Marketing materials? Check. Team to man the stand? Check. Promotional giveaways? Check.
How about tactics to win new business and boost brand awareness amongst our VIP attendees? With CHS Birmingham kicking off in just under 4 weeks we’ve got you covered with our top tips to increase engagement, boost ROI and get the most out of your participation at the Show!
1. Brief the team and play to your strengths
Make sure your team on the stand are on-board with the plan for the day! From show objectives, key messages and details of products and services down to the rota, where brochures are kept and most importantly how to use the lead capture tool!
Give your team specific roles and consider who is best at engaging with visitors, who is best at presenting your product and services and who is responsible for lead capture. Make sure you you consider strengths within your team and support each other.
2. Personalise your sales approach
Instead of launching into your well rehearsed 2-3 minute sales pitch that you can recite in your sleep, try starting out by asking the visitor what they are looking for and what challenges they are facing. Once you get this valuable information from your potential lead, then you can decipher if what you offer is right for them. If you believe you can solve their issues and make all their events dreams come true, then fantastic! Focus your conversation from that point forward on how you can specifically benefit them.
What if you’re not the right fit? First and foremost don’t panic and fall back into your trusty rehearsed sales pitch! They will appreciate your honesty and your integrity for not taking up their time if you’re not quite what they’re looking for. This will build trust and might even lead to another opportunity with them down the road. Maybe they’ll recommend you to someone in their network or maybe you’ll fit their needs in the future.
3. Have a clear overview of your best 2-3 features…and show them off!
You might have a million amazing features about your hotel that you want to show off but resist the urge and draw attention to your best 2 to 3. You want to focus people’s attention in an otherwise manic environment and really blow their mind away by emphasising your best features.
Have a think about what makes you unique compared to other venues or suppliers in the country. Consider showing off your social proof including how many successful events you have hosted or a particularly dazzling testimonial from a past client.
4. Arrange to meet with existing customers and leads
Take advantage of the fact that all of your connections are all in one room and schedule a catch-up with existing contacts. Reach out to any current leads you have that you know will be in attendance and offer to meet up at your stand at a certain time to have a chat.
These could be previous clients, people who you had a chat with but plans fell through or maybe a lead you have recently started chatting to. An exhibition show is a great place to continue those conversations and win business from them.
You should actively promote your stand location on social media in the weeks running up to to the Show. This might spark up some conversations before the show with potential connections who you can then arrange to meet up with.
5. Capture leads and have a process for following up
Had a great conversation with a new lead? Make sure you to capture their details using your lead retrieval device or ask for business card so you can follow up with them post-show. Make sure to write down in your notes what they are looking for, what issues they need solving and how you can help them resolve them.
When the exhibition is over, follow up with each person mentioning something you discussed so they know you were listening to their needs. Event professionals are a busy bunch and they appreciate being heard, especially after a day of meeting a large number of people. Impress them with your attentiveness and increase the chance of getting that sale!
So, there you have it, our top five tips for exhibiting at CHS Birmingham!