soft land and scale

The prospect of drowning in a sea of U.S. regulation is scary, particularly if you’re not an experienced swimmer. Yet scaling firms must come to terms with the fact that part and parcel to reaping the rewards of U.S. market entry is mastering the depth and breadth of its regulatory system. Or at the very least, hiring a tugboat that can lead you out of the harbor. For insight into how scaling firms should best manage the regulatory landscape of the U.S. market, we spoke with American manufacturing market-entry guru Lance Scott of Alliance Technologies. Lance founded Alliance Technologies with a mission to help international advanced manufacturing companies accelerate strategic growth in the American market through direct operational management and expert guidance. During our September 12th interview, we asked Lance a number of questions to help demystify U.S. regulatory and tax systems for firms endeavoring to scale to the U.S. market. Regulation in layers Because of its federal and state government structure, the U.S. has layers of policies and legal structures designed to regulate how businesses operate. Lance raised the example of OSHA, the U.S.’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration that oversees these standards on the national level. OSHA also operates at the state level, for example in our home state through Connecticut OSHA. Scaling firms must be cognizant of federal as well as state-level regulation and make sure they are in compliance on both levels—a unique challenge to U.S. market entry. On the state level, scaling firms that operate regionally must pay special attention to state-by-state differences, particularly when it comes to taxation. Placing taxation in the regulatory bucket is an area requiring detailed knowledge and professional oversight. Tax laws are dynamic so having the support of legal and tax experts is fundamental to US market-entry. To further complicate U.S. scaling endeavors, each U.S. state may have slightly different income, property, and payroll tax regulations, as well as workers compensation. At a national level, Lance used the example of import/export compliance. While it may not matter whether you’re bringing a product into California or New York from an import regulation standpoint, export compliance rules are extremely strict. Finally, at a global level, we see quality standards that (fortunately in recent years) have become more synchronized across regions. Whether it’s ISO in Europe, CCC in China or SEA in the United States, the good news is that more linkages are being made to ensure that, from a quality perspective, scaling firms can operate with a shared recognition of customer values. When to look for help Lance recommends that every scaling firm seek professional tax and regulatory guidance before entering the U.S. market. For 30 years he has worked on building a model that provides strategic sales advice, operational, financial and regulatory navigation support. “It’s hard to find these services all in one place and we’re proud to be able to offer that to our clients.” But assuming that not everybody will become a client of Alliance Technologies, Lance stresses the importance of seeking support in key areas. This is particularly the case with export compliance, where there’s very little room for error. “Export compliance laws have changed dramatically and are incredibly stringent. The penalties for noncompliance are mind-boggling—you’re looking at a $1 million penalty per occurrence. While it’s less the case with importation, when it comes to export compliance, scaling firms must have a policy in place from day one.” All this discussion of regulatory minefields is not to imply that U.S. market entry isn’t worth the hassle. Rather, in the interest of supporting the success of scaling firms, we aim to make clear that regulatory compliance at the state and national levels should be taken seriously and monitored closely. For all the investments required to ensure U.S. market entry success, it’s simply not worth the risk of overlooking the fine print in the U.S. regulatory system. Fortunately, you don’t have to do it alone. For more expert advice on overcoming the challenges of U.S. market-entry, check out our interview with Lance Scott titled: Navigating the Challenges of the American Market: The Impact of a Vast Geographic Territory. To check out all of MEET’s webinar content on how to successfully scale your company in the U.S. market, subscribe to our YouTube Channel. About
 MEET (meetroi.com) helps international B2B growth companies soft-land and scale in the U.S. through trade shows and in-person events. MEET’s processes help its clients ramp-up sales quickly and maintain a steady stream of high-quality prospects going forward.  Contact Bill Kenney for a no-obligation conversation: bill@meetroi.com or +1 (860) 573-4821.

