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Follow-Up Mistakes to Avoid

Conventions can be either a lot of fun or a horrible headache, depending on your outlook. Either way, however, trade shows are an essential part of your business marketing strategy. Not only do they allow you to get the word out about your company, they communicate that you’re a thriving business, while also drawing in new potential leads.

However, your experience doesn’t end when you come home from the show. Following up with your potential leads is essential to turning your convention expense into marketing success. Discover some crucial and all-too-common trade show follow up tips to avoid so you can make the most out of your convention marketing experience.

Trade Show Follow Up Mistakes to Avoid

There are a number of common trade show follow up mistakes that can not only fail to bring you extra success, they can actually be costly in time and money. These include not letting bad prospects go, being too generic with follow-ups, getting pushy with leads, failing to listen, and leaving an open-ended pitch.

Not Letting Bad Prospects Go

Not every lead is a good one. Even some that seem like they’ll be outstanding out of the gate sometimes just don’t work for what you need. If they can’t afford your product, if they’re not motivated to buy, if they string you along, or if they’re simply not interested, just let them go. Hanging onto a bad prospect just costs you in time, which is money.

Being Too Generic

One of the most common mistakes companies make is the form letter follow-up. You need to personalize your efforts to reach out to potential leads. Don’t get too personal, or you’ll seem prying, but if you talked with the lead, mention something you talked about. Send a personal message so that they feel they’re getting attention.

Being Pushy with Leads

If a lead doesn’t seem interested, don’t push too hard. Sometimes “no,” means “no.” Don’t try to force them into a hard-and-fast day and date, a deadline by which they must respond. Don’t try to turn what seems like a motivated seller into a desperate one. The hard sell almost never works, and yet for some reason people still try it all too often.

Failing to Listen

It might be hard to accept, since you’re trying to make a sale, but it’s not about you. It’s about your customer and what they need. Listen to what they have to say and keep the dialogue two way and open. You may need to shift strategy based on what you hear.

Leaving an Open-Ended Pitch

By the same token, while you don’t want to be overly pushy, you don’t want to leave things too wide open, either. It’s a delicate balance, but you need to leave the presentation with some sort of solid action item so you can keep the momentum going. Find out their preferred follow up and take it!

More Trade Show Advice

If you’re looking for more trade show advice, tips, tricks or services, Xibit Solutions can help. Check out the full range of trade show services and booth design that we offer, and get in touch to see how we can improve your marketing today!