Organizing a Tradeshow: Promote your products and sell your services
Every business enterprise that has ever put individual sales forces out into the field knows how costly this can get. There’s upfront training, lead development, transportation, lodging meals, marketing brochures, advertising, promotional items, and often entertainment expenses for prospective clients. Trade shows are a very focused and cost effective way to market as opposed to direct sales. Plus the potential customers come to you.
To begin, assign a team leader or show captain. This person will be responsible to book the venue, rent the appropriate amount of space, and manage the setup of the display. They should send out press releases and mailings to notify existing and potential customers. Next, you will need to make sure you have trained and knowledgeable staff. They need to be up to speed on the product mix, pricing, shipping, and any technical questions that should arise. Nothing turns off a buyer faster than sales staff who cannot speak with authority and confidence about their products.
Do research into designing and purchasing your booth display. You’ll need to determine if you need a full size display or smaller table top presentation. Will your booth be high tech and if so, does your team have the skills to run the video, computers, and other devices? Consider if you will need seating in the booth for presentations. Keep in mind what the standard display sizes are at most trade shows and what sizes are easily shipped. Try to create a design that jumps out at the passersby.
Make sure your samples are ready and your handouts and sales literature are up to date and printed in adequate quantity. Arrange transportation and lodging for your sales team and cover the logistics of how everything will arrive on-site and be assembled in time for the opening of the show.
You should have branded corporate gifts to handout. Another great marketing tool is a raffle with a nice door prize. Don’t limit your efforts in enlarging your customer base to only direct contacts in your booth. Try to network with other vendors and checkout competing product lines. Listen to the grapevine to see what has been working for other dealers.
There are some important rules that will make your show a better success. Don’t eat, drink, or talk on the phone in your booth. Maintain proper body language, dress appropriately, and take a short break about once an hour. Have a pen, business card, and lead form readily available at all times. You should plan on attending events, such as dinners, lectures, presentations, or seminars. Often this is where deals blossom.
Sales pros believe that the post show follow-up is the key to a successful tradeshow. Talk in the booth is cheap. It’s really all about how many prospects you convert into customers. So assign a follow-up coordinator who will sift through the sales leads and contact those that look most promising. Have a personalized letter and fulfillment package out to your clients within one week so that the trail doesn’t grow cold. Be sure to mention that a representative will be contacting the prospect by phone within a few days after receiving the fulfillment packet.
Trade shows can be fun, profitable and offer a change of scenery to your in-house sales staff. There are thousands of shows each year, so finding one right for your company shouldn’t be difficult. Once you start attending shows regularly, you will develop repeat customers who look forward to getting the latest updates on your product lines. Remember, people aren’t there just to see your display and collect promotional items; they are also there to make connections, do business, and build long lasting relationships.
Tags: promotional items | promotional items | corporate gifts | corporate gifts
January 24th, 2010 at 11:58 pm
You also need to teach people how to take notes. This way when you get back to the office you know who to call, when to call them and what their position in the copy is.