This post originally appeared on our MHM website
You spend a lot on trade shows. A lot. I mean you spend at least 5k to 10k on just the opportunity to use their concrete. So for that you need a return.
But there are always nagging thoughts.
Is there a better place to spend your money? Does your website need work (if so, I know a guy)? Does your sales staff need more training? Can you get more return from face to face meetings that don’t happen surrounded by your competitors?
If you are on the fence about a show here are a few ways you can look at returns that you may be missing.
Return on Investment. OK if you can actually sell product on the floor that is a great way to figure out ROI. However if you don’t, you have to figure out another way to value leads you garner from the show.
Here a simple equation you can use. Take your average sales, divide them by the number of qualified leads and divide that by the raw leads. Then you can find out how much each lead is worth.
Return on Relationship. How much does it cost your sales people to meet with a decision maker at a business. If they can meet with 5 of your regular customers and and build that relationship and move 25 other down the sales funnel, why would you not?
Return on Objectives. There are other objectives to trade shows then meeting with leads. There is meeting with journalists. There is the above mentioned advance current leads down the sales funnel. What are other objectives that you might have? More branding? Getting more awareness of your product? Obtaining more signups for your newsletter.
So it all sounds great. Now how do you get more people at your booth to pursue these goals? I suggest pre-show marketing.
Want to learn more about it? Contact material handling marketing for a free hour long consultation about your trade show marketing.