Top Five Trade Show Myths

A myth is a popular but false belief or tradition that has grown up around something or someone. The Trade Show Industry has many popular myths that can mask the truth and limit the success of our trade show events. So today, my goal is to be a myth buster by listing the top five trade show myths along with the reality that these myths often mask.

Myth: Having a raffle will gather lots of great leads for the sales team.

Reality: The myth of using raffles and "fish bowls" to collect business cards as an effective way to collect leads is the top trade show myth. The only time a raffle is a strategy to consider at a trade show is if you are building a mailing list. If you are looking for qualified leads for your sales team, this is not the way to go. You will end up with too many unqualified contacts, making your sales force inefficient by wasting their time on follow-up while missing out on reaching the real prospects quickly.

Myth: You always need to have promotional items readily available where attendees can pick them up to get them to stop at the booth.

Reality: If you are looking for qualified leads, this is not the way to go. Having a general promotional item that you hand out to all attendees will drive a lot of traffic to the booth, but will not produce qualified leads nor create specific memories of what your company does and why an attendee should do business with you.

A better approach is to either have the promotional items stored away or at the back of the booth, and only handed out after an attendee has had a conversation with your booth staffer. It can also work to have a higher priced promotional item that only gets handed out after a booth staffer has determined that an attendee is a qualified one.

Myth: Show offered lead retrieval is always the best way to capture leads.

Reality: While there are many good lead retrieval systems offered by trade shows, they are not always the best approach for your business to collect the information your sales team needs for follow-up. An important part of the lead capture process is gathering information for your sales team to be used during follow-up. This includes answers to questions on purchasing time frame, product interest, notes about the conversation the booth staffer had with the attendee, etc.

Next time you are offered a lead retrieval system from the show, ask if you have the ability to customize the information collected. You need to ask attendees questions and have the ability to take notes. If the device does not have this ability, consider other lead retrieval options that you can rent or purchase, such as LeadWizard, NewLeads, CardScan Lead Qualifier, or simply print up your own lead form.

Myth: Our booth staffers don't need training.

Reality: All booth staffers need training, even "veteran" booth staffers. It is common for companies to learn their booth staff skills on the fly at the show, and continue with this method year after year. This is far from producing the optimal results your company can achieve at a trade show.

Exhibitors who want exceptional results from trade shows provide booth staff training for each show, covering items such as key prospects for that particular event; key VIPs who will come to the booth; new marketing approaches; public relations goals; handling competitors; booth etiquette; engaging, qualifying, and closing techniques; as well as role playing; etc. When done right, booth staff training can improve ROI at each and every show you exhibit.

Myth: Networking events are a waste of time.

Reality: Networking events provide the opportunity to speak with other exhibitors and attendees in a more casual environment than the show floor allows. This gives you the ability to make deeper and more meaningful connections with them. It is always important to attend the events where you can meet the targeted people you are looking for at the show. A good approach is to look at the event descriptions and determine which booth staffers would be a good fit for the various events; then split up the networking.

Hopefully, this article may remind you to question anything you take for granted. 

About the Author

Linda Musgrove is President of the trade show training firm, TradeShow Teacher. She focuses on teaching companies to significantly improve trade show results through strategic, customized trade show training for individuals, departments, or entire teams. Training options include phone consulting, webinars, seminars, and one-on-one in person coaching. Linda authored "The Complete Idiots Guide to Trade Shows" published by Alpha Books/Penguin Publishing. Learn more at www.tsteacher.com and sign up for the free monthly Trade Show Tactics newsletter. Follow her on Twitter at: Tsteacher.