1. Communicate.

Before beginning your next busy season or a new endeavor (starting a business, accepting a promotion, or kicking off a big project – like an important trade show), sit your loved ones down for a heart-to-heart. Start by setting expectations, outlining your goals and the plans you’ve made to achieve them, and expressing your feelings about what will happen next. Then, reassure the people you care about, emphasizing that you aren’t pretending to be busy to avoid them, but that you are actually busy because you are trying to create a better life to share with them.  Finally, give them an opportunity to ask questions, voice their concerns, and just let everything sink in.  It is your responsibility to help your loved ones through this transition by maintaining an open dialog and don’t forget that, as hard as everything will be on you, your choices will impact them as well and you need to be sensitive to this.

2. Schedule something to look forward to.

The hope of your success may be enough to maintain your motivation through challenging times; but even your most loyal supporters are likely to need more to remain positive when those tough times carry on. Give your friends and family a more personal promise to look forward to (this can be something small like a few quiet moments together once a week or something big like an extravagant vacation once this season/project/etc. is over) because it’s not the actual event that matters.  Instead, your commitment to something your schedule can realistically accommodate reminds your loved ones that they are still an important priority and you are doing your best to include them.  Trust me – the people who truly care about you can handle any difficulties along the way if they know they’re there for a certain reason, over a certain time, and that there is some sort of light at the end of this long tunnel (like your promise, clearly written on the calendar).  Giving them (and yourself) something personal to look forward to makes your collective challenges feel more worthwhile as you’re dealing with them.

3. Keep your Commitments Consistently.

You can’t work 24/7/365 so, aside from the basics (sleep, maintaining good hygiene, personal development, etc.), how are you spending the little free time you do have?  You have a few options: doing things you enjoy, doing things other people enjoy (that you may or may not), and doing things no one really enjoys (but are required because you’re a grown up).  There should be a balance between these activities… If you have to miss nearly everything except for pretty much every single thing you enjoy (which you have no problem making time for), you need a reality check.  As you consider the activities you miss or reschedule most often, look for trends surrounding your availability that make your “valid reasons” appear less fair and then re-balance your life to include more of the activities that are important to those around you (even if it means missing your favorite television show or girls/guys night out sometimes).  When you claim work as your excuse to get out of these important activities time and time again, you may look lazy or selfish; but, more importantly, you are destroying your credibility for any times when work is the real reason (not just an excuse).

4. Make up for anything you miss.

Sometimes things come up.  That’s just life.  You may have to take a phone call in the middle of your kid’s piano recital or you may have to push back your big holiday plans… and, if you want to achieve your goals, these are probably not things you can control.  However, you can control what happens next.  To remedy this situation, first and foremost, you need to apologize (and really mean it).  By recognizing the importance of whatever you had to miss or reschedule, you’re making a good start towards moving forward.  Next, you should match the remedy to the grievance.  Again, your personal life VIPs already love you so the goal isn’t to buy their love and forgiveness; it’s just to recognize their pain (whether that’s a minor inconvenience or a major issue) and rebuild whatever was lost.  Depending on the situation, you may need to think creatively to find a good solution.  Remember, this is not necessarily about spending more money or making a drastic change (sabotaging your continued progress won’t help anyone), it’s about putting forth a genuine effort to show your loved ones you care even when you can’t be there.

5. Take advantage of flexibility.

One issue you may struggle with, especially if you are a working parent, is finding ways to participate in activities that take place when you’d typically be in your office. I’ve always considered myself lucky because my parents are self-employed (running their financial planning business out of our home throughout my childhood), so I learned at an early age that there are ways a schedule can be adjusted to accommodate other priorities.  For example, I’m sure you know that there are 168 hours in every week; but, did you realize that shifting tasks that can be completed individually (like brainstorming, writing reports, etc) to early morning, late evening, or middle-of-the-night hours can not only free up some of your daytime hours, but also help you to complete your work more quickly?  It’s true because, with fewer distractions to pull your focus, you won’t even notice how easily you are powering through your important projects.  This idea of shifting tasks works even if it’s not a business task that you are shifting.  Consider adjusting your sleep schedule and personal basics (as mentioned in tip #2) to create more time for the people and things you enjoy.  When you start thinking about your week as 168 hours that can fit business, personal, sleep, and other interests instead of 40 hour “work weeks” that spill over into “off hours” (limiting your availability for activities that conflict with a more rigid timetable), it will be easier to schedule your time according to your priorities.

