Compile All the Information You’ve Gathered at Your Trade Show

What makes a trade show a success?

For most companies, the mark of a successful trade show is making sales and closing deals. So how can you do this once the event is over?

The key is to successfully compile the information you’ve gathered and then act on that information. When it comes to that information, it’s not just the sales leads, though those are important.

You also need to gather information about the trade show and your experience, and then learn and grow from that information.

Types of Information to Gather from Trade Shows

There are three categories of information you can gather from a trade show, and using all of them will ensure your event was a success.

1. SALES LEADS
   The most obvious type of information to gather at a trade show is that of your sales leads. Your primary purpose of going to a trade show is to get people inquiring about your business and to sell products.
   
   Make sure you have a system in place that you can use to gather and sort your sales leads, pulling the most promising ones out to enter your follow-up system.
   
   
2. COMPETITOR DATA
   At a trade show that is in your niche, your competitors are going to be there as well. Take some time to browse their booths and see what they are doing, and take some ideas from this. If you notice something about a trade show booth design or sales presentation that seems to work really well for a competitor, consider incorporating something similar into your next event.
   
   Keep in mind that you do want to differentiate from what the competition is doing, so remember not to directly copy any ideas you come across. It is important to though see what your competitors are doing and so you can learn from it.
   
   
3. INDUSTRY NEWS
   Finally, use the trade show to gather information about your industry. What are some trends you can see? What are people asking about and shopping for? What are some timely topics you could use to build your online marketing strategies?
   
   This data can help you maximize your time at the trade show by giving you fodder to tap into for future blog articles and social media posts that are relevant to your customers.
   
   

Create an Organization System

Once you have this data, you need a way to share it with your team members. While your event staff needs a way to coordinate and collect the information, the rest of your team needs to be able to access the information to make informed decisions based on what you learned.

You will want to create some sort of central hub to keep it organized. Depending on the data in question, this might look like a spreadsheet or presentation deck. Sometimes a shared document that all trade show participants can tap will work well.

However you organize the data, make sure it is accessible and in a format that your team can effectively use.

Work with an Experienced Exhibit House for Help with All Aspects of Your Trade Show Experience

Dealing with the information that comes after a trade show can feel a bit overwhelming. If you haven't set up an organization system before, knowing what will work best for your team isn’t always easy. That’s where an experienced exhibit house, like Exhibit Options, can help.

At Exhibit Options, we not only design and build the trade show booth, but we also help you through every stage of the process.

If you want to build an organizational system into your trade show booth, we’re here to help. Our extensive experience means we can give you expert advice about industry best practices, so you can walk away armed with helpful information and action steps to take.

Contact Exhibit Options today to start building your trade show booth, and get the experience of a knowledgeable team on your side.