Perhaps the hardest waters to navigate in a U.S market entry expedition are developing sales channels. With tight timelines and even tighter budgets at stake, understanding how to leverage U.S. manufacturing, distribution and sales networks in the most efficient way possible is both challenging and necessary for scaling firms. For insight and guidance into how scaling firms should approach U.S. sales channels from a budgetary, logistical and management perspective, we spoke with American manufacturing market-entry guru Lance Scott of Alliance Technologies. Lance founded Alliance Technologies with a mission to help international advanced manufacturing companies accelerate strategic growth in the American market through direct operational management and expert guidance. During our September 12th interview, we asked Lance how he supports scaling firms in navigating the U.S. market’s unique landscape. Saving money by hiring out “In the U.S., we have a sales structure that is quite mature and on the surface to those less familiar, seems crazy.” Lance was referring to the role that independent reps play in manufacturing, distribution, and sales in the U.S. market. He also recognized scaling firms’ natural inclination to hire a direct sales force to avoid engaging (and compensating) a third party. “The geographic size of the U.S. has many implications for how we do sales. Firms that are able to hire their own direct sales team must already be quite large to successfully manage such an operation and get results.” According to Lance, what helps to guarantee the success of a layered distribution model is payment structure. “These representatives have a defined territory and work on commission, i.e. get paid on their success.” And as Lance points out, while they take some margin, it’s worth gaining access to new product introductions and key accounts that would otherwise cost thousands of dollars to acquire. “It’s a complex matrix but, after 30 years of defending the model, I’ve come to believe it is the best strategy for U.S. market entry given our unique geographic size and existing sales structure.” The advantage of sailing through charted territory In addition to the budgetary pressures on a scaling venture, timing is also a factor. Specifically, with regards to sales channels, Lance points out major advantages to contracting out from a timeline perspective. Capitalizing on existing networks and relationships in a new market can significantly shorten the amount of time that prospects spend in the sales funnel. As Lance points out, using third-party distributors and manufacturers also creates up and cross-sell capabilities that would otherwise not exist. How to select the right third-party rep for your company As someone whose success is measured by his ability to design and deliver highly effective sales channels for his customers, we asked Lance which criteria he uses to select manufacturing and distribution representatives. “Over the years I’ve developed a ranking system similar to a report card for reps to make sure that expectations are managed. To evaluate them, I look at things like technical competence, familiarity with the product and, when necessary, the larger systems involved. I also look at the firm’s operational capacity, specifically their infrastructure, internal technology, staff and customer service.” In addition to these criteria, Lance looks at soft factors like whether they are easy to work with and do they truly understand what it means to operate on behalf of an international parent company. Again, the key is to be able to manage and measure expectations. Who do you want at the helm of your scaling venture? Companies and trade folks quite often debate whether to hire a local U.S. salesperson as their first employee versus transplant someone from the parent company. Each has its own benefits, risks, and trade-offs. For example: Do you prioritize company experience or marketplace experience? Which skills/attributes are most important for that first hire in the new market? While it’s always possible to find that perfect individual from the home market who is worldly and experienced enough to execute a foreign scaling venture, they may not exist within your company. In selecting the right person to lead a scaling venture, many companies focus on industry-specific experience. From Lance’s perspective, this is a mistake. “Personally I focus more on skillset. If somebody’s a great Key Account Manager, I believe that they can learn a new industry or a new vertical.” In an ideal world, you have a leadership team with innate cultural knowledge of the U.S. market and substantive knowledge of the parent company. That may look like an American lead supported by an applications or sales engineer from the home market. However you decide to formulate your leadership team, make sure they are adept at understanding and responding to differences in business culture. This, according to Lance, will be your most critical navigation tool. For more expert advice on overcoming the challenges of U.S. market-entry, check out our interview with Lance Scott titled: Navigating the Challenges of the American Market: The Impact of a Vast Geographic Territory. To check out all of MEET’s webinar content on how to successfully scale your company in the U.S. market, subscribe to our YouTube Channel. About
 MEET (meetroi.com) helps international B2B growth companies soft-land and scale in the U.S. through trade shows and in-person events. MEET’s processes help its clients ramp-up sales quickly and maintain a steady stream of high-quality prospects going forward.  Contact Bill Kenney for a no-obligation conversation: bill@meetroi.com or +1 (860) 573-4821.

