CHALLENGER INSIGHTS Vol. 11:
Local/Regional Tradeshows
Tradeshows—and the connections I’ve made as a result—have always been one of my favorite parts of being involved with Spacesaver, first as a rep and now as a sales manager. While it’s certainly nice to get out of town and travel to a new city, especially when it’s warmer than the weather in your own neck of the woods, that’s only a small part of the appeal when it comes to tradeshows.
Whether they’re local shows in your area or through national trade show representation organized by Spacesaver, there are three big benefits to attending or working a trade show.
Voice of Customer
This might not seem like a big deal—as a rep, chances are you hear the voice of your customers on a daily (or hourly!) basis. However, there are several benefits to hearing from current and potential customers at tradeshows—first of all, they’re more relaxed, and therefore a little more willing to speak about challenges and opportunities to make changes in their spaces and storage areas. In addition, depending on the size of the tradeshow, they’re able to see the product in person. This means you’ll be able to take note of what they focused on during the show—and make the follow-up more personalized.
Local Opportunities
If a national trade show is in your area, it gives you the ability to talk in person with potential opportunities. These shows are not inexpensive by the time you factor in registration fees, hotel rooms, and transportation—but for local departments, the cost is considerably less, which means that more of these departments are able to attend. In having several reps from Bradford Systems with me at IACP (International Association of Chiefs of Police) in Chicago last fall, I saw first-hand how many in-person conversations they were able to have with the departments—and architecture firms—in their PAR, and plenty of calls and AIA presentations were coordinated as a result.
Insight Into Trends, Challenges, and Our Competition
At IACP, I had a bit of time to “walk the show” in between working at the Spacesaver booth, and it gave me the opportunity to really see what’s on the horizon in terms of policing trends. Technology such as body cameras and digital storage of data was an overwhelming trend, and it seemed like every other booth I stumbled across was leveraging their own knowledge about this arena. Predictive policing was also a large issue. Knowing the issues that are out there and how our products could potentially have an impact on them is something that can differentiate us from a competitor who’s selling a product, not solving for a problem. In addition, these shows give us the ability to see our competition up close and see what they’re focusing on and the new products they might be unveiling.
Have you been successful at a regional or national tradeshow, and if so, how did you define that success? Do you have insights for other reps regarding the best way to get involved with tradeshows? Email McKenna Dustman at mdustman@spacesaver.com and tell her your story.