6. Don’t let guilt get you down.

As I mentioned before, I grew up in a “small business family” which means that these scheduling challenges are so normal in my environment that they hardly feel like challenges at all.  However, I realize my situation is not normal for most others.  In fact, I’ve observed that these challenges are a huge source of stress for many professionals.  Hopefully, after reading this article, you are feeling a bit better about how you’ll cope with any future scheduling difficulties that arise, but in case you aren’t there yet, I have a little more inspiration…

I’m not sure who said it first, but there is a quote that can help you feel better about choosing what’s best for your future (note: I don’t think the intention of this quote is just to help entrepreneurs, so you have my permission to edit it for yourself making the phrasing describe your situation instead).  The quote is, “Entrepreneurship is living a few years of your life like most people won’t, so that you can spend the rest of your life like most people can’t.”  Remember that you are doing your best to create a better future for yourself and those around you. In all sincerity, you need to know that that’s awesome and should be thought of with admiration, not guilt.

In summary, utilize these tips to create the work-life balance that works best for you and give your loved ones a little credit; they care about you and, as long as they know you are in this together for the right reasons, they’ll be there for you no matter what – even if the traditional work-life balance recommendations don’t work for you.

ANSWER: Think of event sponsorship as a springboard from which you can work to reach a larger audience. The show management will do what they can (and have promised) to promote your company, but it is your responsibility to do the rest. Highlight your sponsorship as you promote your event involvement on your website, in press releases, during pre-show marketing calls and e-mails, and other pre-show marketing opportunities.

Are you sponsoring an activity (like an evening reception or educational session) or an object (like the show bags or internet cafe)? Depending on the specific sponsorship you have chosen, the perks will differ. If it’s an event, you may be able to collect leads or stand up and say something about your company… If it’s an object, you may be able to display key messaging/contact information… Speak with the show management early to understand (or creatively negotiate) the extra opportunities associated with your sponsorship and take full advantage of any perks that are available to you.

The answer above was originally written for LinkedIn Answers.

 Do you have a question related to sales, marketing, or trade shows?
Post your question in the comments section below (or send it to Robyn directly)
and it may be selected for a future Q+A post!

May eNewsletter from When I Need Help

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Are your nervous habits killing your sales results?

If you have ever experienced this issue, or know someone else who has, this article is for you. Here are four of the most common nervous habits that kill sales and what you can do to avoid them in your next selling situation:

1. Not talking enough.

As the meeting host (FYI – if you’re selling, you’re the host …whether that “meeting” is taking place in your office, trade show booth, or local Starbucks line), you are responsible for progressing the conversation. I don’t mean that you should monopolize the conversation (see habit number two below); but, it’s not okay for you to clam up either. If you don’t do your part to carry the conversation, instead of making your guest feel welcome and at ease (so they begin to like, know, and trust you), you’re placing all of the pressure onto them to entertain you. In this scenario, your problem is that you are not talking enough.

So, if you find yourself becoming too quiet, speak up! You need to be engaged, ask questions, and listen thoughtfully so that you can respond to your prospect’s comments before transitioning the conversation from one stage to the next. If you do get stuck (say you stumble upon a sensitive topic or draw a blank), just take a breath, remember that you’re probably more bothered by any awkwardness than your contact is, and redirect the conversation to a topic that will help you reach your mutual goals.

2. Talking too much.

If you get carried away with avoiding habit number one, you may see your prospect’s eyes glaze over, notice that he has a sudden fascination with his watch/phone, or feel like something really exciting must be happening just over your shoulder. These are all signs that you are talking more than you should and have lost your prospect’s interest. On the flip side, you may find that this habit causes your contact to withdraw from the conversation (especially if your “talking” sounds more like “interviewing”) or become confused while trying to translate your babbling back into coherent sentences. If you observe either of these responses, you are talking too much.