  In weighing the risks and rewards of U.S. market-entry, the golden rule of financial investing holds true: “never invest money you can’t afford to lose.” Scaling too early, before you have the proper reserves and stability in your home market, is a serious gamble. The major difference between financial investing and scaling however is that with financial investing you’re encouraged to dip your toes in the water to test your comfort level. Investing in U.S. market-entry, on the other hand, comes with a set of minimum costs. And while it may not be necessary to invest millions in staffing, marketing, and offshore manufacturing, it is critical that target prospects feel you are 100% committed to serving their market. In other words, dipping your toes and showing mild commitment is not an option. One of the most challenging tasks for U.S. market-entry firms is determining what level of staffing is required to gain enough traction to not only stay afloat but successfully sail past the competition. For insight into formulating a staffing budget for U.S. market-entry, we spoke with American manufacturing market-entry guru Lance Scott of Alliance Technologies. Lance founded Alliance Technologies with a mission to help international advanced manufacturing companies accelerate strategic growth in the American market through direct operational management and expert guidance. Can one person alone open a U.S. office? Hiring (or sending over) just one person to open a U.S. office is a bit like trying to run a restaurant on your own. Sure you could seat people, take their orders, cook the food and serve it up by yourself, but would your diners ever return if there’s a better-managed restaurant down the road? Even if you make great food, there are a number of factors that go into creating a pleasant dining experience. And chances are, you’re not succeeding at all of them if you’re understaffed. In the most competitive market in the world, it’s critical that scaling firms offer comparable if not better products and customer service. Lance recommends that scaling firms take a step back before embarking on U.S. market-entry and create a budget that strategically allocates resources to areas most critical for success. “A lot of time companies think that they will just hire one rep here and that’s all they need for their initial expenses. Competing in the U.S. market requires much more.” The theory of soft-landing At MEET, it is our mission to help international B2B growth companies soft-land and scale in the U.S. through trade shows and in-person events. We focus on trade shows and in-person events because we believe they are the most effective way of getting face-to-face with high-quality executive prospects. Our business model is designed to solve the precise budgetary challenge that scaling firms face in determining the most cost-effective way to gain traction and find early success in a new market without over-investing resources at the onset The theory of soft-landing is that firms seeking U.S. market-entry can partner with companies like MEET, Alliance Technologies and other service providers who make up an entire ecosystem specializing in helping companies successfully enter new countries and scale. Formulating a strengths-based staffing budget for U.S. market-entry Lance advises that if you’re bringing someone over from the home office to lead your scaling venture you want them to be focused on selling and growing the business.  “It’s very easy to underestimate all the other things like finance, legal, regulatory and human resources that come with U.S. market-entry growth.” In essence, you want to create a budget that allows your sales team the bandwidth to achieve their goals without over-extending your investment capacity. In other words, allow each team (or individual) to capitalize on their strengths. This is where a soft-landing partner can be very useful. In the case of Alliance Technologies, Lance’s team offers a fractional share C-level management team expertly trained in scaling ventures in the U.S. market to cover non-specialized areas of the business. This model allows the salesperson, customer service agent or engineer to focus on their strengths and showcase the unique feature of their product or service that makes them competitive. Whether you choose to do business with Alliance Technologies, MEET or another soft- landing partner, there’s no reason to go it alone. The alternative, according to Lance, is a staffing budget that could be up to four times that of a single person, not to mention the upfront one-time capital expenses. When you’ve saved enough to invest big but dipping your toe is not an option, a soft-landing partnership can make all the difference in a new market. For more expert advice on overcoming the challenges of U.S. market-entry, check out our interview with Lance Scott titled: Navigating the Challenges of the American Market: The Impact of a Vast Geographic Territory.  To check out all of MEET’s webinar content on how to successfully scale your company in the U.S. market, subscribe to our YouTube Channel. About 
 MEET (meetroi.com) helps international B2B growth companies soft-land and scale in the U.S. through trade shows and in-person events. MEET’s processes help its clients ramp-up sales quickly and maintain a steady stream of high-quality prospects going forward.  Contact Bill Kenney for a no-obligation conversation: bill@meetroi.com or +1 (860) 573-4821.

