Staff
What NOT to do (cont.)
Make certain that your staff have frequent breaks. Manning a stand can be tedious and exhausting and you need to retain their freshness and enthusiasm.
And in your sales pitch remember that there is no product which does not have limitations. Be honest - it pays in the long run.
Finally in this negative section, a few statistics. Some research has been done on the way in which prospects are approached at exhibitions and it makes interesting, if depressing, reading. The research was done at a wide variety of technical exhibitions and the researcher only recorded what happened on those stands where (a) he actually
crossed the stand threshold, and (b) there was a representative free to speak to him.
1. Prospect not noticed or ignored by stand staff
50%
2. Prospect approached with a "Can I help you?"
by stand staff 40%
3. Poor opening remarks (e.g. "Are you just
looking?" "Please take a leaflet" etc.) 8%
4. Good opening remarks 2%
This would indicate two things: at the exhibitions visited by the researcher 48% of the staff were doing their job badly and 50% weren't doing it at all!
The remedy for the 50% is easy - you tell them to do their job or get out! For the 48%, however, something can be done.