How to (and how NOT to) run your booth at an event

As part of the Avoiding Common Issues in Startups series, let’s talk about what you should and should not do at your booth at a #TradeShow or #Convention.

Why are we here?

Because we’re here. Roll the Bones. (Sorry, I couldn't resist. Rush fans will get that reference, but for the rest of you…)

Let’s step back a minute and understand why we are at the convention.?

At the root of it, we are here to sell ourselves to our customers, right??

We want to showcase our business in the most positive light. For #Startups, that usually means making ourselves look professional, polished, and (let’s be honest) bigger and more established than we really are.

Who are our “customers?”?

To whom are we selling ourselves? Our customers of course. That leads to the question of who our customers are. In the context of a Convention like eMerge Americas , they are more than just people who can buy our products or services.?

Here are the main categories of “customers” at a convention:

Buyers

First, let’s cover the obvious customers - the ones who buy our products and services. While different for different types of businesses, it is intuitive who your customers are, so not much needs to be said about this group.?

Investors

You are selling yourself and your company to investors, so treat them as if they are your customers. What you are going to present and share with investors is different from traditional buyers, but your attitude towards them should be the same as if they were buyers of your product or service - do everything you can to convince them that you are the founder and company that will bring them their best return.

Vendors

You never know whose products or services you are going to need in the future - it could be a software vendor, it could be a widget builder, it could be a Customer Support Provider, it could be anything in between. Showcasing your business well leaves a good impression on vendors. If your booth appears amateur, then vendors will look at you less favorably and assume that there is more risk to do business with you. A good impression means a better chance of a favorable contract or better pricing.?

Partners

Similar to Vendors, you may meet potential business partners at a convention. This, too, is a “sales opportunity” for you to showcase your business in a positive light. The more favorably a potential partner sees you, the better chance you have of attracting that partner to your business.

Things to do at your booth

Stand out front

As obvious as this one sounds, it is rarely done. Stand in front of your table. You will attract more attention and better control the traffic to your booth.

Engage people walking by

Engage people in a meaningful way as they walk towards your booth. “Hi, how are you doing today?,” is not really a meaningful way. Ask them why they are at the conference, what their business is, or if they are looking for something specific. That makes them more likely to have a meaningful conversation with you.?

Pay attention to feedback

Working the booth at a convention is a great way to practice your pitch 100+ times to strangers. Pay attention to their feedback - verbal and non-verbal. What questions are you getting repeatedly? Do people ask for more information? Do they lose interest during a particular part? Can they summarize what you do after you talk to them? Do they seem emotionally engaged with The Problem you are trying to solve?

These are all signs and signals that people will give to you, if you just watch for them. If something is going well, keep using it. If you feel that a part of the conversation gets lost at a certain point, try something else.?

Have Professionally Printed Materials

This is a lot easier and cheaper than you may think. There are a lot of great graphic artists that can help you with things as simple as a one-page flyer or business cards. They don’t have to be fancy - just make sure they look professional and are placed neatly on the table in your booth.?

Keep in mind that not all of us want to walk away from a convention with 50 new LinkedIn contacts with whom we will never see again. Some of us are old-school and like a physical piece of paper that we see sitting on our desk tomorrow morning. It reminds us to look at your company online and follow-up with you.

Dress Professionally

I know, I know. You are in technology and you are used to working in your underwear at home. There is an old saying, “dress for success,” and it still holds true today. You don’t have to be in a suit or dress, but dress professionally and look well-kempt. It promotes a positive image of you and your company.?

Things NOT to do at your booth

Hopefully, none of this will be taken offensively. I promise that I am not trying to be belligerent or disrespectful, but I saw every one of these things happen at eMerge and was surprised that it wasn’t just one company that did each of them.?

If you do any of these things, you are unnecessarily missing opportunities for your business!

Judge a book by its cover

This is especially true in south Florida! Just because someone comes in wearing shorts and flip-flops does not mean that they don’t have money to invest in your business.?

Leave your booth unattended with no ETA for your return

If someone walks by an unattended booth, they likely won’t be back again.?

It is certainly understandable to have to leave your booth for a break or a quick client call. Just put a handwritten note on your table saying you will be back in 5 minutes.?

If you have to leave to give your pitch, leave a note saying, “We made it to the top 5 and have gone to pitch in the finals. Be back when it is over.” Wouldn’t you want to come back to learn more about a company that made it to the finals of a 100+ company competition?

Leave a non-customer facing person alone at your booth

I don’t know any better way to say it…

If you can’t talk to customers or investors intelligently about the business, then you shouldn’t be in the booth. (And, I am not talking about a language barrier here.)

The most recent example that I have of this is having developers in the booth. (I can say this, because I was one of them.) Most of us are introverts, some extreme introverts, so we don’t enjoy talking to strangers all day. It is exhausting. However, the point of a booth at a convention is to positively represent the company. If you are ignoring people coming by the booth, giving short, incomplete responses, or doing anything that could possibly be considered unhelpful or rude, then that is not representing the business well. You are doing more harm than good.

Work on a laptop (or phone)

This is on the same level as the last one. There is no better way to say this one than…

If you need to work on a laptop or your phone, do it somewhere other than the booth.?

Again, the point of a booth is to talk with potential customers, investors, etc. and showcase your business. If the people in the booth are focused on their laptop and not engaged with people walking by the booth, then it leaves a negative impression of your company.?

Focus on your peers/staff

This one is a little strange. Many times, I see people working a booth talking to each other and ignoring people walking by the booth. It tends to happen at lunchtime. Two or more people sitting in the booth having a conversation without even acknowledging people walking by the booth also leaves a negative impression of your company. Eat in shifts, if necessary. Just make sure that someone is always present to engage with people walking by your booth.?

Summary

Your behavior at a booth is just as important as your appearance at a booth.?

An investor knows that this is a sales opportunity for you and your business. Therefore, he or she assumes that the way you handle yourself at a booth is exactly the way you will approach sales in your company.

Said another way, if you sit back and wait for people, a.k.a., customers, to make the effort and come to you at your booth, it is assumed that you will handle sales to your customers the same way. And, we all know that waiting for customers to come to you is not a good #SalesStrategy!

Questions? Comments? Put them in a comment below.

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