U.S. market entry is a rite of passage for many international scaling firms—particularly those in advanced technology. An outcome of globalization and the rapid pace of technological advancement, entrepreneurs and manufacturing businesses of all sizes from around the world see extraordinary opportunity here. Such trends have also fueled increased competition, in turn creating new (and exacerbating old) challenges for international firms vying for economic prosperity. For insight into how these, and other U.S. market entry pioneers capitalize on new opportunities while navigating the challenges of the North American marketplace, we spoke with American manufacturing market-entry guru Lance Scott of Alliance Technologies. Lance founded Alliance Technologies with a mission to help international advanced manufacturing companies accelerate strategic growth in the American market through direct operational management and expert guidance. With 30 years of experience supporting international companies in their efforts to establish, enhance or accelerate growth in the Americas, we asked Lance about the challenges these firms face. Misjudging the geography Misjudging the geographic landscape, scale and scope of the U.S. market is the first challenge faced by international scaling firms. Specifically, Lance described how many firms underestimate the size and diversity of the U.S. due to our shared language. Additionally, because certain geographic areas are renown for concentrations of particular industries, scaling firms tend to overlook other highly viable regions for doing business. “Everyone knows that California has a tremendous market in Silicon Valley but in fact, out of all the R&D spending in the U.S., about two-thirds come from eleven states. While California is the largest, seven states in the Northeast account for $75 billion. That’s not insignificant.” This is not meant to imply that the middle of the country is a barren wasteland. As Lance points out, there are a number of key markets with major players and influencers throughout the U.S. and all of North America. Finding your first home in the U.S. market In light of these challenges, we asked Lance about the primary variables he uses to help scaling firms make their first location decision. For manufacturing firms, Lance emphasized the importance of region-specific industry knowledge. In other words, where are the key accounts and influencers located? Specifically, he works with clients to unpack cluster trends. “The medical device industry is a great example. While the U.S. has clusters in Connecticut, Boston and throughout New England, Minnesota is a critical region for this industry that people might not think of at first.” How much of a concern is the high cost of doing business in the U.S.? Firms often cite the high cost of doing business in the U.S. as a major challenge to U.S. market entry. Lance doesn’t discount this challenge but encourages his clients to take a more nuanced perspective. “I try to help our manufacturing clients understand that over the past 20 or 30 years there’s been a massive shift of high-volume manufacturing to low-cost regions. It’s critical that high-volume manufacturers know that even though a lot of the decision-making happens in the U.S., high-volume production does not.” That said, Lance discourages his manufacturing clients from basing their scaling decisions on where they can find the lowest upfront costs. “I don’t want to discount the cost of doing business but I think it’s dangerous to choose your location simply based on where you can find the lowest entry costs such as building leases or salary rates. Sure, these might be lower somewhere else, but if you’re not close to your customers, there will be other, potentially higher startup costs like travel. Lance recommends considering factors like time zone—ensuring there is some overlap with your target customers and the availability of a skilled workforce in weighing the U.S. market entry decision. One U.S. market entry hurdle not to worry about Ensuring a readily available, skilled labor pool is a critical factor for any scaling firm. From Lance’s perspective, this is one hurdle that U.S. market entrants need not worry about. “I know people complain, but in helping advanced manufacturing companies scale in the U.S., I’ve always been able to find skilled workers or add additional training when needed. Finding a labor force that meets your needs is certainly possible just about anywhere in the U.S.” For more expert advice on overcoming the challenges of U.S. market entry, check out our interview with Lance Scott titled: Navigating the Challenges of the American Market: The Impact of a Vast Geographic Territory. To check out all MEET’s webinar content on how to successfully scale your company in the U.S. market, subscribe to our YouTube Channel. About
 MEET (meetroi.com) helps international B2B growth companies soft-land and scale in the U.S. through trade shows and in-person events. MEET’s processes help its clients ramp-up sales quickly and maintain a steady stream of high-quality prospects going forward.  Contact Bill Kenney for a no-obligation conversation: bill@meetroi.com or +1 (860) 573-4821.

