There’s a good chance that with your trade show participation, you want to collect leads: getting to know new people from your target audience and storing their information in a database. This way, you can later approach them with enticing offers and content. What is needed to achieve this? We’d like to inspire you with these tips!
Position in the funnel
You’ve probably thought about the customer journey of your (potential) customers. You can refer to it now. Determine at which stage of the customer journey the trade show visitors are. Most likely, it’s somewhere at the beginning, between the awareness and consideration phases. Ask yourself how you can trigger your target audience in this stage. What questions and needs do they have? And which of these questions can you answer? Consider organizing a brainstorming session with your team to uncover the key concerns of your target audience. This will make it easier to come up with an engaging lead generation action later on!
Effective action
When you know the questions that your target audience has, you also know what you can offer them in exchange for their information. People don’t just leave their details without a good reason, so your offer must truly provide value.
Here are some ideas:
Content
Questions are easily answered in text (a whitepaper or e-book, for example), an infographic or (animated) video. Provide high quality content.
Game
Gamification can be a fun addition to your trade show presence. Choose a game that aligns with your target audience’s interests. “Want a chance to win a prize? Leave your details.”
Quiz
Another interactive element can be a quiz or test. “Test your knowledge about…” can be a great trigger for specialists in a particular field. To receive the results, they’ll naturally need to provide their details.
Gadget
What gadget would your target audience like to have? All they have to do is leave their information. Offering a significant discount can also work here. They get to know your product or service and may make a purchase!
Invitation
For a workshop, lecture, or webinar. Of course, it should cover a topic your target audience is eager to learn about.
Spread the word!
Once you’ve devised a fantastic action, it needs to be made known to your target audience. Share it on social media, create a display or a large wall that prominently displays the action. If the lead generation action is really well-conceived, it can even act as a crowd-puller. Tip: involve your booth builder in this process. Eldee, for example, can come up with fantastic ways to promote your action.
The collection process
Make it as easy as possible for your visitors to leave their information. For instance, they could simply hand over their business card. Alternatively, you could set up tablets for them to input their details. Collect only the information you genuinely need and avoid long lists of fields to fill out; this lowers the barrier. And it might go without saying, but ensure that the form is GDPR-compliant. In other words, make it as specific as possible why you’re collecting the data.
Don’t forget follow-up
This begins with a thank-you page if you’ve collected the data digitally. It’s also advisable to send a thank-you or follow-up email. With each follow-up, you guide your lead further down the sales funnel. The more specific the follow-up, through segmentation, the better.
Curious how we translate your specific wishes into a stand design? Make an appointment.