How can you quickly build trust with trade show exhibitors and speakers?

The key to quickly building trust with exhibitors and speakers lies not merely in professionalism and logistical precision but in fostering a sense of shared purpose. Engage them not just as service providers but as partners and co-creators in an immersive experience. The real secret sauce? Open and transparent communication pre-event, coupled with personalized on-site experiences that exceed expectations. It's a simple concept that requires meticulous execution: by showing them that you value their success as much as your own, you transform a transactional relationship into a collaborative endeavor.

Pre-event planning is paramount to my success as a fractional Chief marketing Officer. With a clearly defined ideal customer profile, I am able to identify specific exhibitors who I want to work with. My strategy is to build trust and differentiate myself as a professional who provides personalized services. To achieve my strategy, I focus on the needs of my prospective customers. This happens through an assessment of their online presence. I look their website to understand their value proposition and offerings. Though, their blog and social media often help me to understand their culture. I also follow the social media accounts for key individuals in the organization to gain understanding of their point of view and activities.

Events should become spaces of co-creation and problem-solving. Traditional ways of organising do not allow that to happen. Thankfully, there are numerous methods that are based on mutual respect, collective intelligence and co-creation out there. The foundation of these methods is active participation that awakens individual and collective potential. A participatory approach to speakers answers one of the key questions of every event: the WHY – Why do we organise events at all and what kind of change do we want to bring about together with the participants? In my opinion the moderator’s role is key here. An experienced, neutral moderator is priceless, as they can keep the conversation going ...

It's important to remember that everyone in attendance is there for roughly the same reason - usually the reason involves learning about resources in their respective industries. Shifting the goal from sales or lead generation - to service provides opportunity for clients (and potential clients) to ask questions - and more importantly to be able to bring their industry related problems to YOU - the expert. If you're able to solve the problem, you will be able to establish and maintain trust.

Be clear with your queries in order to help build some trust and rapport with exhibitors. From there, be concise with your expectations and, finally, be upfront about your hopeful outcome. In addition, laying the groundwork for trust and success is key so giving real world examples on how you have procured from shows before, how you used a competitors product OR for what application do you need the exhibitors product allows them to dial in on the key points quickly.

When building trust with others in any environment, you have to be authentic and understand the needs of your partner(s). Respect what they are bringing to the table and value their expertise so that the foundation of trust is formed for all parties working toward the same goal.

Approaching people with respect means recognizing and valuing their individuality, opinions, and feelings. It's about communicating in a way that is considerate and thoughtful, regardless of differences. When you approach someone with respect, you listen actively, ask questions with genuine interest, and respond with empathy. This attitude fosters trust, opens doors to meaningful conversations, and lays the groundwork for positive relationships in both personal and professional settings. It's a subtle art that goes beyond mere politeness and reflects a profound understanding of humanness.

Being respectful is the clear foundation. Understanding the overwhelming circumstance of the trade show is important when approaching exhibitors. Know when to approach and how to deliver the initial message. Be respectful and get to the point.. there's always time for small talk later, but establish the important of respect on the first approach. I think that helps ease into conversation.

For exhibitors - Go directly to their exhibition booth and introduce yourself briefly during a slow business time for the booth - before crowds or after the first day ideally. Try to ask relevant questions and exchange information quickly. Show days can be extremely fast paced. When engaging key-note speakers, save questions for the end of their presentation and check with the trade-show staff to see if they are accepting meetings or will have additional time to answer questions.

Active listening ensures that you don't hog up the conversation; instead, it allows you to add value by fostering a genuine connection. When you actively listen, you're not merely waiting for your turn to speak. You're absorbing information, recognizing emotions, and understanding the underlying thoughts of the speaker. This enables you to respond in a way that's insightful and relevant. By practicing active listening, you transform conversations from mere exchanges of information into opportunities for collaboration, understanding, and growth. It's a respectful way to engage with others that enriches both the conversation and the relationship.

I’ve attended many trade shows in my career. My tip is to listen more than talk. Everyone has spent time and money to attend so be respectful!

Earning the opportunity to speak with exhibitors and speakers requires a respectful approach. First, respect your prospect's time. The event is their professional equivalent to the Super Bowl. Your prospect's calendar is probably full. That means you shouldn't count on a surprise request to chat for a few. During your pre-work, you would suggest a time to talk. Prepare an agenda and share the "why" behind your wanting to meet. Ask interesting questions to gain the interest of your prospect. The question shouldn't be complicated; nor should you ask something you could have researched online. Keep the conversation short and ask to speak again after the event if you believe there is a reason to keep the discussion going.

One of the best ways to connect and gain trust is to participate with exhibitors and speakers after active listening. Find/listen for commonalities and industry related alignments that you have with the presenter/exhibitor and ways to ask leading questions. Think through what's being presented by trying to understanding the presenter's overall message, so more detail oriented questions can be asked in relation to the message. Clearly defining the presenter's purpose will assist you in asking questions that make sense, and that lead to fuller discussions, and will hopefully lead to deeper relationships based on mutual goals and interests.

There are always some suggestions from the exhibitors no matter what scale of exhibition you are, what years old your event is or you make sure there is no stone kept unturned for the better experience of the exhibitors. Keep listening to their suggestions and justify why not as per suggestions or give them affirmation and tell them of your future plans for improvements. Make them feel valuable.

Follow up is key in establishing trust, set a time in person with the exhibitor or speaker to call, and call on time. Business works best when we establish expectations and then deliver on them, and even better if we are also able to go above and beyond. Ensure shipments, communications, and contracts are all delivered in a time-is-of-the-essence fashion. People tend to have either time or money and rarely both, so make the relationship, and working with you - as easy as possible. Set up a CRM to assist you in keeping track of your network and communications, if possible. Having notes on previous conversations and soft personal details makes a big difference when connecting by giving you the opportunity to ask about family/pets/hobbies.

One of the best habits that has worked for me is offering no-strings-attached help personally. You make sales with people, not between corporations. Offer help as a person on anything that may help the client, and it will trickle into corporate decision-making quickly.

You can do this through various ways but they should be consistent. If you have a speaking session, keep your team away and let you customer speak on your behalf about how your company helped them solve a problem that others in the industry or space are facing. Another way, that is easy and impactful is including customer logos on your booth. It helps attendees know who you work with and helps your booth staff remember. Lastly, playing customer testimonials on the screens in your booth between demos, make sure they are captioned, can also help.

One thing I've always done is personally acknowledging everyone that i know on email but never met face to face... dropping a simple "Hi, how's your day going on", showing an actual face to the name/voice, works wonders in building deeper and meaningful partnerships.