RULE 5: Learn From The Pros.
LIQUIDS.For the geographically impaired,
Las Vegas is in the desert. Low outside humidity and lots of indoor climate control greatly increase the chances that the unprepared will succumb to dehydration.
In its mildest form, dehydration leads to fatigue, lethargy, cotton mouth and bad breath!
Unfortunately, by the time you recognize some of the symptoms of dehydration, you are behind the curve and will find it difficult to get back on track. Rookies drink expensive “
re-hydration” mixtures, pros start drinking extra water the day BEFORE they begin their travel.
To clear the air, beer, booze and coffee will not rehydrate you, they only make it worse. They cause bad breath, sweaty palms and quite possibly, stupid comments. They also have the potential of delivering dark stains to light colored khaki pants and shirts.
COMFORT.The one area of clothing that can greatly impact your comfort is footwear. Skip the brand new pumps.
Wear comfortable, broken in (not broken down) shoes. Rookies bring one pair of comfortable shoes, pros bring two (pairs not shoes). Long term show vets know that one of the tricks to re-energizing yourself is to switch shoes (pairs, not feet) mid-day.
LEFT/RIGHT. This is an old trick, worth its weight in gold. If you are wearing a jacket, keep your business cards in your breast packet and the ones you collect in your pants pocket.
For those of you like me, working a show with a jacket on is simply not an option. For my jacket-less brethren, keep your business cards in your right pants pocket and the ones you collect in your left. Lefties may want to reverse this.
Send follow up “thanks for visiting cards” sent while you are STILL at the show! Who else does that? NOBODY!
LOST ART. Shaking hands is becoming a lost art. Too few people shake hands as they greet one another.
At a
trade show, or any networking activity, focus on physically drawing people close to you by offering your hand. One trick of the trade is to keep a handkerchief or wadded up tissue in the pants pocket on the side of the hand you use to shake with. This allows you to quickly “dry off” those sweaty palms.
When you couple a good, firm handshake with open-ended questions, your audience will find themselves fully engaged with you, which, given the distractions in large group setting, is precisely what you are trying to accomplish!
ENGAGING QUESTIONS. Certainly, we want a friendly booth atmosphere so as not to repel folks. However, there are two common mistakes that people in pursuit of this atmosphere generally make.
- First, extroverts often times believe that a big smile combines with a little add-lib, they are prepared to greet the masses.
- Second, less outgoing personality types tend to become nervous and self-conscious when they first meet a person and as such, they are too rigidly focused on what they are saying (speech vs. dialogue), just to get through it.
By preparing three to five open-ended questions, you are ready to engage your audience in a conversation, with your goals in mind, and without worrying about what you will say.
For this to work, practice, practice and practice!
MOST OBVIOUS, MOST NOT DONE. The single most obvious tip from any trade show vet is, FOLLOW UP! Seems obvious, but rarely is each and every lead followed up upon.
Think back to your last show, how many people contacted you afterward? Bet it was less than one in twenty (if that high).
