In the dynamic realm of trade shows, the art of lead generation comes with its share of challenges. One prominent issue exhibitors face is the tendency of booth visitors to occasionally present themselves in a light that may not align with reality. Simply put, they lie.

While it may be a harsh truth, it’s crucial to understand that trade show attendees often misrepresent themselves during booth interactions.

Why does this happen? There are two primary reasons. First, visitors may feel compelled to safeguard their ego and credibility, leading them to provide information that may not be entirely accurate. 

Second, the allure of freebies, those enticing giveaways ranging from pens to literature and candy, can sometimes lead visitors, both genuine prospects and casual browsers, to offer information that doesn’t truly reflect their buying intentions, authority or budget availability.

Consider this actual case of a B2B metalworking industry trade show where a staggering 474 leads were generated by a prominent exhibitor. Upon closer examination, a revealing phenomenon emerged:

· 281 of the leads were identified in the booth as follow-up worthy (Graded A) by the booth staff.

· Surprisingly, after conducting post-show follow-up telephone calls and asking five qualification questions, 193 leads were deemed follow-up worthy.

The striking revelation was that only 11% of the leads identified as qualified in the booth remained qualified during the telephone follow-up. Some visitors who weren’t initially deemed qualified in the booth turned out to be potential prospects upon further scrutiny. Furthermore, some individuals who were determined to be prospects by the booth staff were not and identified a clear case of misrepresentation.

This phenomenon underscores the critical importance of discernment in lead qualification, as misjudging a visitor’s true potential can lead to downstream problems. These issues manifest most notably in the sales department, where misidentified prospects create three significant challenges:

1.     Erosion of Trust: When salespeople encounter non-prospects during follow-up, it can erode their perception of the overall value of trade show leads, a natural human response to wasted efforts.

2.     Diminished Value Perception: Wasting time on non-prospects is why a substantial 76% of sales professionals view trade show leads as no more valuable than a cold call, further emphasizing the urgent need for accurate lead qualification.

3.     Missed Opportunities: Countless studies reveal that less than 20% of trade show leads receive the attention they warrant, and you probably experience similar results in your company. This inefficiency leads to missed sales opportunities and complicates efforts to measure ROI and protect exhibition budgets. 

In light of these challenges, continuous education on proven best practices is necessary for exhibit managers and their booth staff. Paramount is the need to not just stop with booth staff visitor engagement, in-booth lead qualification and prospect identification. 

Exhibit managers can and should take the initiative of post-show lead verification before their distribution to the sales force. This proactive approach sets exhibit managers apart in their career trajectories, ensuring successful and fruitful trade show experiences.