Episode 27: Should you exhibit at events to grow your consultancy?

Is exhibiting at events a good way to grow your consultancy and get new clients?

Lots of HR consultants I know have thought about exhibiting at an event before and they've asked me whether I think it's worth doing.

And done right, I think exhibiting at events can be a fantastic way to get in front of potential clients.

But if you’re thinking of just paying for a stand and going there, hoping  to have some nice chats with people then stop.

In my opinion, this is the completely wrong approach to have and the quickest way to waste your time and money.

So to help you, we're going to have a good old chat about exhibiting at events and we're going to talk about...

***

So let's jump straight into to the pros and cons of exhibiting at events:

The first pro of exhibiting is brand awareness.

Simply by being there with your stand and logo, you're increasing your brand's awareness to the people that are attending the event.

The second pro of exhibiting is lead generation.

Done right, events can be a great way to generate leads and doing it face to face helps you to build stronger connections with people from day one.

The third pro of exhibiting is market research and learnings.

Events bring together businesses from different industries, which gives you a great opportunity to see what’s happening outside your usual space.

You can chat with attendees to understand their biggest HR challenges, see what competitors are offering, and spot trends that might help shape your services.

And the fourth pro of exhibiting is networking opportunities.

You’re not just meeting potential clients, but also other business owners, industry experts, and potential collaborators.

These relationships can lead to partnerships, referrals, and even unexpected opportunities that help grow your consultancy.

***

So that's the pros covered, let's move on to the cons.

The first con of exhibiting is cost.

Exhibiting isn’t cheap.

There’s the stand itself, the branding, the marketing materials, and then travel and accommodation on top of that.

And here’s the problem: there’s no guarantee of a return on investment.

You could spend thousands and walk away with nothing but a few business cards and some polite conversations.

It’s a gamble.

The second con of exhibiting is time investment.

Planning takes time.

Setting up takes time.

Standing at your booth all day takes time.

And all of that is time you’re not spending on billable work, business strategy, or scaling your consultancy.

You have to ask yourself whether the time spent exhibiting is worth the potential return.

The third con of exhibiting is competition.

At large events, you’re not the only consultant there.

You’re competing for attention with other exhibitors, many of whom have bigger budgets, flashier stands, and more resources to attract people in.

If you don’t have a solid engagement strategy, you might struggle to make an impact.

And the fourth con of exhibiting is that it can be hit or miss.

Not every event is full of your ideal clients.

Some attendees might not be decision-makers.

Others might just be there for a day out and a few freebies.

So if you haven’t researched the event properly, you could end up spending a lot of time and money talking to the wrong people.

***

So that's the pros and cons covered...

Whether or not an event is worth attending for you all boils down to what type of event it is and of course, the delegates who are attending.

So when an opportunity comes up for you to attend an event, the first thing you need to do is your due-diligence to make sure it's right for you and your business.

Ask yourself...

Paying for events is always a bit of a gamble, so you just need to make sure the right type of people are attending, there aren't 5 other consultants there and you're not stuck in a dark corner where no one will be.

***

Okay, so you’ve done your research and booked your stand.

You need to think about what your plan of action is going to be when you're there.

Now remember what I said at the start.

If you're just going to go there and hope to have some nice chats with people then this is completely the wrong approach to have.

There's two reasons for this...

The first is having long in-depth chats at the event isn't the best use of your time.

You don't want to be stuck talking to one person and ignoring everyone else that walks past because you're missing out on loads of opportunities.

The other reason is that people are only ready to buy when they're ready to buy and there will be a tiny percentage of people in that room that have an immediate HR need you can help with.

***

That's why you need to think long term and go there with the attitude that it's a big data capture exercise.

That, for me, is the best way to handle events.

Go there and get all of the delegates contact details so you can market to them in the future.

***

So what's the best way to capture delegates information?

Well there's lots of ways you can do it.

But the main ways is either via a lead magnet or some sort of competition.

***

So let's look at lead magnets first.

