Trade Shows

has anyone had a booth at a trade show and then had an increase in business from new customers because of it. we are looking into doing one and would like some unbiased feedback. obviously the people putting on the trade show always tought the successes, but what about all the others that have none. i'd hate to risk a pile of cash especially in this environment, but if its a good means of growing a business than i we would do it.

We have done perhaps a dozen trade shows - to my knowledge we have not gotten a single order from a trade show or because of contacts made at a trade show.

I think we did establish further credibility with some of our customers by having a booth at Glastek in Dusseldorf Germany and then again in Prague . . . funny that at these shows we met with folks who came all the way from the west coast of the US to talk about machines. Why fly 1 hour when you can fly 11?

Ultimately - I think it depends on your business - for us, we sell to people who we build relationships of trust with - and the only way a trade show works is if you have a very high level of follow up with specific people answering specific needs.

The trade show should be the beginning of the sales process - not the whole sales process.

we are a smaller company thats been growing, but have found it difficult to get into larger companies to get work since we don't have a contact name. i would hope that getting some names from the trade show would at a minimum get our foot in the door at least enough to keep it from slamming in our face.

SDConcepts said:

we are a smaller company thats been growing, but have found it difficult to get into larger companies to get work since we don't have a contact name. i would hope that getting some names from the trade show would at a minimum get our foot in the door at least enough to keep it from slamming in our face.

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At one point I was personally doing 12-20 trade shows a year. This was for all industries we service, Hotel, Convention Center, Trade Show organizations, Cruise Ships, Laundry, Hospital, etc.....

We looked at it this way. Some shows were upwards of $15K to attend. Take all that money, and use it to take a trip to see your biggest potential customers. I can take a trip, see one to two customers for around $1K total. That means I can get as much time as I want with 15-25 customers, take them to lunch, run down a presentation, dinner, whatever the case may be. At a trade show I might get 10 minutes with a customer maximum before they run off to my competitors booth.

All business is personal, and unfortunately most of the shows I attend have become very impersonal.

You can also take the money you would save and use that for better marketing, in house sales person. Cost to sample products, etc.....

Also some constructive criticism from the sales side, there is no excuse to not know who your customer is. If it is jsut getting the name, talk nice to the gatekeepers, ask the receptionist who answers the phone, etc. All it is is a phone call. Some results, we just finished our year end last month and we had a 27% increase!


Jason

In 2010 I went to EASTEC.
8-10 months later, people I talked to there were finally getting back to me.
Most ever did a follow up or got me additional info like I asked for.
Not very impressive

As far as like Job Shop Shows.....very expensive, carnival like sales approach from the promoters.
I had one rep tell me honestly once that the shows were mostly a waste of time and big expense for a
smaller shop (less than 10 employees).
You'd maybe be better off attending the show, and rubbing elbows with the folks walking around...

dkmc said:

In 2010 I went to EASTEC.
8-10 months later, people I talked to there were finally getting back to me.
Most ever did a follow up or got me additional info like I asked for.
Not very impressive

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I know exactly what you mean.

Jason,

its funny you should mention talking to secretaries, i don't know how many times i've heard "We don't give out that kind of information!" when asking to speak to someone who is responsible for purchasing parts. i will be getting a list of registered attendees but part of me does worry that even though people will be attending this its like a day off for these buyers and they don't really want to be looking for new suppliers. i am also currently researching who else will be attending and see if its worth our time.

I have done tons of trade shows but I have products to sell so it works out ok. I get orders from schools and universities through the shows. The sales at the show will usually pay for the cost of the show sort of. The sales after the shows to the schools really make it worth it. The shows are insanely expensive not only to attend but to ship all the stuff to. Then they rape you with storage charges and table and chair fees, not to mention the 5 dollar a cup coffee and the 10 dollar bagel. I do 2 shows a year now.

SDConcepts said:

its funny you should mention talking to secretaries, i don't know how many times i've heard "We don't give out that kind of information!" when asking to speak to someone who is responsible for purchasing parts. i will be getting a list of registered attendees but part of me does worry that even though people will be attending this its like a day off for these buyers and they don't really want to be looking for new suppliers. i am also currently researching who else will be attending and see if its worth our time.

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Change up your approach. What always works best for my team

1. call and tell whomever answers who you are and the company

2. be polite to that person, as soon as they put the phone on hold, they are talking to the person you want to talk to. I had one gal that was so rude, no one would ever pick up the phone. She was too corporatized to realize that the call was no going to mega corp X and blindly transferred. Once she changed her attitude to the receptionist she had better success.

3. When they ask the reason you are calling, tell them what you do and you want to find out how to be placed on their bid list. - This tugs at the low price desires of most, but you will win them over with great product, quality, and service. Not racing to the bottom with the lowest price.

In regards to the trade shows, also think about the wear and tear on you and time away from your business. While it doesn't have a traceable cost, ask yourself what your time is worth.

Jason

back in the early 80s I would do one or two shows a year and always figured if I picked up one customer because of it then it was worth it. Now I like going to shows, they are a great way of learning about a market, and I have initiated business at them. I think they are still a viable marketing method, perhaps one of many in your stratagy. I would think it is a good way to get started if you can afford it.
I occasionally get a call from a rep who is "following up on an trade show inquiry" and eventually figure out it was from a card scan a year before. THen the opposite, I make a casual inquiry and two days later get a 5 lb box of catalogs via Fed-X [really happened].

I have worked several of the SME sponsored shows over the years and a dozen IMTS Shows.
I find them to be super expensive especially if you bring some equipment as the shows charge you premium prices to unload your machines. The crews are union run and you pay for millwrights to move you machines, connect your electrical and plumbing needs. In some shows you can't even assemble your own booth.
Many of the people who attend the shows are shy and will stand in the isle and look. I always stood on the isle and greeted them, started up a conversation, asked them what they were looking for, etc. You can't be shy and hope someone will walk into your booth. I use to hire a model or a Kelly Girl to stand and talk to the potential customers while I was busy talking to someone else. If you have one hot lead your talking to and if someone isn't there to talk to the others they will walk out and not come back. When I handed out brochures which cost a lot to print, many seem to walk in take them and I figured they used it to start their fireplaces. because they would walk in and take them and not even say hello. I learned it was easier and cheaper to have a one sheet hand out with my services and products with a business card stapled to it. The shows give the attendee's a credit card type ID and they charge you a small fortune to rent a card reader or a small laptop to scan the cards. To follow up after the shows I would call these folks and maybe 1 out of 500 I would sell something to them. There are so many hidden costs plus you will pay $10.00 for a lousy hot dog and coke for lunch. The hotels rates seemed to go up when the convention was in town. The last few years many of the machine dealers I know have "Open Houses" at their place and they tell me they have better results. I also think you would have better luck making cold calls out of magazines, the phone book.or go to a show and talk to people.
But, I bet you will go once or twice to see for yourself. I have fun meeting people as I am not a shy guy. Plus the room and maid service at the hotels makes it a mini vacation...ha ha.