The Trade Show is Over, Now What do I do?

This is part three of a three-part series; make sure you're subscribed to our newsletter to stay updated as more tips become available. Part one can be found here. To read part two, click here.

Trade shows are one of the best ways to market your product or service to potential customers, as the return on investment (ROI) can be impactful. However, your work isn’t done when you leave the trade show floor. To ensure your efforts are impactful, you’ll need to create a stellar follow-up plan that will set you apart from the competition.  Here are some ways you can successfully follow up with trade show leads.

Sort Through Leads

Whether you determine your lead is hot, warm, or cold, follow-up should occur at least one week after the trade show. You don’t want to lose any traction with conversations that took place during the trade show. Prioritizing your leads will make it easier to determine if the contact receives a phone call or is placed into an email drip campaign.

• Call any hot leads 1-2 days after the trade show to avoid missing out on something that presented itself during the show.  
• Nurture your warm leads through an email campaign one week after the trade show.
• Follow up with any cold leads after 30 days.

Create a Follow-Up Email Nurturing Campaign

While writing content and creating your email nurture campaign, you should develop emails that are personalized, provide relevant content, and are consistent. Emails should be short, sweet, and to the point. Your emails should have engaging subject lines, identify why you are reaching out, let your contact know what's in it for them, and include a solid call to action (CTA).

You'll also need to determine the number of emails your contacts will get. The sweet spot for optimal engagement is between 3 to 5 emails. There should be at least two weeks between emails to avoid over spamming your leads. 

Review Your Metrics and Act

Analyzing your leads' interactions and engagement with the emails you send is essential. For example, did they open the email more than once? Did they click an important link multiple times? If you see this type of engagement, but they still need to convert, you'll want to give them a call. It is also important to note any activity or email engagement in your CRM. Annotating the contacts will inform you where they are in the marketing funnel. 

Planning your trade show follow-up and implementing the above tips will help you achieve the best ROI possible. 

Are you looking for post-trade show follow-up support? True Digital Communications has helped many brands convert leads with email nurturing campaigns and we are here to help. Get in touch with us today!

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