Today, the Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR) released a new study entitled Exhibitor Sales Lead Capture and Follow-up Practice Trends.
This original research provides an up-to-date look at how exhibitors are capturing sales leads at business-to-business exhibitions, what information is typically captured, which department handles follow-up, the most common follow-up methods and whether leads are tracked. Now, the data provides insights into which follow-up methods are considered most effective and differences in practices by the size of organizations.
CEIR Research Director Nancy Drapeau, PRC said, “For the first time, CEIR research shows that exhibitors that capture sales leads have approaches in place to capture this information though all methods are not created equal. They range from very basic to highly-sophisticated. The good news is that exhibitors are following up on their leads, though again, how this is done varies greatly. Findings suggest that systematic lead tracking is still in its infancy.”
Highlights from this report include:
- The top two most common methods organizations use to capture leads are: lead retrieval system offered by an exhibition organizer, 74 per cent, and paper-based lead form/collect business cards, 59 per cent.
- Qualifying leads is infrequent, with only 30 per cent of exhibitors capturing demographics and other lead qualifier questions, in addition to contact information and product or service interest information.
- Customized emails, 64 per cent, and phone follow-up tailored to address attendee product or service interests, 59 per cent, are the most common follow-up methods. Fulfillment of these efforts is completed within two weeks by over 70 per cent of exhibitors using each method.
Survey results are based on a study conducted by CEIR this summer, polling a sampling of exhibitors from The International Center for Exhibitor and Event Marketing as well as Exhibtrac’s Top 250 exhibitions’ list. Nearly 200 exhibitors participated. For more information on the study, click here.
