"To Paul, Thank you for the opportunity to serve. Great working with your team," signed Orvel Ray Wilson in a postcard. Orvel is an internationally acclaimed author and speaker on sales, marketing and management. And so we got to chat about trade show selling....
For sales people, whether you usually sell in a showroom, retail store, customer's office or over the phone, you'll need a different set of skills to succeed at trade show selling.
Consider these differences. At shows, you have an opportunity to talk to people who are usually unreachable. Then there's the peer-pressure effect that you don't usually have during a one-on-one sales call. And you can reach lots of people in a very short time.
The average visitor spends 6 hours visiting exhibits and spends time in an average of 17 booths. Over 80% of buyers have buying influence, yet only less than 10% of these buyers were called on by salespeople prior to the show.
Your approach is critical. It is really not difficult. Get it right, and sales will soar.
I only choose to exhibit at shows that are right for the organization. Some of my peers exhibit because (1) they've always gone to this show (2) they're doing an educational session (3) they'll get to see all their friends (4) they want to train their new salespeople (5) the show's in Bangkok.
I always work the press and parties for extra impact. I hit the floor on opening day full of enthusiasm and maintain my momentum throughout the show. I work on relationships. When you consider the economic power of repeat and referral business, the relationship is more important than a single transaction.
For sales people, whether you usually sell in a showroom, retail store, customer's office or over the phone, you'll need a different set of skills to succeed at trade show selling.
Consider these differences. At shows, you have an opportunity to talk to people who are usually unreachable. Then there's the peer-pressure effect that you don't usually have during a one-on-one sales call. And you can reach lots of people in a very short time.
The average visitor spends 6 hours visiting exhibits and spends time in an average of 17 booths. Over 80% of buyers have buying influence, yet only less than 10% of these buyers were called on by salespeople prior to the show.
Your approach is critical. It is really not difficult. Get it right, and sales will soar.
I only choose to exhibit at shows that are right for the organization. Some of my peers exhibit because (1) they've always gone to this show (2) they're doing an educational session (3) they'll get to see all their friends (4) they want to train their new salespeople (5) the show's in Bangkok.
I always work the press and parties for extra impact. I hit the floor on opening day full of enthusiasm and maintain my momentum throughout the show. I work on relationships. When you consider the economic power of repeat and referral business, the relationship is more important than a single transaction.
Jeffrey (left), Cassandra (middle) in Seoul
STB booth at BITF in Busan, Korea
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