Lessons Learned: Maximize your next trade show

As most of our peers gear up for another Natural Products Expo, I thought some of our previous experience (in the trenches) could be helpful to share.  As I mentioned in my earlier article on generating sales, I wish we had exhibited at a trade show sooner than we did. They can be incredibly productive at the right time in your growth cycle. Even so, I continue to hear folks lamenting that the expense did not generate enough of an immediate return. In the spirit of lessons learned, here’s what we have found to be successful.

Go in with a plan

At the time of our first trade show, we had no distribution whatsoever, so our primary intention was to introduce our product to people who could buy it. We went in with a plan, instead of showing up and saying, “Here we are!” No matter how good your product, you can’t merely show up, set up your booth, and expect the orders to roll in (unless, of course, it's a consumer-focused show).

We proactively made a list of our top ten target accounts and researched the buyer, store manager, or category manager to determine who we wanted to meet. In some cases, when we hit a dead end, we simply reached out to someone at the company for whom we could find an email or phone number and asked them to direct us to the right contact. In the lead up to the show, through LinkedIn and Google, we were able to get in touch with those contacts we identified.

Now that we are more established, we use the same process but with new products and new intentions. We also use the shows to galvanize existing relationships by setting up coffee or dinner with contacts at our key accounts as well as to network with our peer groups and learn the answers to questions we have. What does a category review look like at this specific retailer? What has your experience been with that distributor? What is your experience with xyz private equity group?

Be persistent

The squeaky wheel gets the grease. There is a fine line between persistence and annoyance, but tenacity can be the differentiator in a sale.

During the show, we keep tabs on who we've talked to and who we still need to see. Shows will try to sell you scanners for attendees’ badges for tracking purposes, but we keep everything on yellow pads (we're scrappy like that). We message contacts at night to remind them to stop by the booth the next day, sample the product, and meet us. And we always put our booth number in our out of office messages and signatures.

We also keep track of the intelligence we gather – for example, once we uncover which retailers work with which distributors, we can then approach the distributor to present a list of their retail clients who want our product.

Measure the return

When attending a show, we always go in with a plan, know our intentions, and measure the outcomes generated from leads created there. Because of that process, it is easier to determine how effective each show is and whether we should do it again.

However, you can’t quantify every relationship. Even if you land an account at a trade show, it is difficult to estimate what the lifetime value might be – you may break even for a year or more before the account becomes profitable. The Whole Foods buyer you spent three hours with over dinner may choose to expand your account, or she may accept a new job at Safeway and give you an opportunity for a new account. The measurement can’t always be direct to dollars and cents; you should also count relationship advances.

Know when to step back

If done right, trade shows are fantastic investments to grow your business. But they can also be distracting, and it’s an investment that can see diminishing ROI over time without clear goals set for each event. Tons of money gets blown on ego at these shows trying to upstage a competitor with a bigger/cooler booth. DON'T fall for this trap!

When we figured out that trade shows would yield a high volume of highly qualified leads quickly, we attended everything, and it was worth it. But at this stage in our growth cycle, we have re-evaluated all that participation. Trade shows are expensive, time-consuming, and taxing on all your resources. They can distract from executing on what’s in front of you.

We are seizing opportunities to launch new products with key accounts where we have established relationships. We're going deeper with existing accounts, so we are dialing back our trade show participation. In 2017, we attended 14 trade shows, but in 2018, we’ll participate in just three. We no longer need to attend everything, so we are more strategic about which shows are imperative for us. We need our money, time, and energy focused in the right places at the right time, and so do you.

When you set goals, go in with a plan, are persistent with follow-up, and measure the return, tradeshow participation can yield incredible benefits. It worked for us; it can work for you.