Want to grow your exhibition leads?

The event might have finished, but you’re not. 80% of sales come after the 5th contact, so after the exhibition is when the real work begins. It’s time to start making a return on all the effort you put into your exhibition. But how?

What you do after the event is what makes it a success. Here’s what you need to be considering:

Working faster secures leads

Work fast and effectively. Contact your leads as early as possible. Ideally, plan this strategy before the event, when planning your pre-event activity. Doing this will mean now all you need to do is hit go and launch it.

The quicker you do this, the better. Responding faster makes you look more professional, proactive and better placed than competitors who are slower off the mark.

Lay off the sales

Don’t just attack these leads with a huge sales punch, instead be clever about it. Qualify the leads with conversations, further offers and general engagement. Sales after events don’t come from the first phone call. It’s about building the relationships, understanding their needs and engaging with them.

Don’t template your leads

Leads are individuals. Don’t just hit send on a huge batch of templated emails or marketing material. Speak to them directly. When sending emails, write them yourself and answer questions directly. Be specific and personal in every interaction you have with a client.

Call to Action

Your call to action is critical and must grab their attention. Of course “Find out more” can work, but to really grab attention you might want to consider something different. Whether it is free trials or exhibition related discounts is down to you, just remember it is about standing out from the pack.

Relationships

Now is the time to build up all the potential relationships you have begun. Start thinking long-term instead of just thinking about the quick win. Be persistent and don’t give up. But be careful, you don’t want to be pushy. The simple rule here is to keep the conversation going and going and going.

Be Persistent

It’s worth restating, as ultimately it’s this that will make your plan work. So telling yourself: 80% of sales come after the 5th contact. And again, be persistent and don’t give up. The right plan coupled with persistence will pay dividends in the end.

Think first

Your events success, or failure, is down to your planning, and how you handle each lead that you gathered at the event. If you have a considered plan for before during and after, then you are giving yourself the best possible chance of success.

However, your post-event activity is what will drive this success at the end of the day. And it’s the most commonly missed part of the process. So don’t let all your hard work in planning your exhibition go to waste by not preparing for what comes after.