How do you handle vendors that shop your trade show and do not exhibit

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Permalink Reply by Gary E Parsons on September 18, 2009 at 3:36pm

That annoying practice has been a reality for many years. As a company that designs and builds exhibits for the exhibitor it was very common for sales reps in our industry to visit shows and solicit business offering build a new booth for the exhibitor. There was no better forum than to be able to stand infront of a booth and say "wow, you sure could use a new booth".

Those days ended many years ago. At least I hope they did. As a VP Sales I always told my reps that it was unethical and made for bad business practice. Let the exhibitors exhibit and carry out their business.

Unfortunately not all sales reps live with ethical practices in mind. It is natural for a salesman selling printing equipment to go to a print show and walk the floor soliciting business. To be honest the only way to really stop this is to embarras them out of the building. Mandating or the legislation of a no soliciting rule does not work. Approach the offending rep and ask them to cease soliciting the exibitors and attendees unless they would like to sit and discuss leasing space for next years event before they hit the next aisle.

In my opinion, most reps will be enmbarrased and hightail it out of the building.

Gary E. Parsons
Sales & Marketing Manager
Archex Display Ltd.
Montreal Quebec

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Permalink Reply by Dianne Smirl on September 20, 2009 at 12:35pm

Jai,

Great question and as the exhibit manager usually standing in the booth it is truly annoying when I'm trying to keep my sales force focused on selling and these people eat up our time. I personally have no problem shooing these people out of my booth by saying "i'm here to sell, not to be sold to so thanks anyways!".

Maybe create a tip sheet for your exhibitors that inform them that this practice is not acceptable and to ask these people to leave their booth as professionally as possible. When I do exhibitor training for show groups I always mention and coach them on how to respond to these people so perhaps an exhibitor meeting just before the show will help too. If all exhibitors reacted this way, the salespeople would get the hint and stay away.

Hope that helps!

Dianne

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