So, if you catch yourself being a bit too chatty, wrap up your current sentence as quickly as possible and immediately follow it with a question for your contact. As long as you let him answer and listen thoughtfully while doing so, this can be an excellent start to reengaging your prospect. From that point forward, it will be even more important to ensure that you are focusing on his needs, his interests, and his continued involvement in the conversation (so that there is a conversation to progress).

3. Overcompensating.

As a sales professional, there are times when you might feel unprepared or inadequate (for example, when you find that you aren’t as familiar with your prospect’s situation as you should be or you realize that your competitor excels in key areas that you don’t). In this situation, there are two clear options: lie or own up to your unpleasant feelings. However, in the moment, you may choose a different option. You may choose to “highlight” the knowledge you do have, like irrelevant industry information (to distract from anything you don’t know) or your competitor’s personal and professional weaknesses (to detract from their positive attributes). Even if you justify this by saying you’re doing your best in a challenging situation, you should know that you’re really just hurting yourself by overcompensating.

So, if you find yourself exaggerating to make up for your lack of preparation or confidence, reevaluate your options. If the information you don’t know is necessary in order to progress the conversation, either ask or reschedule your meeting until you can do additional research. If you are tempted to badmouth the competition, don’t; simply shift your focus back to the relevant benefits your products/services provide. Take the high road and bite your tongue as needed.

4. Appearing desperate.

In a society where the old “minimum standard” is seen as the new “extra mile,” going above and beyond is impressive to prospects and appreciated by clients. However, there is a fine line between providing excellent customer service and offering too much. Once you have offered a huge discount, promised to personally be available 24/7/365 to hold your (hopefully) new client’s hand, and agreed to rush the order at no additional cost, you have probably given away too much. In fact, if your prospect was sold on the value of your offerings themselves, throwing in all of those extras may just be causing him to question his original assessment… Your prospect may now be saying to himself, “why does she need this order so badly? If her offerings are as great as I thought they were, why is she practically giving them away? Maybe they aren’t so great after all…”

Side note: If your prospect can’t see the value of your offerings without so many extra benefits, you missed a step in the sales process; randomly throwing in extra benefits at this point, without resolving these issues, is not your best long term solution.

So, if you catch yourself going too far, just stop and wait for your prospect to respond to what you have already promised. If the package isn’t quite right, design a new offer that is a better fit for his situation (if he wants more benefits, charge a higher price or if he’d prefer a lower price, take away the expensive extras). Negotiating is part of the game, but don’t trade your self-respect or give your offerings away at a loss to get the sale. Premium offerings should come at a premium price (or else they won’t receive the respect they deserve).

In conclusion, nervous energy isn’t all bad. In fact, these actions can actually be helpful in small doses (for example, striking a balance between facilitating a conversation and being an active part of it, reinforcing your relevant expertise without getting lost on a tangent, and offering a great opportunity without appearing too needy or being unfair to yourself). However, it is important to consciously rein in those actions; instead of watching yourself spin out of control, keep your nervous habits in check and utilize them in the more positive ways mentioned throughout this article.

This was the third event for which I have been contracted by Fugro-Jason;
read about my participation in SPE ATCE 2011 and SEG 2011.

Donna Rogers (Fugro-Jason Technical Expert) and Robyn Davis (WINH) at AAPG

My main responsibilities on-site were to help attendees feel welcome and attended to, highlight the technical presentations that would be given by our experts, assist our visitors in selecting the most appropriate sessions to attend and/or coordinating a time to meet with our company representatives for personal software demonstrations, and to invite current and potential clients to an evening reception.  During this event, I was also focused on identifying the specific areas upon which Fugro-Jason could improve their future exhibiting efforts in preparation for a busy fall trade show schedule.

In this article, I’ll break down five simple steps to maximize your exhibiting ROI. I hope you’ll take advantage…

Step 1: Do the math.

