Tools of the Trade: Maximizing Trade Show Sales – Lead Followup

Part 2 of 2-Parts

By Mark Semmelmayer, CBC
Chief Idea Officer
Pen & Inc. Marketing Communications

Recently, my friend and editor of this publication, Maralah Rose-Asch, asked me to write a blog on trade show lead followup for sales success. As a veteran of countless B2B expos, in many different markets, I told her I could, but in two parts.

The first blog covered qualifying leads at the show, an important first step to maximizing success with lead follow-up. You might want to read it first. This is the second part of the blog; lead followup tips to help close the sale.

The importance of qualifying leads, at or immediately after the show, can’t be overstated. Failing to do it is like scattering seeds on unplowed ground. A few may sprout, but that meager harvest amounts to wasted time and frustration for a marketing or sales staff. We’ve even seen instances where sales folk, getting poor results, stopped following up altogether.

Consider that for a second. What’s that doing to your show ROI?

That frustration is no one-way street. Your potential customer, if not prequalified with an expectation you’ll be in contact, becomes irritated, too. For weeks after the show, they unsubscribe from newsletters and dump emails and sales pitches from companies they barely recognize. That leaves a bad taste in their mouth, and a worse impression of you in their mind.

Not a recipe for winning friends, influencing people . . . or closing a sale.

Now that the COVID crisis has broken, almost two-thirds of marketers plan to increase spending on live events like trade shows, according to a report from Bizzabo. The bigger the investment, the more critical the need for ROI.

For this blog, let’s assume you took the steps outlined in Part 1 to qualify your leads. You’ve established a by-name relationship and promised the prospect you’d be in touch. Some tips for increasing your chance for success in followup.

Welcome them to your list

If they chatted with you or a member of your sales/marketing staff, reference that conversation. Remind them what you shared at the show and why they should engage with you. Make it personal. Connect back to their motivation to explore purchasing from you.

Encourage your staff to make personal connections

Make sure your pros individually follow up with people they spoke to, whether through sending an email, connecting on LinkedIn, or following them on Twitter. Social media becomes more valuable in B2B every day. People build relationships with people, not companies.

Provide event-related content

Again, the event is what connects you. If you have articles or blogs about it, offer to provide them. The prospect’s interest in that show’s focus, and the knowledge gained from it, are why they attended in the first place. This content can be part of a nurturing campaign to demonstrate you’re not just another bozo with a bag.

Nurture your prospect

As a rule, less than 15% of trade show visitors are ready to speak to sales. More importantly, according to Gardner’s latest report on media usage in B2B marketing, about 80% of those actively in the purchase cycle are fairly sure of the brand they’re targeting. That makes the importance of prequalification obvious. You need to separate the wheat from the chaff. Nevertheless, even qualified prospects require nurturing. Develop a lead-nurturing strategy to engage prospects through the marketing funnel, until they’re ready to enter into serious buying conversations.

Keep them engaged, even if they’re not ready to buy

Don’t throw away your list of qualified prospects who don’t buy during this process. Since you already qualified them, their answer might not be a “no,” but just a “not now.” Or, they may not be the final decision maker, but can help you find someone who is. If you continue to treat them as a valuable partner in your efforts. they could become a champion of your brand in the future.

Fundamentally, lead followup is about one-on-one communication. Be sure you, as the sender/seller, is on the right wavelength . . . and getting appropriate feedback from your receiver/prospect to ensure communication is established.

To illustrate, let me share my favorite quote in the world. Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw: “The greatest problem in communication is the illusion that it has been accomplished.”

This blog may seem simplistic to experienced B2B marketers. It’s more for the rookie to mid-level guy or gal who’s looking to better their skill set. Some older hands, like Maralah and I, have a passion for effective B2B marketing, and sharing our experience with newer B2B practitioners. Sadly, not much is taught about B2B in college marketing curricula. We do what we can to fill the gaps.

Hope you enjoyed . . . and good hunting out there!

Need more information?
Mark Semmelmayer, CBC
Chief Idea Officer
Pen & Inc. Marketing Communications
Saint Simons Island, GA
770-354-4737
LinkedIn
 

About the Author

Mark Semmelmayer, CBC

Mark is a past international chairman of the Business Marketing Association (BMA), the 2015 recipient of BMA’s prestigious G.D. Crain Award and an Inductee into the Business Marketing Hall of Fame. A 40-year B2B marketing pro, including 32 years with Kimberly-Clark, he’s the founder and Chief Idea Officer of Pen & Inc. Marketing Communications, a consultancy in Saint Simons Island, GA.