- Don’t show up late or close your booth early. Trade show attendees who come early or late are often ready to buy.
- Look like a pro. This is a professionally staffed Expo. Wear your ID badge and act in a professional manner. Do not allow eating, drinking or casual conversation by staff in the booth. This is a serious sales opportunity – not a daylong coffee break!
- If you can’t staff it, don’t reserve it. Your booth should be staffed at all times with pleasant people who really want to be there and want to help prospective customers learn about your business. Select staff that can maintain high energy and enthusiasm for long hours at the show and make sure they are prepared to answer technical questions.
- Get out from behind that table. Place table so it does not form a barrier between you and visitors. Also, placing product brochures at the end of the table encourages visitors to pick them up and move on, and defeats efforts to establish a dialogue with prospects. Good prospects will pass a booth where the staff appears lethargic, preoccupied with paperwork or are seated on chairs at the back of the booth.
- Prepare to close Recognize that the words “We’ll send you information” postpone the buying process and can turn a buyer off. It may also send them to someone who has time to deal with them – possibly at your competitor’s booth.
- Rack ‘em up. Your goal should be to go home empty-handed. Swap your material for their business card. Put your print in your rack or on your table and keep ‘em full.
- Book ‘em. On Saturday, hundreds of people will be walking past your booth. Your goal should be to make appointments with legitimate prospects, rather than make a single sale.
- Wow ‘em . . . don’t plow ‘em. People want to be enlightened; they don’t want to be badgered.
- Bring along the boss. Does everybody want to meet the Big Cheese, the Top Dawg, the Big Kahuna? Bring ‘em along.
- Have fun. Enjoy the chance of pace; meet people and network with other businesses.
How to get the most out of your display booth at the Expo
