SELLING AT EXHIBITIONS IS DIFFERENT
Exhibitors often assume that the processes used in day- to-day selling will automatically translate at exhibitions. This assumption often limits sales success at shows.
Day to day selling is a proactive process. We familiarise ourselves with a client way ahead of making
a call or attending a meeting. We examine the company website, check for mutual connections across social media etc, until we have a thorough understanding of the client’s needs – enabling a better outcome.
However, anyone can visit our booth at a trade show and this forces exhibitors to adopt a more
reactive approach to selling. Sharper qualification skills are vital if we are to successfully implement such an approach. It’s well worth considering personal qualification markers ahead of the show.
Categorising the types of visitors, we are likely to encounter at a trade show (as per the examples below) enables us to qualify visitors, to quickly identify genuine customers and generate more sales.
THE TYRE KICKER
It’s reported that about 30% of visitors to a trade show are described as tyre kickers. These are people who will never buy from you and the key is to identify them early on. Your hours at the show are finite and valuable, pre-planning qualifying questions before the show will ensure time isn’t wasted.
THE GATHERER
A person who is on a mission to get information and considering their options - definite potential clients for the future if we don’t push too hard. Patience and professionalism are rewarded with this buyer as they tend to be a loyal customer in the long term. We just need to delve deeper into their ‘BANT’ – Budget, Authority, Need and Time frame.
THE BUYER
Luckily, most visitors fall under this category. ‘The buyer’ is the reason we take the decision to exhibit and they are the ones we want to engage with.We need to bring our A-Game to these conversations and ensure we collect all relevant data to enable a personalised follow up post-show.
THE FREELOADER
Be wary of visitors expecting lots of exhibition freebies as it could provide a glimpse of what doing business with them is like.
These types of customers tend to be more price conscious and although it’s risky to completely discount them, using strong qualifying questions enables you to identify genuine opportunities.
THE ENTHUSIAST
Eager and genuinely interested to find out about your business, ‘the enthusiast’ will be laden with an array of competitor bags and brochures. However, this is not a bad thing.
This visitor is clearly in the market and the key here is to establish who they have visited and what impressed them most about each company. This information provides a valuable insight into what is important to them, enabling you to perfectly position your offer.
SUMMARY
Selling at exhibitions can be hard work! Not least because we are often client facing for the full 8-10 hours of show open. They are still the best way to engage with new clients and if we take time to plan our approach, the opportunity for increased business is unrivalled.