Gatekeepers are hired to protect C-suite executives. While not the Queen of England, the myriad of responsibilities juggled by C-suites requires someone to filter, grant or deny access to them based on their credentials. C-suite executives themselves are also gatekeepers to B2B sales in that they control the budgets. As a result, salespeople must have a targeted strategy for gaining access to the C-suite that accounts for the role of their vetting administrator. For some expert advice on how to get past the gatekeepers in B2B sales, we interviewed appointment-setting guru Bob Good, CEO and founder of Good Leads. Good Leads provides executive-level warranted business introductions and B2B business development services for technology-centric firms, professional service entities, and government economic development agencies. What is the number one mistake salespeople make when approaching gatekeepers? The number one mistake, according to Bob, is sounding like a telemarketer. “It’s the kiss of death. Gatekeepers are trained to identify telemarketers. They can hear it in your voice.” Even if it’s the 80th call of the day, salespeople must take the preparatory steps to sound composed, engaged, and knowledgeable about whom they are reaching out to. In essence, all the things telemarketers do not do. Are there ways to engage gatekeepers with content? According to Bob, breaking the ice with a provocative question is a great way to engage gatekeepers in conversation and demonstrate your expertise. Questions that start with: Are you aware of [X]? [X] is happening down the street, how has that impacted you? Did you know [X] company saved [Y] company [$ amount] this year? By asking gatekeepers questions, you are allowing them to demonstrate their knowledge and to feel empowered. With a natural inclination to help, it may also compel them to get you more information on this topic. Leveraging your most current social media or print ad as a primer for the call can also be a useful strategy, according to Bob. Whether it’s via live phone call, voicemail or follow-up email, using a recent marketing investment as a reference strategically helps to build credibility. For example: “Did you see our recent ad in the Wall Street Journal?” For more on how to prepare and leverage every opportunity when endeavoring to set C-suite appointments, check out this post. Strategically using email in B2B sales B2B sales require multiple touchpoints. In addition to phone calls, which Bob still uses as his primary method of outreach, email is an important tool to leverage as well. According to studies, the best time to send an email that will be read is between 4-6 PM. Bob also recommends carefully using subject lines and short headers that will catch your gatekeeper’s attention in what is sure to be a very full inbox. And remember, barraging gatekeepers or C-suite execs with any form of communication, whether it’s email or voicemail, is never a good idea. While persistence is critical, so is presenting a calculated approach. And on the topic of persistence, putting in place a system to provide constant feedback on the status of an outreach effort is always helpful. Because the timeline on B2B sales is particularly long, it’s critical that your sales team stay engaged and accountable to the process. While the gatekeepers at Buckingham Palace may not smile, they are human. So are the C-suite admins on the other end of the line. Using techniques to help them understand your unique value proposition actually makes their job easier. What is the trick to getting past gatekeepers in B2B sales? Help them help you. To check out all of MEET’s interview content with leaders in the B2B sales, marketing, and soft-landing space, visit our YouTube Channel and subscribe. About MEET (meetroi.com) helps international B2B growth companies soft-land and scale in the U.S. through trade shows and in-person events. MEET’s processes help its clients ramp-up sales quickly and maintain a steady stream of high-quality prospects going forward.  Contact Bill Kenney for a no-obligation conversation: bill@meetroi.com or +1 (860) 573-4821.

Setting appointments with CEOs, COOs, CFOs, CIOs, CTOs, CISOs, CMO’s and other organizational leaders are the lifeblood of B2B sales. Top sales professionals must battle gatekeepers, voicemail, email filters, their fears, and a variety of other obstacles to get the attention of these executives. The process is often inefficient and frustrating. Sometimes even demoralizing. On August 20th we chatted with appointment-setting guru Bob Good of Good Leads to learn more about the common challenges sales leaders face in setting C-suite appointments and how to overcome them. Good Leads provides executive-level warranted business introductions and B2B business development services for technology-centric firms, professional service entities, and government economic development agencies. Bob’s entire business model is based on a very real problem that all B2B companies face in acquiring new customers: the challenge of setting appointments with C-suite executives who are the gateway to customer acquisition. As CEO and founder with 25 years of experience, we asked Bob what are some of the challenges that sales professionals face that draws them to Good Leads for support. Why do B2B firms need help with C-suite introductions? Bob identified three primary challenges faced by firms in their pursuit of appointments with the C-suite. Lack of Maturity: For companies that are young and inexperienced, it is difficult for salespeople to relate knowledge with confidence while on the phone. Call Reluctance: There are salespeople in every company that fear of picking up the phone; those who lack experience feel nervous about reaching out to executives at this level. Lack of Persistence: Recognizing that it sometimes takes 10-15 calls at different levels within the organization before you get an answer, giving up too soon is a common barrier to success. The first step to overcoming these challenges is recognizing their frequency. No one likes the feeling of rejection and yet effective salespeople rebound from rejection all the time. The key is to build confidence—in yourself and the company—so that these hurdles are internalized as simply part of the process of setting appointments. Help your salespeople see persistence and rejection as a part of the process, not personal. What modes of communication work best for setting appointments with executives? We asked Bob which modes of communication Good Leads uses to set appointments for its clients. Are phone calls still the way to go? Bob made clear that, while various modes of communication are utilized for setting C- suite appointments, phone calls still reign supreme. “While phone calls are our primary mode, we do follow-up via email. We also leverage various modes of customer marketing such as recent ad campaigns to connect with particular buyer personas.” With multiple phone calls come multiple opportunities to leave a voicemail. Is voicemail also a communications tool that can be