INSIGHT ON: TRADE SHOW LEADS

You exhibit at trade shows to create awareness about your company and to obtain leads. So once you obtain these leads, what do you plan to do with them?

You should have a plan of attack ready to handle your leads prior to exhibiting at the show. Here are a few things to consider when creating your plan:

• Send the leads back to the office on a daily basis so that they can be entered and answered within a short time period. Remember – the prospect most likely visited your competition so you’ll have a competitive advantage if you follow up with them first!
  
• Assign someone at the office the responsibility of entering the leads into the database and mailing or emailing the information. This short term assignment should be considered a priority.
  
• Identify the information to be mailed (or emailed). Make sure that the pieces are updated and readily available.
  
• Create a sales process. Decide if the leads will be pre-qualified at the corporate office or sent directly to the territory sales rep. And then, once the prospect is contacted, have a follow up plan that will continually work the leads.
  
• Communicate the plan to your team so there are no questions or confusion about each person’s responsibilities.

You are probably spending a large portion of your marketing budget on trade shows. Having a plan ready before you exhibit is one way of obtaining a higher return on your investment and ultimately increasing your sales.