2 Things You Should Start Doing at Trade Shows
Working a trade show is no small feat. Your company has invested hundreds to thousands of dollars for your staff to be there, and your boss expects success in the form of qualified leads and eventual sales. To ensure you’re meeting – even exceeding – expectations, there are 2 things you should start doing at your next trade show. Now don’t roll your eyes, these may seem obvious, but they are things that even veteran exhibitors are guilty of doing, and doing them can definitely hinder your success during your show trade show.
SAY SOMETHING
How will you draw them into your booth?
No, really. I attended the EXHIBITOR2014 show in March and while walking down the aisle I caught the eye of so many exhibitors. A majority held my eye, offered me a polite smile and then let me walk on by. All it would have taken for me to stop so they could have told me their company was a hello, or some form of greeting. There’s a pretty big line to straddle between the annoying and persistent car salesman and the shy, passive “you bring the sale to me” type of salesman. There’s a lot of room in the middle of these two types that offer a nice and approachable type of person.
Quick Fix: Prepare a handful of pick-up lines before the show. Then at the show test different ones on different attendees to see what’s most effective. If nothing else, a simple greeting might earn a pause mid-step instead of attendees breezing by your trade show booth.
DITCH THE TCHOTCHKE TABLE
Two things happen when you have a table in front of your trade show booth display. One, you staff is tempted to sit behind the table and therefore appears disinterested and more likely to be ignored to passing attendees. Two, people are looking down at your table when they’re walking by and so engrossed in grabbing everything you’re offering that they never look up at your beautiful trade show display. They walk right on by with their handful of candy, keychains and pens and never looked up at you or your display.
Quick Fix: Leave your literature behind. Not only will it clutter up your table, but you’ll have better luck with it sending it as valuable post-show follow up. You can stick the tchotchkes in the back of the booth and award them by engaging your attendees in some kind of contest or in-booth game. If nothing else, use a clean and compact brochure stand holder to arrange your literature in. De-clutter your booth space in anyway you can.
By utilizing an interesting pick up line and bringing in passing attendees into your trade show booth space, you’ll have more of an opportunity to engage attendees and qualify leads. If you ditch the table (and the literature and cheap tchotchkes) you’ll have a booth space, and staff, that appears more open, approachable and welcoming.