As people walk past a great way to start a conversation is:

"Are you a business owner or manager"

And if they say yes...

You could then say

"would you like a free copy of my HR compliance checklist?"

Or something else that they'll find useful...

This is a great way to start a conversation with delegates, qualify that they're a business owner, give them something of value AND capture their details.

And then competition wise, there's loads of things you can do too.

The last event I went to they had a mini putting green which was actually really fun and there was a big prize for anyone that gave it a try.

***

In terms of capturing people's data, you've got to make this quick and easy too.

Some of the big events have badge zapers which make your life super easy.

So if they said yes to your lead magnet or competition, then you just zap their badge and their contact details get emailed to you after the event.

But if that isn't available then you have to do things manually.

You can either hand them a tablet and ask them to complete a short webform.

You can ask them to scan a QR code to complete a form.

Or you can ask them to write it down manually on a piece of paper.

Whatever you do, it just needs to be quick and easy for both you and the delegate.

***

Okay so now the event is over and you've got loads of new contacts.

The biggest mistake you can make is collecting all those details and then doing nothing with them.

Once someone has received your free download or entered your competition, you don’t want them to forget you exist!

You need to start nurturing that relationship.

The first is by following up with your new leads either via a multi-touch point campaign or telephone call.

So let's say you gave away a free compliance checklist at the event - your follow up would be to see if they need help with their compliance and get them on a discovery call.

You should then be keeping in touch with everyone on your list, whether they're new or old contacts via a weekly email.

***

And that brings us to the end of this week's main event...

Exhibiting at local business events and conferences can be a great way to grow your consultancy.

But if you don’t do your due-diligence and go there with a plan, it can also be an expensive mistake.

The biggest piece of advice that I can give you is to think long term.

If the event is right for you, go there to capture everyone's data and market to them on a consistent basis.

Within the HR Marketing Box, there are loads of lead magnets you can use - such as employment law compliance checklists and the HR Buyer's guide.

And if you do need any other help, I'm aways here for a chat.

Just get in touch and let's book in a call. Is exhibiting at events a good way to grow your consultancy and get new clients?

Lots of HR consultants I know have thought about exhibiting at an event before and they've asked me whether I think it's worth doing.

And done right, I think exhibiting at events can be a fantastic way to get in front of potential clients.

But if you’re thinking of just paying for a stand and going there, hoping  to have some nice chats with people then stop.

In my opinion, this is the completely wrong approach to have and the quickest way to waste your time and money.

So to help you, we're going to have a good old chat about exhibiting at events and we're going to talk about...

***

So let's jump straight into to the pros and cons of exhibiting at events:

The first pro of exhibiting is brand awareness.

Simply by being there with your stand and logo, you're increasing your brand's awareness to the people that are attending the event.

The second pro of exhibiting is lead generation.

Done right, events can be a great way to generate leads and doing it face to face helps you to build stronger connections with people from day one.

The third pro of exhibiting is market research and learnings.

Events bring together businesses from different industries, which gives you a great opportunity to see what’s happening outside your usual space.

You can chat with attendees to understand their biggest HR challenges, see what competitors are offering, and spot trends that might help shape your services.

And the fourth pro of exhibiting is networking opportunities.

You’re not just meeting potential clients, but also other business owners, industry experts, and potential collaborators.

These relationships can lead to partnerships, referrals, and even unexpected opportunities that help grow your consultancy.

***

So that's the pros covered, let's move on to the cons.

The first con of exhibiting is cost.

Exhibiting isn’t cheap.

There’s the stand itself, the branding, the marketing materials, and then travel and accommodation on top of that.

And here’s the problem: there’s no guarantee of a return on investment.

You could spend thousands and walk away with nothing but a few business cards and some polite conversations.

It’s a gamble.

The second con of exhibiting is time investment.

Planning takes time.

Setting up takes time.

Standing at your booth all day takes time.

And all of that is time you’re not spending on billable work, business strategy, or scaling your consultancy.

