Today’s guest post is authored by Charles Allen of the CW Allen Group.
One of the most critical mistakes booth staffers make at trade shows is failing to engage attendees who pass by their booth, whether they seem interested or not. The research proves that they are highly unlikely to ever return to your exhibit area during the show.
Furthermore, a major common complaint expressed by attendees is (naturally, in varying semantics) “I came to the show to find optimal solutions and too few ‘new potential partners’, actually engaged me.” That’s the very reason today’s attendees are visiting the show to begin with! They’re not there to simply collect information. Today’s attendees are more educated, informed, sophisticated and time-impoverished than ever before.
It’s the exhibitor’s job to reach out and initiate new conversations with all potential prospects during the few seconds they’re afforded this precious opportunity. Every prospective attendee (who passes your booth and makes any modicum of friendly eye contact) should be engaged, or each represents a significant ‘lost opportunity’
Most companies naturally select outgoing, type A personalities to work in their booths during the show, therefore many mistakenly expect that the attendees will have similar personalities. The truth is that many of these buyers have reserved Type B personalities and work in Purchasing or other non-Sales & Marketing departments. These individuals must be invited into your booth with a very relaxed and comfortable tone.
Focus on making genuine human connections with all prospects while engaging, remembering that nothing works like sincerity. Put your heart, personality, sense of humor and passion into every connection. And, allow the prospect to feel in control of the buying cycle, while you guide the presentation by asking strategic probing questions. You should listen 80% of time, and only talk 20% of time because as my grandfather use to say, “Your ears will out-earn your mouth.” In the new exhibition marketplace, the buyer has all of the power… and he or she knows it!
Failure to do the aforementioned only results in increased disconnections… and thus, ‘dividers’ of your ROI.
