I recently attended the Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco, the largest specialty food and beverage show on the West Coast. This event is huge with 1,400 artisan food brans exihibiting their products, and over 30,000 attendees, made up of buyers from top names in retailing and restaurants.
I attend each year to spot new trends in food & bev, and this year attended on behalf of two of my clients. I was there looking for artisan snacks & beverage to feature on a California-based airline as well as up-and-coming brands looking for national distribution and sales. I'm happy to report I found what I was looking for! For the airline, I found some great California made snacks with the right packaging needed for an airline and with great background stories to communicate to the passengers. These were two important qualifiers for me. For my other client, a large national distributor of artisan brands, I found many products which would both be appealing for retail markets as well as food service.
At the show, when visiting with a suitable brand meeting my criteria, I'd share with them our projected needs, potential visibility, and estimated sales. For an artisan brand, I was bringing them great opportunities for both sales & marketing exposure. Let me be clear, the brands I was seeking were not large, established brands. I was specifically looking for brands with potential, the up-and-comers. With each brand, I left them my contact info. They scanned my badge, which tracked my visit, and took notes of our conversation. I walked away with company information and their business card.
Here I am, four weeks following the show, and I am completely surprised to report the following. Of the 1,400 brands at the conference, I found about 100 which I'd like to do business with; let me clarify, I found 100 brands I'm ready to buy from, NOW. Of these 100 brands, all of which scanned my show badge giving them all of my contact information, only 6 followed up with me. That's right... 6! And 3 of which didn't even personalize the outreach.
I understand these brands met potentially 30,000 attendees, all of which probably talked up big game to get free samples. I understand how busy these exhibitors are when preparing for a show this size and how busy it can be following the show. But, how is this show worth it when you don't follow up with potential buyers. These brands pay a lot of money to be there. As an exhibiting brand, wouldn't you want to squeeze as much return on this investment as possible?
Yes, I was not there representing Whole Foods. The airline I represent was in no way a United or Virgin. But, I was there ready to buy! And here I am, four weeks later, still wanting to buy. I've sent emails to the companies of interest, and many haven't even replied back! This tells me there's a huge lack of focus on sales within these small businesses. These start-ups will ether fail and quickly disappear as a result or die a long and slow death until someone with sales-driven experience steps in to correct the internal problems.
If you are a new brand looking at investing in trade shows like the Winter Fancy Food Show, here's some quick and easy tips to ensure a return on your investment.
- Everybody Is A Whale: Treat each and every visitor to your booth like they a whale, potentially a huge buyer who could take your brand to superstar status. You never know who is in front of you, sampling your product.
- Engage and Qualify! Before going into the show, know the questions you'll be asking visitors to your booth. Some of these might be:
- What do you do at X Company?
- Tell me about X Company.
- How's the show going so far for you? What types of products are you looking for? - Take Notes On Qualified Leads: When working a trade show, I keep a small notebook with me and a small stapler. For all qualified leads, take a business card and staple it to it's own page in the notebook. Write any and all important information regarding that lead on the page. This includes a) product they are interested in; b) what they do at X company; c) Company Information (for example, X Company has 30 retail locations throughout Iowa); d) Next Steps (send samples, send product info, etc.)
- Systemize and Schedule Follow-Up: Have a plan in place for follow-up and schedule it in your calendar and CRM system. Those leads who made your folder should receive personal high-touch follow-up the week following the trade show.
- Print Thank You Note: Send thank you notes to those who visited your booth. For most of your visitors, a printed letter should be fine; for those qualified leads who made your notebook should receive a hand-written note.
If you run a small business and feel trade shows are worth your investment, do not spend a dime unless you have a plan to follow-up on potential buyers or partners. Otherwise, these trade shows are purely a coverup for taking your employees on vacation to cities most likely not on your dream vacation bucket list. Don't waist your time, your employee's time, or the time of your booth visitors who are wanting to give you business.