In order to improve your return on investment, you must quantify it first. Establish a starting point by calculating how much you spent (ie. booth space, literature/giveaways, travel, staff time, display, furniture, etc) on your most recent trade show participation and create a spreadsheet where you can organize your expenditures for future events (according to the categories you used here).
Then, because the ultimate goal is to calculate your return on investment (by subtracting this amount from the results (ie. sales, increased market share, team building, etc) you obtain), you will need to choose to use a unit of measurement to be used consistently (like dollars) that will enable a clear comparison moving forward.

Note: For each event, this should be an on-going process; instead of scrambling before and after the show, input receipts for expenses into your spreadsheet as you receive them and add the values for any results you can quantify as soon as you are aware of them.

Step 2: Plan ahead.

Proper planning is important because its absence causes two problems:

(1) Too much is left up to chance; even small oversights/mistakes can require a significant amount of additional spending (either individually or by adding the cost of multiple “last minute solutions” together).

For example, if you plan ahead, you can purchase an extra SD card for under $5, bring it to the show, and copy over your scanned leads before returning your rented lead retrieval unit; but, if you forget this, you will either have to delay your follow up until your information is processed (and risk losing the leads you’ve acquired during your show) or spend $25-35+ (5-7 times more) to purchase an SD card from the lead retrieval company before returning your rental unit.

(2) There isn’t enough time to build momentum. You should want professionals to know who you are before arriving so they can plan to seek out your company (on purpose) instead of hoping that they happen to stumble by your booth on their way to someone else’s.

For example, starting your promotional efforts from scratch on the first event day means that you’re already at least a day behind (until attendees realize you’re there and can make time to do the necessary research to decide if they’d like to meet you); but, starting from scratch two months (or even two weeks) before the first event day means that your promotional efforts can be working by the time you arrive.

Step 3: Be present.

As a leader for your company during your event, you need to step up and act as such. Model the behaviors you would like your team to exhibit. As the saying goes, “you can sleep when you’re dead” so schedule meetings, walk the show floor with purpose, attend/speak at sessions, and take full advantage of spontaneous moments to connect with your target audience. Focus on being present in the convention city because, by doing so, your efforts will directly contribute to maximizing your ROI and they will motivate your staff to do their part as well (as you might imagine, if you’re slacking off – your staff won’t want to continue working through their pain/boredom/etc either).

Tip: Remember your investment from step one? Write the specific amount on a piece of paper you keep in your wallet or save a dollar sign as your cell phone background to help you keep your breakeven point in mind.

Step 4: Educate your team.

Once you are aware of what you are spending (your investment) and have made a plan, share this knowledge with your team. This step serves two purposes:

(1) Educating your team holds you accountable. As we discussed in step 3, in order to accomplish your goals, you cannot think of your trade show as a vacation – you have to step up and do the work on-site. By explaining the importance of your company’s trade show participation and what action items will be required to accomplish your goals, your team will be looking to you to set the example and, if you start to shirk your responsibilities, they will notice and think it is okay to do the same. You may be able to justify your own misbehavior in the moment, but watching your team fall apart will surely offer the motivation required to snap yourself back into focus quickly.

(2) Educating your team enables them to participate with the end in sight, taking ownership of their task to help you accomplish your collective goals. When you treat your staff as a valuable part of your team, they are empowered to take care of their responsibilities on their own without your constant urging. Give your team the authority to take your suggestions and run with them. If you do this, your staff may even find ways to grow beyond your expectations (taking advantage of their objective perspective to recognize ways to improve upon your suggestions even further and then to actually see their ideas through to fruition).

Step 5: Follow through.

Don’t leave anything on the table after your trade show.

Note: This doesn’t mean that you should pressure your visitors into a purchase, but instead, it means that you should do your best to provide each attendee with enough information and opportunities to choose your solutions (for their own good).

Create a realistic follow up plan that makes it possible to succeed, ensuring that the required resources (time, money, staff, etc) are fully available and that your proposed plan will meet each prospect’s needs. For example, having the resources to complete a proper follow up effort six months after your event will not be very effective because your top prospects are likely to have made other arrangements by that time… whereas, if you were to follow up promptly, in a personalized manner, you would enjoy much better results.

