How To Make The Most Of Your Expo Experience

For many companies, attending expos is a yearly venture that is thoroughly planned. While others are much more inexperienced in the field. Whichever category you belong to, you should know that not all expo experiences are equal. Sometimes you could set up the most amazing booth but leave with only a few leads. Such a day will leave you wondering what you did wrong and what you can do to make the most of your time at the expo. 

The output of an expo includes the sales you make and the leads you generate. The following are some tips to help you gain as many leads as possible, ensuring you have a productive time at the expo. 

Understand The Theme Of The Expo

You cannot just attend any expo and expect to achieve the same results. Every expo has a general theme and also a theme for the year. Before you decide to attend an expo, you should study both the themes and decide if your company even fits under that umbrella. It will be very embarrassing to show up at a biotechnology event with your latest blenders (that might not exactly happen, but you get the gist).

You can only make the most of your time at the expo if it is in line with what your company sells. Make sure your booth is decorated in line with the theme of your brand and the expo, you can get a customized booth from aplusexpo.com.

Define Your Objectives

When planning for an expo, you will often find your sales and marketing teams have different goals. While the sales manager might want to meet customers and generate orders, the marketing manager might have a product launch in mind. In such a situation, you need to come to a consensus about the goals before the actual day of the expo because otherwise your minds and resources will be pulled in opposite directions on the big day. Make sure your goals are specific, realistic, measurable, and time-sensitive. 

Hire Competent Booth Staff

You could have the most efficient planning and resources but at the end of the day, the staff at your booth is what the customers are going to judge your brand by. The people you select to man the booth must not only be competent but also friendly and excited. If customers walk by and see a dull face complaining about having to stand at a booth, they will not be inclined to talk to such an unfriendly person. Make sure the staff is great at communication and always smiles because smiles sell. 

Communicate Effectively

There is a proper way to communicate with people who come to your booth that ensures you make the most of your time with them. Take the first 30 seconds to greet the person and ask an interesting question to grab their attention. In the next 90 seconds, you have to determine if this person is useful or not, you do not want to give electronics demonstrations to someone who is looking for art. 

You can do this by asking about their brand, situation, and what they are looking for. If they are not your target demographic, dismiss them in 15 seconds, if not, give them a product demonstration in 2-4 minutes. After that, take their card and make them fill a lead form. 

Confident And Positive Body Language

This is another thing to teach your booth staff. Oftentimes, people pick up on the non-verbal cues more than what is actually being said. So ensure eye contact with the person, do not cross your arms or legs. Make sure that people can connect with you if they wish to, you should not be distant and hesitant. Even though you will be on a time limit to finish the pitch quickly, listen to the attendees. Do not dismiss their comments or questions and simply go on narrating your pitch, interact with them, and make them feel heard. 

Something To Remember You By

Your potential lead might have had a great time discussing a possible collaboration, they might even be excited to work with you, but it’s all null and void if they just forget you the next day. A simple business card is not enough because it only reminds them of who you are, not what you do. You should have some literature at the booth that you give to every lead. It will tell them what you are all about and they will be more likely to get in touch again. You can also give them gifts like USBs or mugs with your logo, to remind them of you. 

Conclusion

Merely setting up a booth at an expo does not guarantee success at the event. Sometimes people do not make a single sale or generate a lead in a 3-day event. This happens because people don’t know how to interact at expos and how to make the most of the wonderful opportunity. The way to maximize your productivity at an expo is to be concise, friendly, and have clear goals. 

Photo by oliver heine of Pixabay 

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