Trade Show Support
Transforming Trade Show Strategy to Drive Business Growth
A 40-year-old chemical manufacturing company in the US operates with a sales team divided into territories, each overseen by a Regional Sales Manager. While the company has been successful in growing its business through existing distribution channels, there was a noticeable gap in pursuing new growth opportunities. The annual trade show, attended by major end users' operators, presented a significant opportunity for business development. However, the company, despite recognizing this potential, struggled with the value vs. the investment, indicating the need for a new strategy to maximize potential.
Challenges
Limited Resources
Only a handful of Regional Managers, the Vice President, and a couple of Marketing personnel were there to represent the company. Despite the lack of resources, the company made a substantial investment in a 40x40 booth.
Lack of Data Analysis
The company did not have any previous data or reporting from previous trade shows, making it difficult to establish clear goals and ROI targets.
Passive Approach to Prospecting
The team primarily waited for current distributors to visit the booth, focusing more on retention than actively seeking new business opportunities.
Preconceived Ideas
The sales team relied on initial impressions from name badges to assess the worthiness of prospects, possibly overlooking valuable opportunities. Most of the sales team tended to huddle in the middle of the booth, making them unapproachable.
Absence of Business Development Strategy
There was no strategy around pre-show activity, which hindered their ability to capitalize on new targets.
THE SOLUTION
OPERATIONS
BDPros gathered attendee data, segmenting it into various scenarios, including new distributors, direct multi-site opportunities, and potential end-user partners for distribution.
Collaborated with sales leadership to set concise sales team goals and objectives.
Implemented a lead collection process during the show ensuring that all leads and follow-up activities are uploaded into CRM with clear next steps.
We managed logistics for private meeting rooms, in-booth activities, after-show events, etc., ensuring key team members were where they were need then they were needed.
MARKETING
Created specific sales tools and measuring to drive direct attendance and meetings during the show.
Planned and executed call-out and marketing campaigns before, during, and after the show.
Consulting on booth layout, materials, video content, and print materials.
SALES
During pre-show outreach, we secured several meetings with potential distributors.
Prioritized awareness and scheduled qualified meetings at the show.
Collaborated with the company to leverage its distribution support package for prospecting opportunities.
Participated in the show, engaging new prospects and qualifying opportunities.
Results
The client’s company was able to generate more revenue with a sales team that was managed by BDPros.
"Through our partnership with BDPros, our chemical manufacturing company not only unlocked a significant opportunity with a high-volume buyer but also identified additional avenues for growth. The successes we saw resulted in over $5 million in annual recurring revenue from new end-user connections."
