Trade Fairs in Indonesia, a Great Place to Meet New Customers

On regular frequency, we accompany businesses to successful fairs, an event where it is all about meeting the right people and much is expected from marketing, sales and the board of directors. Here we aim to offer a complete point of reference with reviews to give you an informed assessment to decide which events are relevant for your business.

Why are expectations high when it comes to fair participation?

• We will see our clients
• Many prospective clients walk around there
• We have a wonderful stand, so we “stand out”
• It requires capital so it needs to bear fruit

Here are some thoughts as if you talk to the manager within a company who organize a fair participation. Unfortunately, not everyone succeeds as well in order to make a success of the fair.

To begin with, the basic principles:

We will see our clients

True, if you have invited them all, they will come for a catch up chat and to see what's new in your offerings. Often they also come, looking for a “deal”. Was this indeed the main purpose of the exhibition? Fairs where the order blocks cannot be dragged to, do not exist anymore; the current trade fair is a place for exchanging information. This has just one advantage: as a good sales person, at a fair you can receive more clients in one day, than you are able to visit in a day. This can be done at an expensive location (trade fair) or at a well-organized, comfortable “open house” event at your company, if this is your goal.

There are many prospective clients around!

If you are at the right fair, indeed many potential new customers walk around who all are interested in your products or services. There are also walking around many people who are not really the right prospect for you. How do you filter out the right contacts? Also, all your competitors are present at the fair. Your clients and prospects start comparing. It is the big market place where clients and prospects do their (re)orientation whether they have the right contacts.

As an exhibitor, you will be faced with visitors who come for:

• Orientation and information
• Experience some fun
• Gathering contacts
• Doing business if possible
• Comparing various exhibitors on:
   - How do they get addressed on various stands?
   - How is the role of host/hostess fulfilled?
   - How professional are the account managers?
   - How do they actually go into specific questions and signals?
   - The ‘targeted’ is the giveaway of documentation?
   - How to 'direct' one into making a follow-up appointment?
   - How is shaken “Good bye” at the end of the conversation?

What is often forgotten is that all prospective customers walking around do immediately come to have a look at your stand; present account managers and sales people’s task is to approach and talk to these people. Instead of socializing together the trick is to speak with as many as possible prospective customers and tempt them to engage in conversations.

We have a wonderful stand, so we “standout”

A great stand certainly helps to stand out properly, but is not always a guarantee for success, does the image of the stand match the position at which you want to radiate as a company. Through the bustle of the fair and many stands, customers and prospective clients are looking for recognition and fun. Make sure your stand makes the right appeal with the right look. Active people on the stand take care of contacts and liaising with the passers. Please note that in this beautiful stand, there should never be standing more of your own people than customers because this will scare them away.

It requires capital so it needs to bear fruit

Often is thought: We invest a small fortune in the trade fair so then success will come naturally. Besides the cost of the stand, there are many other expenses, parking, accommodation, food & drinks, extra hours of people, which increase the cost of the fair. So, a trade show is an expensive event.

It is essential when participating in any fair to have a clear purpose and to discuss this matter with the present team members:

• How many customers do you want to talk to
• How many prospective customers do you want to talk to
• How many advisers or others involved do you want to talk to
• How much revenue do you want to generate
• How many appointments do you want to score
• How many call-back appointments do you want to note

Each of these criteria can be linked to targets and potential revenue. When this picture is complete you can make a cost-benefit analysis and steering on the achievement of these goals.

A fair participation must at least generate a multiple of the cost otherwise you'll have to look for different and cheaper ways to reach your customers and prospects.

Focus

For stand managers, the trade fair is a “premier league” or maybe even a world championship match; it requires condition, attention and focus on the goals. Without proper focus of the managers it will become a “great event” without a big success.

What do we want to know at least from our visitors to be able to give a proper follow-up to the fair.

• Type of client/prospective customer
• Company that he represents
• Specialization of the company
• Specialization of the person himself
• Who makes decisions in the company when it comes to your products or service
• Where does he buy similar products now
• How much are they buying from a competitor
• What projects are coming-up
• What have they noticed of our products

These questions must be asked and answered when engaging in a conversation. Is the other party a potential client, than you need to give proper attention as well as a appropriate follow up. However, is it someone who will not bring you the trade you are expecting, you will have to say good bye as soon as possible in an appropriate way (gently but firmly). This person is ultimately standing in the way of a successful subsequent conversation, because there are lots of prospects at a trade fair.

Common mistakes

• Eating at the stand
• Phone at the stand
• Reading at the stand
• Non active attitude
• Group formation
• Inappropriate dress
• Stand “guards”
• Escape behavior
• At the neighbors it is so cozy
• Slow end-of-the-day behavior

Each point above can have a valid reason but these are the usual annoyances of the exhibition visitors when asked. Make sure you do not let these pitfalls come between a great deal. A trade show overall, is a great meeting place for customers and prospective clients. So, use it well!

The writer of this article, Floris Graziosi, has worked for INA, the Indonesian Benelux Chamber of Commerce and is now senior consultant at NSE Dynamicals, developing peoples & business potential. He can be contacted for advice about the optimal implementation for successful exhibition participation:

NSE Dynamicals
floris@nsedynamicals.net
+62 (0)8 2111613837

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