You have to ask yourself whether the time spent exhibiting is worth the potential return.

The third con of exhibiting is competition.

At large events, you’re not the only consultant there.

You’re competing for attention with other exhibitors, many of whom have bigger budgets, flashier stands, and more resources to attract people in.

If you don’t have a solid engagement strategy, you might struggle to make an impact.

And the fourth con of exhibiting is that it can be hit or miss.

Not every event is full of your ideal clients.

Some attendees might not be decision-makers.

Others might just be there for a day out and a few freebies.

So if you haven’t researched the event properly, you could end up spending a lot of time and money talking to the wrong people.

***

So that's the pros and cons covered...

Whether or not an event is worth attending for you all boils down to what type of event it is and of course, the delegates who are attending.

So when an opportunity comes up for you to attend an event, the first thing you need to do is your due-diligence to make sure it's right for you and your business.

Ask yourself...

Paying for events is always a bit of a gamble, so you just need to make sure the right type of people are attending, there aren't 5 other consultants there and you're not stuck in a dark corner where no one will be.

***

Okay, so you’ve done your research and booked your stand.

You need to think about what your plan of action is going to be when you're there.

Now remember what I said at the start.

If you're just going to go there and hope to have some nice chats with people then this is completely the wrong approach to have.

There's two reasons for this...

The first is having long in-depth chats at the event isn't the best use of your time.

You don't want to be stuck talking to one person and ignoring everyone else that walks past because you're missing out on loads of opportunities.

The other reason is that people are only ready to buy when they're ready to buy and there will be a tiny percentage of people in that room that have an immediate HR need you can help with.

***

That's why you need to think long term and go there with the attitude that it's a big data capture exercise.

That, for me, is the best way to handle events.

Go there and get all of the delegates contact details so you can market to them in the future.

***

So what's the best way to capture delegates information?

Well there's lots of ways you can do it.

But the main ways is either via a lead magnet or some sort of competition.

***

So let's look at lead magnets first.

As people walk past a great way to start a conversation is:

"Are you a business owner or manager"

And if they say yes...

You could then say

"would you like a free copy of my HR compliance checklist?"

Or something else that they'll find useful...

This is a great way to start a conversation with delegates, qualify that they're a business owner, give them something of value AND capture their details.

And then competition wise, there's loads of things you can do too.

The last event I went to they had a mini putting green which was actually really fun and there was a big prize for anyone that gave it a try.

***

In terms of capturing people's data, you've got to make this quick and easy too.

Some of the big events have badge zapers which make your life super easy.

So if they said yes to your lead magnet or competition, then you just zap their badge and their contact details get emailed to you after the event.

But if that isn't available then you have to do things manually.

You can either hand them a tablet and ask them to complete a short webform.

You can ask them to scan a QR code to complete a form.

Or you can ask them to write it down manually on a piece of paper.

Whatever you do, it just needs to be quick and easy for both you and the delegate.

***

Okay so now the event is over and you've got loads of new contacts.

The biggest mistake you can make is collecting all those details and then doing nothing with them.

Once someone has received your free download or entered your competition, you don’t want them to forget you exist!

You need to start nurturing that relationship.

The first is by following up with your new leads either via a multi-touch point campaign or telephone call.

So let's say you gave away a free compliance checklist at the event - your follow up would be to see if they need help with their compliance and get them on a discovery call.

You should then be keeping in touch with everyone on your list, whether they're new or old contacts via a weekly email.

***

And that brings us to the end of this week's main event...

Exhibiting at local business events and conferences can be a great way to grow your consultancy.

But if you don’t do your due-diligence and go there with a plan, it can also be an expensive mistake.

The biggest piece of advice that I can give you is to think long term.

If the event is right for you, go there to capture everyone's data and market to them on a consistent basis.

Within the HR Marketing Box, there are loads of lead magnets you can use - such as employment law compliance checklists and the HR Buyer's guide.

And if you do need any other help, I'm aways here for a chat.

Just get in touch and let's book in a call.