is a potential customer who could use your services. Even taking a small break to run to the restroom could mean lost opportunities. There are usually a lot of booths and visitors generally keep on moving from one aisle to the next. There should always be someone in the booth to give a quick presentation about your products or services to those who decide to stop by and show interest in what you do. You will probably lose the opportunity to learn the names and contact information of interested people in your business so you can follow up with potential customers after the show ends and you are back at the office.
3. Study the Vendor Booth Layout
You might only get a limited amount of time to leave your booth and approach other vendors. One thing to remember is that the other vendors present are active in your industry in some capacity. For instance, you might make and sell a product that can be used to clean tar-based sealcoats off of equipment and sidewalks. There might be sealcoat contractors and equipment sellers who could use that type of product. Taking the time to make a connection could be worthwhile.
4. Business Cards, etc.
Always have business cards, a pen and a notebook (either paper or electronic) with you at all times. You want to make it easy for a person to contact you later and business cards are cheap. Hand them out as frequently as you can. Also take the time to gather information and put it into your notebook so you can follow up on your discussions. Pamphlets and brochures should have your contact information on them and not the contact information of companies you might represent.
Trade shows are a good way to find new business. Being prepared to take advantage of opportunities make them worthwhile.
1. Create a Plan
There are three primary groups that attend trade shows: vendors, speakers, and visitors. The vendors and speakers will be listed in the paperwork for the show. This list can be extremely valuable to making the right connections. Study who is coming and make plans to stop by their booth and say hello. You may even want to call a couple of people beforehand and try to set up a time to meet before the show begins or afterwards for dinner or a couple of drinks to get to know one another and present possible opportunities for collaboration.
2. Bring Help
You never want your booth to be unmanned. Every person walking by is a potential customer who could use your services. Even taking a small break to run to the restroom could mean lost opportunities. There are usually a lot of booths and visitors generally keep on moving from one aisle to the next. There should always be someone in the booth to give a quick presentation about your products or services to those who decide to stop by and show interest in what you do. You will probably lose the opportunity to learn the names and contact information of interested people in your business so you can follow up with potential customers after the show ends and you are back at the office.
3. Study the Vendor Booth Layout
You might only get a limited amount of time to leave your booth and approach other vendors. One thing to remember is that the other vendors present are active in your industry in some capacity. For instance, you might make and sell a product that can be used to clean tar-based sealcoats off of equipment and sidewalks. There might be sealcoat contractors and equipment sellers who could use that type of product. Taking the time to make a connection could be worthwhile.
4. Business Cards, etc.
Always have business cards, a pen and a notebook (either paper or electronic) with you at all times. You want to make it easy for a person to contact you later and business cards are cheap. Hand them out as frequently as you can. Also take the time to gather information and put it into your notebook so you can follow up on your discussions. Pamphlets and brochures should have your contact information on them and not the contact information of companies you might represent.
Trade shows are a good way to find new business. Being prepared to take advantage of opportunities make them worthwhile.
This article was written by Aubrey Phelps, a writer for Fibernet. In her spare time, she goes hiking in Utah and spends time with family.
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