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Did you get your money’s worth from your last trade show? That may be the most important marketing question you’ve asked this year. If the answer is an emphatic ‘NO’ OR, worse yet, ‘I DON”T KNOW’, you may want to ask yourself some very revealing questions. First off, you might want to ask, “Do a high percentage of my target market know who my company is and what my company does? Obviously trade shows can’t do this alone; but choosing the right trade show(s) [where your direct competition is] is a great tool to augment all those advertising, marketing, social media, public relations and merchandising dollars you’re spending. Trade Shows attract highly motivated individuals who attend to achieve some important goals for their companies, namely: to see what’s new in the market place and yes even ‘buy’ your product or service if given the correct stimuli. So how can I track my ROI or, at the very least, stimulate my ROI? Here are a few tips; 1) Put a system in place to track the visitors to your trade show site. The basics census information is obvious but you can drill down deeper to gain key buying information – how are sales made; who makes what decisions; are their cycles; what are the major problems they face and what keeps them up at night? You can find all this out in a matter of a few minutes, without being intrusive, and either send them on their way OR meet them for dinner that night depending or the information you receive and the degree of their interest. ALL of this information should be condensed in a formal report sheet (weather it be a 3’ x 5’ card or a ‘fill-in-the-blanks’ 81/2’ x 11” form the very same day its collected. Don’t wait until the next day or the show is over; you’ll already have lost 80% of the information you collected. 2) Be sure everybody at your company is ‘on board’ with whatever goals have been determined. Are you endeavoring to recruit new partners or employees; are you intent on signing a specific number of annual contracts; are you determined to gain as much trade press as possible on your new product or service introduction – then keep track of every goal. Julian O’Connor, celebrated trade show guru, states: “Planning (and, by extension, tracking) of the functional benefits a trade show can deliver gives [management] a better sense of the impact a show can have on your company and your bottom line.” 3) Follow up every contact within a week of returning from the show. I know exactly what you’re thinking, “I can’t do it that fast”. Here’s the simple truth – if you don’t, your competition will – so a word to the wise. Yes, you should follow up. The individual who visited your booth space talked to you, not your boss or his boss. Recount every shred of information you took down on your report and determine if that information is still accurate. Also determine the circumstances surrounding the ‘need’ brought out in your conversation at the show, still exists. This is your sale to be had and your opportunity to make the ROI for that trade show the best its ever been. 4) Finally, don’t even consider doing just one show. Why? Because you’ll never be able to accurately gage the investment in time, energy and money with nothing else to compare. O’Connor goes on to say, “Consider trade shows to be targeted marketed which allow you to get closer to the client in a faster, more trustworthy fashion. Trade shows allow you to bypass the cold call process. If the normal sales cycle for your product or service is say three months from qualification to completion then a trade show lead should close in that length of time or less. By having a trade show schedule of a minimum of two shows a year (one in the spring and one in the fall) [but definitely preferably more] you are continuously filling that cycle of qualified leads and turning them into sales. That’s the best measure ever for ROI at tradeshows. Jim Deady (Day-de) is a 28-year veteran in the trade show industry who owns www.showstopperexhibits.com, a complete trade show display, graphics, banner stand and accessory website. To make your next trade show experience a complete showstopper, visit the Website OR call (888) 440-0377. For more information about Pop-Up Exhibits, Pop-Up Booths and Pop-Up Displays please visit: http://www.showstopperexhibits.com/
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