The success you’ll enjoy at trade shows will depend largely on the people who are working behind your booth. In my experience, effective trade show marketing begins and ends with your booth staff.

Getting your audience excited about the show, using attention-getting giveaways, and designing great signs are all important factors. But, your trade show staff can literally make or break a deal. When attendees approach your booth, the impression they have of your personnel will be etched into their memory long after they leave.

My most effective clients spend a significant amount of time and effort training their trade show staff – and their results speak for themselves. If your event marketing results have been lackluster, the problem may be with how your booth employees are representing your company. Here are 3 of my most powerful tips for training your trade show personnel.

Tip #1: Prepare Them With A Script

It is critical to train your booth employees to approach attendees properly. Whenever possible, your staff must quickly acknowledge people near your booth. Nobody wants to stand around waiting for attention. Plus, they need to be able to communicate the benefits that your company offers. Your employees should also be able to confidently address any concerns that attendees may have about your product. Give your staff a script to prepare themselves.

Tip #2: Teach Them To Be Engaging

This tip is often overlooked. Whenever I can, I walk by the other trade show booths to watch the staff. I’m repeatedly stunned by their lack of friendliness! I’ve watched booth employees chatting amongst themselves while attendees wait for their attention. Even when the personnel are friendly, they often lack the conversational skills to engage the attendees. Your employees should know which questions to ask and how to ask them. Not only does that encourage conversation, but it’s also critical for qualifying prospects.

Tip #3: Teach Them To Qualify

If you’ve attended many trade shows and events, you understand how busy they can be. This is especially true when you’re drawing crowds to your booth. When you use trade show promotional strategies to draw large crowds, it’s even more important that your exhibit staff can qualify people quickly. They need to discern which prospects deserve a follow-up call and which are merely wasting time.

Teach Your Trade Show Personnel To Sell

Giving employees script and teaching them to ask the right questions to engage and qualify attendees are essential to successful event marketing. Because time is so limited at trade shows, your staff must identify good prospects quickly. Once your staff is well-trained, you’ll notice remarkable results in your lead quality!