How important is good face-to-face engagement at exhibitions? Well without it, your investment could definitely go to waste.
A booth that’s textbook-plain will detract visitors as effectively as a cold wind. And never mind their contact details, prospects are unlikely to leave with a smile when your staff use pushy sales methods.
Communication skills fueled by smart strategies and innovative ideas. That’s how you’ll meet your lead generation targets. In this post, discover the art of attracting attendees using effective face-to-face engagement.
Gather a Team of Hawks
Unless they’re on a delegated break, your trade show staff need stay on top of their responsibilities and be on the lookout for potential prospects.
Imagine you’re an attendee. How would you react if you saw staff sitting down or on their phones at a booth? Your first thought would be that they aren’t interested in your business. You might also assume they’re unprofessional: an opinion that could stretch to the business they represent.
Your team captain’s job is to ensure staff stay sharp. They’re responsible for rotating breaks and ensuring attendees get the attention they need to become leads.
If you’re lacking this critical addition to your team, consider a new hire through a specialist staffing agency specialising in exhibition booth staff. That way, you can ensure your trade show team are using their skills to maximise face-to-face engagement and capture more leads.
Encourage Time-Efficient Engagement
Not all attendees are prospects. You know this, but do you know how to filter through the time-wasters?
Your team should be comprised of interrogators; albeit subtle ones. Specific questions will help them sift for golden leads. Here are some questions that will help your staff determine who is worth their time:
1. What specific products or services are you looking for?
2. Are you part of the buying team?
3. What are your main criteria for buying?
4. Do you have any specific questions about our products or services?
Use these qualifying questions to speed up face-to-face interactions, giving your team extra time to capture leads.
Conversations Are Better Than Explanations
Sometimes trade shows are like battlefields. Attendees have to withstand an assault of pitches and product explanations. Don’t become the enemy. Engage with prospects in meaningful ways to foster worthwhile connections.
You can achieve this with conversations that are more about the prospect and less about your products or services. People love talking about themselves, as Psychology Today highlights:
“Self-disclosure is gratifying. It gives us a neurological buzz.”
The trick to good conversation lies in having charismatic staff members trained in lead generation. For example, after hiring lead generation staff from Expo Stars, ProSymmetry went from capturing 65 leads per show to an average of 130. This was a direct result of using expo professionals who know how to make people feel comfortable during the conversation.
Inventing Interactive Experiences
Your trade show strategy needs to include customer interactions with your products. Immersing people in memorable experiences will leave a lasting impression and help you stand out of the crowd.
Here’s how to adopt the interactive approach for effective face-to-face engagement:
1. Hire charismatic salespeople to demonstrate your product or service
2. Draw attention to your booth using expert crowd gatherers and eye-catching visuals
3. Involve visitors into your presentation through interaction
Using tech can make customer interactions powerful, elevating your brand image.
Here’s a great example: at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, using virtual reality headsets, Intel gave attendees the opportunity to fly over Moab in a wingsuit. Back on solid ground, they were transported to Vietnam to gaze at the Ban Gioc waterfall. The effect was an unforgettable user experience.
There has never been a better time to harness the power of virtual or augmented reality. It allows you to deliver incredible customer experiences in a simple but innovative way.
Virtual reality creates an opportunity for businesses to establish a strong emotional connection with target consumers and their product.” – Business News Daily
Reeling in Prospects with Rewards
“The anticipation of being rewarded by others for engaging in specific behaviours, drives much of the choices we make in life — how we perform our jobs and what products we chose to buy.” – Jeanette McMurtry, Target Marketing Magazine
Rewards make customers feel good. It’s science. Leverage this by integrating rewards into your presentations. You could offer the:
● A tip sheet that’s exclusively for event attendees
● A freebie that stands as a promotional token (e.g. a branded pen)
● A lucky draw entry for an attractive price related to your business
Ensure that the reward ties into your business so people can associate good feelings with what you sell.
Taking a Masterclass in Expo Engagement
Exhibiting can be tricky to get right and businesses often fail to see a substantial ROI. A common mistake is to let the sales team, who lack relevant training, run the show.
Just as your accountants need training in finance, your trade show staff need to be well-versed in the language of exhibitions. This is why a masterclass in exhibiting can be worth its weight in gold.
For example, in an Expo Stars Masterclass, individuals are taken through each step of an effective exhibition strategy. They apply what they learn during the class to achieve success on the show floor
● How to qualify leads
● How to measure results effectively
● How to know if you’ve achieved your ROI
“It was well structured with plenty of relevant examples from real life and provided a sensible approach to designing a successful exhibition stand.” – Marketing Manager, Fujitsu Siemens
Making the most of an exhibition starts with a game-changing engagement strategy. Nail face-to-face interactions using what you’ve learnt today with an Expo Stars Masterclass.
Do you have more questions for us? Then please drop us a line on 0161 834 9478 or submit your enquiry. We can’t wait to hear from you!