leveraged? How to leverage voicemail Bob recommends leaving one or two voicemails with the appropriate script for each. “You don’t want to barrage people with voicemail. You also don’t want to sound like an offshore cold calling company.” Voicemail should be used strategically as a branding touchpoint. It allows you to build awareness with your target persona as well as others in the organization. Clearly and concisely articulating how you are working to provide a solution to their problem is the best way to entice a callback. Use voicemail strategically as an opportunity to deliver your unique value proposition. Preparing your team for success is an investment. We asked Bob about the steps his team takes before reaching out to an executive. How to prepare for a C-suite call Bob shared three valuable ways to prepare for a C-suite outreach. Do your research Make sure you have some knowledge of them, their company, and a key issue that would be important to them to improve your ability to relate. Rehearse your script Rehearse (and even role-play) what you’re going to say in different scenarios depending on their response. Winging it rarely makes a good impression. Relax! Make sure that your speech is slow and clear. Speaking too quickly often gives the impression that you’re nervous due to inexperience or lack of confidence. C-suite appointments are the bread and butter of B2B sales and marketing. Investing the resources to maximize your return on these efforts will not only deliver revenues and profits but also a happier, more sustained team. Stay tuned for more from our interview on C-suite appointment setting with CEO Bob Good of Good Leads. To check out all of MEET’s webinar content on how to successfully scale your company in the U.S. market, subscribe to our YouTube Channel. About MEET (meetroi.com) helps international B2B growth companies soft-land and scale in the U.S. through trade shows and in-person events. MEET’s processes help its clients ramp-up sales quickly and maintain a steady stream of high-quality prospects going forward. Contact Bill Kenney for a no-obligation conversation: bill@meetroi.com or +1 (860) 573-4821.

High-quality conversations at trade shows and in-person events are like buried treasure. It’s rare that you stumble upon them. It is worth every investment of time and resources to evolve a map to ensure that you find them. First, let’s define high-quality. High-quality conversations deliver value—whether in potential customers, partnerships or referrals. They represent the unique and unparalleled benefit to trade shows and in-person events in that by nature they deliver greater returns than other marketing strategies. As your event selection improves the pool of possible people to meet improves. They also require work. Devising an annual trade show strategy plan (which includes careful show selection and marketing practices) serves as a map. The next step is to uncover the best route. For more on how to build an annual trade show strategy plan, check out our Special Report: How to Maximize ROI with a Trade Show Strategy Plan, or reach out to us today. Key steps to seeking out high-quality conversations Trade shows are finite opportunities. Just like fruit at the market, they are perishable opportunities. You’ll never get this same mix of people with the same mix of needs in one room again. Taking the steps to ensure that your time and resources are used efficiently to maximize ROI is critical. Here’s what we recommend: 1. Stay focused  Know your targets before walking into an event. Having specific targets in mind—companies or people, industries or types of professionals, helps to ensure that you are making the most of the time and resources you have committed to being there. Know who you want to meet by name or discipline. 2. Be prepared While some events use nametags, the vast majority do not. We recommend doing your pre-event homework by researching attendee lists. If you’ve participated in this event in the past, take the time to review your database for insights. We also recommend scheduling meet-ups with your highest priority targets before the event. Once you have those meetings in place, fill the rest of your schedule with key opportunities (e.g. speaking and networking events) where you anticipate similar personas will be in attendance. 3. Leverage all available resources With 75+ years of trade show and in-person event experience, we’ve learned that one of the least utilized resources are the hosts themselves. Not only are hosts well aware of attendee demographics, but they also have a vested interest in your satisfaction and success at the event. Whether you contact your hosts ahead of time or as soon as you arrive, it’s helpful to inform them of whom you’re aiming to meet at the event (whether it’s by industry, geography, or name) and request introductions. Having a trusted third-party help you facilitate introductions can help to immediately break the ice and build rapport with target prospects and partners. Don’t be afraid to leave the booth. Devising a divide and conquer staffing approach will help to ensure that you are maximizing all your available resources so that everyone on your event team is fully leveraged. Unlocking the greatest value You’ve managed to find the treasure, which is great! Now how do you make sure you’ve got the right set of keys to unlock it? The key to unlocking high-value conversations at trade shows and in-person events is having a list of good, thoughtful questions. While a scripted self-introduction is important, it’s not what you say but what you learn that drives strong connections. For more on the value of good conversation skills and specific questions to ask potential prospects and partners, check out this post. The beauty of using an inquiry-based approach is that it puts you in a position of power to determine whether someone is truly a resource or prospect. By uncovering someone’s top three priorities, you will easily be able to identify whether or not they are a good partner or prospect, as opposed to relying on their own self-assessment and potentially misinformed impression of your services. Treasure abounds at trade shows and in-person events. It’s why we’ve chosen to make them the focus of our work. But showing up is only half the battle. Taking the steps to uncover and unlock these rewards requires planning and preparation. Fortunately, help is out there. For more on this topic of strategic engagement at trade shows, check out our recent webinar: How to Start Conversations and Identify Opportunities at Events. To check out all of MEET’s webinar content on how to successfully scale your company in the U.S. market, subscribe to our YouTube Channel. About MEET (meetroi.com) helps international B2B growth companies soft-land and scale in the U.S. through trade shows and in-person events. MEET’s processes help its clients ramp-up sales quickly and maintain a steady stream of high-quality prospects going forward.  Contact Bill Kenney for a no-obligation conversation: bill@meetroi.com or +1 (860) 573-4821.