It should be clear that each of these steps is important. Do what you can (but really, find a way to do it all by prioritizing your time accordingly). Trade shows offer so much potential, but they require your time, energy, and resources to actually see that potential be shaped into results (like diamonds, which are formed through massive amounts of pressure, trade show results are formed through a fully focused effort). Contact me or a trade show professional you trust to help as needed. Good luck and enjoy the returns – you’re earning them!

View last year’s statistics and comparison advice here.

As you read the following statistics (all of which are listed in the above article), I would encourage you to take some time to reflect on your previous event efforts.

What will you learn from these trade show trends?

- Influence -

STATISTIC: The percent of trade show attendees (81%) who “have the power to recommend or make final purchasing decisions is up a smidge” from last year’s all-show average.

…Of the attendees who visited your trade show booth, how many are the correct decision makers?

After understanding your target audience (through which you would have identified the types of people qualified to commit to your offerings), divide the number of decision makers encountered into your total lead count – compare your findings to the statistic above. To improve the quality of leads obtained, focus on the event selection process and subsequent promotional efforts in attracting the right attendees into your booth.

- Opportunity -

STATISTIC: The percentage of attendees whose “purchase intentions were more favorable after visiting companies’ exhibits” has increased (by 4% over the published 2010 statistics) to 35% in 2011.

…Of the leads generated at your trade show, how many are more interested in working with you after visiting your booth than they were before?

During your follow up process, survey your visitors to understand the contributing factors in the quality of your relationship moving forward; divide the number of attendees for whom the quality increased after visiting your trade show booth into your total number of leads – compare your findings to the statistic above. To improve the opportunity available to you after the trade show (by raising awareness and building relationships), focus on pre-show training for your staff and find additional opportunities to connect with your visitors throughout the trade show.

- Freshness -

STATISTIC: On average, the percentage of “first time attendees” at any given trade show in 2011 was 36%.

…For every set of contact information your team obtained at your last trade show, how many of those encounters were with attendees your team hadn’t met at a prior event?

Revisit the list of leads you acquired in previous years; after identifying anyone you had met before, divide the remaining leads into that number (of repeat contacts) to get your percentage of fresh leads – compare this percentage to the statistic above. To improve the percentage of new attendees that your team attracts, focus on targeted prospecting through pre-show marketing efforts.

- Staff Performance -

STATISTIC: Holding steady over the past several years, nearly all of the attendees surveyed (92%) “described staffers as good (22%), very good (36%), or excellent (34%).” Only 4% of attendees “felt like booth staffers were unavailable or unresponsive to their needs.”

…How are the efforts of your booth staff received by the professionals who visit your trade show booth? Are your visitors being properly cared for by your team?

Spend some time observing your staff in action (especially noting the body language of attendees they encounter) and consider working with a consultant or surveying those attendees to receive objective feedback – compare your findings to the statistic above. To improve the performance of your staff, prepare your team before the event and practice the situations they are most likely to encounter on-site. As you consider your staff selection options, ensure that you have chosen the best professionals for the job.

In order to fully utilize the trade show trends discussed above, you must to know your numbers (documenting your results before calculating ROI according to these and other factors for each trade show). From there, you can implement the tips above to improve your future exhibiting efforts.

As always, if there is ever anything I can do to help you or someone you know (I offer convenient products, on-site sales and marketing support, as well as pre-/post-show consulting services), please don’t hesitate to contact me at any time.

When I encourage these types of representatives to step outside their comfort zones to actively engage attendees, I teach them about confidence first (which is very important for shy or nervous booth staff too).

Before doing this, I make an assumption: the trade show at which they will be exhibiting was carefully selected according to their goals, resources, and other valid criteria. This is the cornerstone to instilling confidence in your staff. If you are not certain your trade shows can help you achieve your goals (or are still trying to decide which events will be the best fit), you should reevaluate your exhibiting options… This free mini-series “How to Choose the Right Trade Shows” can help.

