You have the largest booth at the expo, the most eye-catching graphics, and the coolest giveaways. Unfortunately, it was all for naught because you didn’t get any quality leads from the show. But why didn’t you get leads? The following are our best tips on how to hire trade show booth staff.
While your trade show display and the other elements play a pivotal role in attracting visitors, it’s the booth staffers or employees manning the exhibit that will make the connections. People buy from people, not companies. Without an engaging, professional, knowledgeable team manning your booth, attendees will flee in search of better. Booth staff can make or break your expo efforts.
1) Attitude is everything.
The most important characteristic in a booth staffer is that s/he actually WANTS to be there. You can’t train attitude. Attendees are looking for information on your products, and their time is limited. They don’t want to search for answers; they want a friendly person to provide the information. If someone from your team doesn’t want to be there, the attendees will seek their answers elsewhere.
2) Experience counts.
An expo or trade show can be a wonderful opportunity to make a great first impression, or meet clients face-to-face for the first time. Don’t mess up by hiring “booth babes” or just bringing in warm bodies to fill space. Attendees need people who can answer questions and provide relevant information. Your goals are better served by people who are familiar with your products, who like dealing with people, and who want to man the booth for the duration.
3) Take time for training.
If a potential booth staffer possesses many qualities you need, don’t disregard him/her due to lack of trade show experience. Even a small amount of training or mentoring can help a booth staffer succeed. Areas to train include: Company identity, products and services, expo goals, and ice-breakers to help engage visitors.
4) Variety is the spice of life.
If possible, include people various departments. Salespeople are not the only ones who can represent your company. Of course, sales should have a presence, but other team members can be just as valuable. Manufacturing people, marketing specialists, and engineers can provide visitors with new perspectives and answer specific questions.
5) Communicate goals.
It all boils down to good communication, between your staff and the visitors, and between you and your staff. Make sure your staffers know what is expected from them. Goals and objectives must be clear if you are to achieve them. And don’t forget the post-show goals of lead qualification and follow up, etc.