Exhibiting at an Expo is a great marketing opportunity for your business. So, make sure that you get the most out of it, including a good return on your investment. Here are 10 tips to help you on the way…
Tip 1: Make sure you are always out front of your stand and smile or greet everybody that walks past.
Often people walking around shows can be a bit shy or don’t always have the confidence to address you themselves. So, a friendly smile or a ‘good morning, how are you?’ will put them at ease and open up an opportunity for you to chat. To get the conversation started you could ask them if they are enjoying the show so far and if they have just come for a wander or have specific things they are looking for advice with. At the very least you might be able to recommend another exhibitor and both parties will feel positive about your support.
Tip 2: Never sit behind your table and/or work on your laptop.
Unless someone is really desperate to know more about your service they are not going to bother with you. If you’ve got work to do, go somewhere else to do it! There’s no point in being there if you aren’t going to greet potential customers all day long.
Tip 3: Take breaks
Ideally arrange for someone to come and relieve you from your stand so that you have some time to go around and meet the other exhibitors. It’s also a good idea to make sure that you’re set early so you can use the time before the doors open to network too. If you haven’t got backup, consider leaving a note in a plastic stand that says you’ve gone to chat and display your phone number in case someone really wants to speak to you. You could also leave your LinkedIn QR code on the table so that people can scan it and connect with you.
Tip 4: Have conversations – Don’t Hard Sell!
Try not to hard sell the people who come to your stand. Take time to find out about them before you launch into your pitch! That way you can establish if they are a potential customer and how you can uniquely solve their pain points, which leads to a much more proactive conversation.
Tip 5: Invite your prospects
Have you invited your prospects and customers along to the show? You can arrange some meetings at the show and potentially introduce them to useful contacts too. Extra brownie points for you!
Tip 6: Follow up
Make sure you have a robust following up process. I like to use enquiry forms that I can attach business cards to so I can write a few notes down. That way I can follow up with purpose and make the person feel that I took some interest in what they told me on the day. Otherwise you’ll be met with a pile of cards after the event and you won’t be able to remember who was who!! And make sure you do follow up with everyone. You never know where it can lead.
Another great way to follow up is to invite your prospects to your networking meetings. It’s a great way to get to know each other better, introduce them to some more great people and secure a 121 meeting with them afterwards.
Tip 7: Have snacks and drinks available
Make sure you have plenty of fluids and a snack available before the doors open. You might get really busy for a few hours and it can be very tiring and dehydrating if you don’t drink anything for hours!
Tip 8: Wear comfortable attire and shoes!
Standing and talking all day is really exhausting, especially if you’re not used to doing it. If your feet are hurting you’ll find it hard to stay focused all day and feel very unhappy!
Tip 9: Promote yourself on social media.
Tell people what stand you are on and any promotions or offers you have on the day. Tag your fellow standholders and use the show hashtag if there is one.
Tip10: Don’t pack up early!
While it might look like the show is winding down, it looks unprofessional to pack up while the show is still on going and you never know who is going to walk in and do a last minute walk around. At the very least, if things have quietened down, go and network with other standholders while they aren’t busy either and discuss how your can work collaboratively or make valuable introductions to each other. Often the other exhibitors are your target audience!
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Nicky Thomas is the founder of The Growth Community.
Through fortnightly, enjoyable, but productive meetings, The Growth Community helps businesses build proactive relationships that lead to quality introductions. Networking, when done with purpose, is proven to be one of the most cost effective and sustainable ways to achieve growth in yourself and your business.
If you’d like to attend a meeting visit our Locations Page or find out more about our proactive and friendly community.