At MEET, we focus on helping B2B growth companies soft-land and scale in the U.S. through trade shows and in-person events. By using time-tested strategies to identify prospects, select shows, align marketing techniques and measure outcomes, MEET works to de-risk the scaling process by ensuring a steady stream of high-quality prospects for our clients. Why do we focus on trade shows? For B2B companies, most marketing dollars are spent with the hopes of someday getting face-to-face with target prospects. When optimized, trade shows deliver the most efficient way of achieving this goal. They provide the venue and the audience for these transactions. They also provide a number of other unique opportunities to improve your position in the market and connect with key stakeholders. For companies looking to scale to the U.S. market, trade shows represent a vital opportunity to meet target customers, test value propositions and offers. The beauty of this approach for scaling firms is that they can begin before investing major resources in infrastructure and staffing in the new market. Trade shows are also exhausting and represent a huge commitment of time and resources, which is why we recommend taking every step possible to guarantee your ROI. Even steps that may seem a bit less tangible. Mindset matters Psychologists have spent years studying the impact of one’s self-beliefs on their success or failure, and have proven that mindset does, in fact, play a significant role in determining achievement. At MEET, we believe that taking the steps to get in the right mindset before and during an event helps to ensure that every other investment in that opportunity is fully leveraged. And having participated in close to 5,000 events in our collective 75 years of experience, we’re pretty familiar with what it takes to achieve that trade show mindset. Here are the steps we recommend to help get you in the mindset for success. Take a pause Whether you’re coming off of a busy morning, a crazy travel schedule or a full day in the office, take a moment to refocus and re-energize before walking through those doors. We all have different rituals for shifting gears. Here’s what works for us: Find a quiet spot where you can be alone. This might be your car, a park bench, or a nearby café. Use this time to remind yourself why you’re attending the event and what your explicit goals are. Make sure to remove other activities and responsibilities that may be a distraction or inhibit you from reaching those goals. For example, if your goal is to find resources for your company and existing customers, put aside your sales pitch. Similar to fishing (where using the wrong bait will scare away the fish you’re aiming to catch) a misapplied sales pitch can easily scare away target contacts. Take steps to ensure that your strategy matches your audience and your goals, and remove all other barriers. Channel your role models We all have someone we admire for his or her networking skills. Having a clear picture of a person whose skills you’d like to emulate in a networking situation is a great way to gain and maintain focus throughout an event. Whether you’re an introvert or an extrovert, events can be taxing, particularly those that last for several days. We all have behaviors that we revert to when we’re tired or feeling overwhelmed. Looking at technology, sitting down, or socializing with friends should all be avoided. Having a role model in mind can help you in those moments. Instead of reverting to these behaviors, think about how your role model would behave in the booth or while engaging with trade show participants. Whether it’s encouraging people out of the aisle to have a conversation, or simply not sitting down, it’s helpful to have specific qualities in mind that you’re aiming to replicate during an event. There’s a lot that goes into maximizing ROI from a trade show event. If pre, during and post-event strategy weren’t enough, there are the steps you must take to ensure that your mindset (and the way it causes you to behave) is aligned with the success you worked so hard to achieve. That said, there is no comparison to the connections, relationships, and targeted exposure gained from trade shows and in-person events. So get on your game face. It’s worth it. For more on this topic of strategic engagement at trade shows, check out our recent webinar: How to Start Conversations and Identify Opportunities at Events. To check out all of MEET’s webinar content on how to successfully scale your company in the U.S. market, subscribe to our YouTube Channel.   About MEET (meetroi.com) helps international B2B growth companies soft-land and scale in the U.S. through trade shows and in-person events. MEET’s processes help its clients ramp-up sales quickly and maintain a steady stream of high-quality prospects going forward.  Contact Bill Kenney for a no obligation conversation: bill@meetroi.com or +1 (860) 573-4821.  

