How do you find new trade show partners using follow up results?

1 Why follow up results matter

The follow up process is crucial for converting your trade show leads into customers, but it can also reveal valuable insights about your contacts' needs, interests, and goals. By analyzing your follow up results, you can segment your contacts based on their level of engagement, their feedback, and their fit with your offering. This will help you prioritize your communication and tailor your messages to each segment. It will also help you spot opportunities to collaborate with contacts who share your vision, values, and target market.

2 How to segment your contacts

Using the BANT criteria – Budget, Authority, Need, and Timing – is a simple and effective way to segment your contacts based on follow up results. This criteria can help you assess how qualified your contacts are as potential customers or partners. High-priority contacts are those who have a clear budget, authority, need, and timing for your product or service. These are likely to become customers or partners soon, so you should focus on building trust and closing the deal. Medium-priority contacts have some budget, authority, need, or timing for your product or service, but not all. You should provide them with relevant content, case studies, or testimonials to address their pain points and objections. Lastly, low-priority contacts have little or no budget, authority, need, or timing for your product or service. They may not become customers or partners in the near future but they may still be valuable for referrals, feedback, or future opportunities. Keep them in your database and send them occasional updates or newsletters to stay in touch.

3 How to identify potential partners

Once you have segmented your contacts, you can begin to search for potential partners among them. Potential partners are contacts who have a product or service that is complementary or synergistic, a similar target market, and a compatible vision and values. These partners can help you extend your reach, improve your offer, or add value for your customers. Examples of potential partners include co-marketers, co-sellers, and co-creators. Co-marketers can help with content creation, webinars, podcasts, social media campaigns, or referrals; co-sellers can assist with joint proposals, bundling, cross-selling, or upselling; and co-creators can collaborate on product development, innovation, testing, or feedback.

4 How to reach out to potential partners

When you have identified potential partners, it's important to reach out to them and propose a partnership. To ensure your outreach is effective and professional, start by doing your research. Make sure you understand their product or service, their target market, their goals, and their challenges. This will help you craft a personalized and relevant message that shows you care and value their work. When contacting a potential partner, be clear and concise about who you are, what you do, why you are reaching out, and what you are offering. Explain how a partnership can benefit both parties and their customers, providing examples or evidence of your results or value proposition. Respect their time and attention; avoid spamming, nagging, or pressuring them. Instead, be polite, friendly, and appreciative. Ask for permission, feedback, or interest before moving forward with the partnership. Remain flexible and open to their ideas, suggestions, or concerns; don't assume your offer or proposal is the best or only option. Aim to create a win-win situation that satisfies both parties and their customers.

5 How to measure and improve your partnership

Once you have established a partnership with a contact, you need to measure and improve your partnership performance. To do this, set clear and realistic goals and expectations before you start working together. During the partnership, monitor and evaluate your progress and results regularly, celebrate and appreciate your achievements, and seek feedback from your partner and customers. After the partnership, learn from your experience and results to identify what worked well and what didn't, and use the feedback to improve your product or service, offer, or strategy.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?