Once you believe that your events have been selected purposefully, you can convey this information to your staff in a helpful way. Here are three key reasons your team can feel confident:

1. Attendee Investment
To attend an event (and visit your booth), the professionals participating have invested their money (registration fees, travel expenses, etc) and their time (away from the office and their families). To receive their maximum return on investment, each attendee needs your team to quickly and clearly explain your value proposition. Your team can feel confident because they are in a safe space to excel – attendees want your representatives to do their best work so that those attendees can maximize their return (this means, visitors are likely to encourage your staff instead of nitpick minor mistakes or draw attention to nervous energy).

2. Attendee Interest
Many attendees participate because they are members of the hosting organization (which then follows that these attendees participate in the organization because they are genuinely interested in the industry, technology, or something about your company/offerings in particular). Each representative in your booth, therefore, can be confident because they have valuable information to add to the conversation. The attendees who visit your booth will be captivated by any expertise your staff can share simply because it comes from someone who is closer to the company than the attendees are.

3. Staff Selection
Just as you have carefully selected your events, you have also carefully selected your staff. Before contesting this point, remember that, even if your resources are limited (say you are a one-man-shop or the majority of your regular trade show team is unavailable), you could always hire a trade show expert to attend instead of a less qualified company representative… it’s your choice. Encourage your staff to feel confident because you have hand-picked each one to participate; be aware that the more specific attributes you can identify, the easier it will be to solidify this reasoning for each individual team member.

As mentioned above, confidence is a great place to start when helping non-trade show staffers do their best in your booth. Teach your team these three keys to exhibiting confidence today so you can enjoy their successful event execution tomorrow.

April eNewsletter from When I Need Help

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RFID Global Solution provides real time asset management software and solutions.  At this event, I supervised the booth set-up/tear-down process, presented an interactive pre-show training seminar for our booth staff, and provided on-site sales and marketing support during trade show hours.

The booth set-up took two full days (one day for the construction of the structure and one day to integrate the products and other materials for in-booth demonstrations) and our booth tear down was completed in just a number of hours.  There was a team who came to do most of the heavy lifting before and after the event, but I was on-site to supervise and answer questions as they arose.

This is how our 20x30 booth space looked at the beginning.

Once the booth set-up was complete, we brought our booth staff (about 15 company representatives) together for a pre-show training seminar.  I prepared and facilitated this interactive session, teaching participants why RFID Global Solution was exhibiting at RFID Journal Live, company and industry basics (to ensure everyone had the same baseline understanding), tips for engaging attendees, the way in which badge scanners were to be used when qualifying leads, how to best utilize one another to improve their company’s exhibiting results, general scheduling/expectations, and more.  This pre-show training seminar allowed adequate time for company representatives to fully understand their responsibilities, clarify any misunderstandings, and become acclimated with the trade show environment.  See comments from participants about our pre-show training seminar below.

Finally, it was time for the trade show doors to open and our visitors to arrive.  My main responsibilities on-site were to act as a point of contact (“booth captain”) for the trade show team throughout the event, handle any issues as they arose, welcome our guests into the booth, encourage attendees to participate in our activities (IT Asset Challenge, Instant Winner game) and interact with the Name Cloud screen, distribute giveaways, and introduce qualified leads to appropriate company representatives.  In addition to this, I was asked to speak on camera for an RFID Global Solution event recap/promotional video, introducing the booth and IT Asset Challenge activity.  This event couldn’t have gone better for RFID Global Solution as we surpassed our goals and celebrated a win for Cisco (one of RFID Global Solution’s clients) when they were awarded with the honor of “Best Implementation” (utilizing RFID Global Solution’s offerings)!

- Comments from Pre-Show Training Seminar Participants -

“It was a great way to get everyone up to date with what the goals and expectations are.  It gives everyone a chance to ask questions and “be on the same page.” Make sure all the bases are covered and have one central person to go to for ongoing questions or needs. Nice job!!”
- Ted L.

“Helped level set requirements and set expectations. Clarified messaging.”
- Nancy K.

“Assured that all members of team have the same baseline of information needed to handle visitors to the booth.  Established clear guidelines relative to manning the booth, booth hours and procedure to follow to take breaks.  Feels like people are more responsible for their assignments.  Took load off others.”
- Ron R.

“Very informative.  Helps motivate and prepare for talking with potential clients.”
- Jennie S.