Here is a staggering statistic: industry research shows that 80 percent of trade show leads are not followed up on.  If you look at how most companies allocate their personnel and financial resources it is not surprising. 

Nearly all trade show exhibitors overlook the most important step in the process to generate sales – properly following up on every lead.  The result is missed sales opportunities and a significantly lower ROI on their trade shows.  When you think of what it costs to exhibit, with the intention to create a personal relationship, it is amazing how many companies focus so little on the follow-up process.  Across the board, if you asked a vice president of marketing how well they follow-up, the answer will be “poorly.”

The reality is that it is a very expensive undertaking to exhibit at a trade show, and companies do not properly plan the follow-up process to take the steps needed to dramatically improve their results.  They do not have a game plan to address the challenges.

There are two key reasons.  The first is that not all trade show leads are created equal. It is critical that the follow-up process reflects that.  Taking the same approach to every lead will provide poor results and lead to the frustration of the sales team. 

The second reason is that sales teams are not equipped to properly follow-up on trade show leads. Nor do they want to. Typically they will get bogged down and have poor results, if they do it at all. 

Let us break those two concepts out.  First is to understand the different types of leads.  It will help put into perspective what steps need to be taken to generate more sales.

Cherry Picks – These are the leads that the sales reps hand pick to follow-up on.   Typically the sales rep had a solid conversation at the show or is already familiar with the company.  This is where most of the sales come from, or the company could not afford to do the trade show.  There is nothing wrong with cherry picking unless that is where the efforts stop.  Many companies are satisfied with the low hanging fruit and then stop shaking the tree.  The problem is that there are many opportunities that are never developed into sales.  This has a devastating effect on the ROI of the trade show.  In addition, many of the cherry picked leads are opportunities that probably did not require the expense of the trade show to secure.

Buried Cherries – Lost in the leads that are not cherry picked are great sales opportunities.  These are prospects that have an immediate need and will buy from the company that takes the time to follow-up.  These are the leads upon which the sales team needs help to focus its time.  Beating the competition here can dramatically increase the show’s ROI.

Interested with a Time Frame – These are the leads that have a strong interest and represent a genuine selling opportunity, but they cannot meet right away.  Typically their time frame to meet is over the next several weeks.  If the sales team is focusing its efforts on these leads it will not be a good use of its time.  If it waits too long it will lose the opportunity to their competition.  

Wrong Decision-Maker – Often a desired company that has a need stops by the booth, but it is not always the right decision-maker.  These leads will just wear the sales team out.  It takes an extra effort to navigate to the right decision-maker.  It is very difficult to find the sales rep that will have the time to probe beyond the person who stopped by the booth to uncover the opportunity.  Very often great sales are lost because of the strong follow-up commitment that is needed to develop these prospects.

Qualified but Not Interested – These are the leads that meet the right criteria but are just not in a buying mode.  Maybe they have recently purchased from a competitor or made a decision to not address this area of their business yet.  For whatever reason, they have no plan or interest and will not for a long time.  These are the companies that should be kept on the radar but they will not result in a sale now.  By calling on them now, these leads will take up a rep’s time and will not show results for years to come.

Not Qualified – These are the leads where prospects may have a genuine interest and a genuine desire to learn more about your company, but they do not meet the qualification requirements and ultimately will not provide a sales opportunity.  These are the leads that can frustrate the sales team and take their focus off the genuine opportunities.  

Junk – These are the pure time wasters.  These are the ones that literally just wanted the give away.  The problem with the junk leads is not that they lack a sales opportunity, no one expects to sell every lead. The problem is that they get in the way and make it more difficult to know which are the best leads to follow-up on and would be the best use of the sales rep’s time. 
   
This leads us into the second reason that sales teams are not equipped to properly follow-up on trade show leads.  The different types of leads show how important it is to utilize a dedicated team to quality grade the leads prior to sending them to the sales team.

There are a few options here.  Create an inside sales team, a dedicated marketing follow-up team, or outsource the lead qualification process to a team that can focus on quality grading the show leads. 

Inside Sales Team – a dedicated inside sales team is a good way to leverage the time of your field sales team.  The key is to make sure that its members can dedicate themselves to the follow-up process and not be pulled off the phone to help in another stage of the sales process.

Marketing Team – a dedicated marketing team can also be a good alternative.  One key here is to make sure it has the bandwidth to prioritize trade show follow-up on top of all other responsibilities.  The other key is that it has the skills to effectively motivate prospects to take action and begin the sales process.

Outsourced Trade Show Specialists – partnering with a company to handle this process is a great alternative if the inside sales or marketing teams are not in a position to truly dedicate themselves to the process. The key here is that a highly skilled outsourced company can jump in exactly when you need them, quickly quality grade all of the leads, and exit until your next show. All without being an ongoing expense.

For a company looking to dramatically improve the ROI of their trade show here is a summary of steps to consider:

Understand the challenges.  Understand the different types of leads and the benefits of leveraging the time of the sales team.  Do not let the non-qualified leads be an obstacle to reaching and developing all of the sales opportunities from the show.

Make the follow-up process a priority - Increase the amount of time and resources that are allocated to the follow-up process.  A large number of sales are lost because of poor follow-up.  Not following up properly indicates to the prospect that a company does not care about its business.  Do not rely on just sending brochures or an e-mail.  It is critical to call every prospect immediately after the show.  An enormous expense is spent to create a face-to-face relationship.  Determine whether it makes sense for you to have an inside sales team, a marketing team, or an outsourced partner to help the sales team.

Help the sales team focus on the best leads first - Leverage the time of the sales team.  Quality grade every lead so that the sales team can focus its efforts on the best prospects that have a genuine need and interest first. This will have a dramatic effect in beating the competition and increasing the ROI devoted to trade shows.

Increasing the ROI, generating more sales, and eliminating any lost opportunities are the result of a true follow-up plan.  Having a better understanding of the types of trade show leads, and the techniques to develop those leads, will significantly increase results. 

About the author
Mike Drohan is the president of Lead Generation Solutions, a company that specializes in lead qualification solutions for companies looking to leverage the efficiency of its field sales team and increase the ROI on its trade show and event marketing efforts.  For additional information visit www.LeadGenerationSolutions.com or contact him at +1(610) 688-7650.