When sales leaders are asked where they get their referrals, close to 100% will answer from past or existing customers. When asked why they attend trade shows and in-person events, these same individuals will say that they expect to build new relationships that will drive referrals. What is the best way to secure a strong referral pipeline? How can trade shows and in-person events bolster these efforts? At MEET, we support our clients in all aspects of trade show strategy, from prospect identification to marketing and messaging, to building a cadre of resources that build credibility with future and existing customers. We’ve found that one of the most effective ways to drive referrals is to focus your attention on building a strong bullpen of customer resources. Securing a strong network of resources and activating on these relationships to support the full scope of needs your customers face sends the message you are fully committed to finding new and better ways to serve them. In other words, strengthening the bullpen equals more runs scored. How is this done? The value of trade shows The first step to building your resource bullpen is to understand the primary purpose of attending trade shows. At MEET, our goal in working with B2B companies is to ensure that trade show investments are targeted toward high-quality prospects. What do we mean by high quality? In contrast to high volume, high quality is determined by the degree to which a prospect meets three criteria: they possess a NEED, the RESOURCES to fulfill that need, and URGENCY for a solution. For simplicity, we refer to them as NEED, MONEY, NOW. Understanding the unique value of trade shows compared with social networking events comes down to distinguishing quality from quantity. A well-designed trade show strategy identifies assumptions around who these high-quality prospects are and where to find them and sets concrete goals for the number you are aiming to meet. Putting a number on your goal will not only help to measure the utility of a particular event, but it will also help your team in setting their own performance targets.  For more tips on how and why to set measurable targets for your trade show team, check out this post. Building your network at trade shows Executing on your trade show strategy requires close attention to staffing. At MEET, this is something we refer to as the divide and conquer approach. It’s critical that every member of your trade show team has a clear mission, measurable goals, and feels prepared to execute on these responsibilities. That means that your booth team (a.k.a. transaction professionals) is focused on separating prospects from the general audience and inviting them to enroll in your marketing funnel with a strong call to action. Meanwhile, your sales team is working the trade show floor, nurturing relationships with existing customers, and prospects, gaining exposure to new industry knowledge and resources, and forging new partnerships. Questions on how to implement a divide and conquer approach? Contact us today. Similar to that memory game you played as a kid, going to events is very much about making matches on a crowded game board. Beyond identifying new customers, trade shows are an exceptional way to strengthen that referral pipeline by improving your value as a networking partner. Finding ways to help your clients become stronger advocates for you is always a good investment. Own your self-introduction Finally, ensure your team is well scripted. Whether they’re in the booth performing transactions or walking the floor securing intel and resources, it’s important that every member of your trade show team is well-trained in how to deliver your call to action and goal for being in attendance. Part and parcel to a good introduction is also knowing your audience. That means having a clear picture of who you are aiming to meet by researching the attendee list and arriving at the event with a clear understanding of the needs you are aiming to fill from your existing customer base. A well-scripted self-introduction makes it easier to build initial connection and credibility, which in turn will help to foster more valuable relationships. Trade shows are no minor investment. Taking the steps to maximize ROI however, can deliver exponential results, particularly when it comes to building that referral pipeline. For more on this topic of strategic engagement at trade shows, check out our recent webinar: How to Start Conversations and Identify Opportunities at Events. To check out all of MEET’s webinar content on how to successfully scale your company in the U.S. market, subscribe to our YouTube Channel. About MEET (meetroi.com) helps international B2B growth companies soft-land and scale in the U.S. through trade shows and in-person events. MEET’s processes help its clients ramp-up sales quickly and maintain a steady stream of high-quality prospects going forward.  Contact Bill Kenney for a no-obligation conversation: bill@meetroi.com or +1 (860) 573-4821.