by In this day and age of social media, some companies think that they can replace an in-person connection with a few typed words on a screen. While there’s no doubt that social media can be used to improve customer relationships, there’s nothing like connecting with someone on a personal, one on one way. Here are a few reasons why attending a marketing event with your company’s trade show displays will improve your business’s bottom line — and why industry events aren’t going anywhere.
Trade Show Displays Help You Meet A Lot Of Customers At Once
Sure, social media lets you connect with quite a few customers at one time, but you don’t actually get any feedback from a great majority of these customers. When you meet someone in front of your trade show displays, you can gauge their immediate interest and tailor your conversation to answer any questions or concerns they may have. Because most events attract attendees who are directly interested in your industry, you’ll be able to have hundreds of these personal conversations a day. Try doing that with a social media site!
Monitor Your Competition’s Trade Show Displays
Your competition likely understands the value of these events and because of this will have a presence there. When you attend an event alongside your competition, you’ll be able to determine if they have any new and innovative products or services, but you’ll also be able to compete with them for attendees’ attention. Your presence will help you establish new relationships with potential customers, as well as strengthen your current relationships with your existing ones. If you’re not there, you’re providing your competitors with free access to your entire client base, making it easy for them to steal away your business.
Easily Qualify Leads At Your Trade Show Displays
Customers will approach your exhibit when they’re interested in learning more, which means that you can focus your efforts on customers who are getting ready to purchase. However, there will always be attendees who like to wander around, filling out lead cards to enter every contest in the venue. If you have a giveaway, you could wind up with hundreds or even thousands of names and phone numbers that require a follow-up call. To cut down on the workload when you’re back at the office, try to qualify your customers as much as possible. Find out what they’re interested in and jot down notes that can make following up easier once the event is over.
While it’s true that social media can enhance your company’s relationships with customers, it cannot and should not replace in-person communication and attending marketing events with your trade show displays. If it’s been a while since you attended one of these events, brush up on your sales skills, get that exhibit out of storage (or update it to a completely new model!) and find an industry wide event to attend. You might be shocked at how profitable trade shows can be.
