Are you ready to transform your trade show experience into a realm of genuine connections and opportunities? Our conversation with Cindy Zuelsdorf delves into the art of engagement at trade shows, where she shares her strategic insights on maximizing visibility and building lasting relationships.
Throughout the episode, we discuss the critical importance of recognizing the unique motivations of the attendees. This allows you to tailor your engagements and ensure prospects feel legitimately valued. Cindy’s insights highlight how simple strategies—like effective pre-event communication and asking thoughtful questions—can invite meaningful conversations.
Engagement doesn't end once the attendees leave your booth; Cindy emphasizes the significance of being authentic and proactive.
Join us for a lively discussion packed with practical advice on how to elevate your trade show presence. Whether you're looking to attract more visitors to your booth or cultivate lasting relationships
Don't miss out on more morsels like this, subscribe to our podcast, share your thoughts after listening, or leave a review to join the conversation!
TEXT
DREAM to +1 530 203-5703 for more on Cindy's Dream 100 methodology
or
SEVEN to +1 203-5703 for a free chapter from Cindy's book Seven Marketing Basics
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Steve (00:01):
Here is more Marketer Morsels bonus content.
Cindy Zuelsdorf is the founderof Kokoro Marketing and a real
wizard when it comes to applyingthe human touch through
technology to createlong-lasting, deep relationships
(00:24):
with clients and prospects.
I recently had a great chatwith Cindy about how to apply
that wizardry to trade shows.
Here's that conversation.
Welcome to Marketer Morsel'sBonus Content with Cindy
Zuelsdorf.
Hi, Cindy.
Cindy (00:41):
Hey Steve.
Steve (00:43):
How are you doing today?
Cindy (00:44):
So good, happy to be here .
Steve (00:47):
Awesome.
Hey, cindy is the founder ofKokoro Marketing, author of
Seven Marketing Basics and anexpert on engaging with clients
and prospects through automatedtechnology.
Did I capture that okay?
Cindy (01:02):
I love that.
That was perfect.
Yes, did I capture that?
Okay, I love that.
That was perfect.
Yes, all about it using thattype of technology to connect
with people and still be humanand have conversations.
Steve (01:14):
And that's, I think, one of the great things that I like
about your work and we'll diveinto that is it's important to
have a human connection, not arobot connection, and I think
that's one of the things you doreally well.
But before we get deeply intothat, in the very first episode
of the podcast I talk about theimportance of why and, in terms
(01:38):
of trade shows, why are we going?
Are we going to generate sales?
Are we going to introduce a newproduct?
Are we going to collect leads?
Whatever the reasons are, thosehave to be zeroed in before you
do anything else.
Now the folks listening haveanswered the why are they going
to the trade show?
And now what they want to knowis why do they need to engage
(02:05):
with customers in a deliberatecampaign and how do they do that
?
So maybe you could talk alittle bit, cindy, about what
you do, your perspective on thatand your philosophies and
practices.
Cindy (02:23):
Oh yeah, there's so much fun stuff to dig into there.
Firstly, when you go to theshow, of course you got into the
why already in your otherepisode and just knowing why
you're there versus why yourcustomers are there, why your
clients are there, so why theattendees are there, because
(02:43):
this may just be Captain Obvious, but, that said, your reasons
for being at the show, myreasons for being at the show,
are different to what theattendees reasons are for being
there, and so knowing that justputs puts you ahead of the curve
, I think.
Steve (03:02):
I think that's a really great point and in our first
bonus content, when we talkedabout brand with Carol Phillips,
she talked about insights anddove into that and she said a
lot of times, the insight isstaring you right in the face,
(03:24):
um.
And she also said what Ithought was one of the greatest
lines in the whole interview wasum, the reason the customers
are at the trade show usuallydon't have anything to do with
what your product managers thinkit is.
Cindy (03:35):
It's so spot on.
It's so spot on.
Steve (03:38):
How many times have you walked into a trade show booth
and the person just startstelling you all the things, and
they will go on for ten minutesor more explaining why they're
there and what they want you toknow right right, yeah, and, and
so I think what I'm hearing yousay is the first thing is to
(04:01):
figure out what's in it for thepeople you're trying to engage
with.
Cindy (04:05):
Oh, yes, yes, I always joke.
My next tattoo is going to be aWIIFM.
I need the what's in it for me,and I don't mean me, I mean
them.
Steve (04:17):
Right, it's my favorite radio station.
Cindy (04:19):
It's my favorite radio station, exactly so, wiif
station.
Steve (04:24):
Exactly so.
Cindy (04:25):
W-I-I-F-M.
Exactly.
So once at a show we want toget people to the booth, right,
and so do you want to talk aboutgetting people to the booth or
what happens once they get tothe booth?
What do you think?
Steve (04:40):
Well, let's go serially.
You know how do we get themthere, okay, Right.
Cindy (04:46):
So I'm thinking you've been to a show before, so you've
got a list of people who you'vetalked to in the past maybe
last week, maybe last month,maybe last year and so while it
seems obvious to you that theyshould come see you at the show,
it may not be obvious to youthat they should come see you at
the show.
It may not be obvious to them.
And so sending out severalreasons why to them, why they
(05:11):
should come see you, is such agood thing to do.
I work with lots of folks whoare worried about.
Oh, I'm just going to send oneemail the week before the show.
I don't want to bug anybody,we're not.
They're going to the show andif you take, for example, the
top four things you solve or thetop applications that people
ask you about, and send out fourdifferent emails with those
(05:33):
four different angles and say,if any of this resonates with
you, let's get together eitherat the show or if you're not
going to be there, let's getthere, get together on Zoom,
that kind kind of thing.
So that's just one of the manyways to get people to come see
you.
And it seems so obvious andclear.
And yet we talk with folks allthe time who aren't doing that
(05:54):
because they're afraid theydon't know what to say.
Steve (05:55):
They don't want to bug people, so do that well I think
it's interesting, um, in thatthe most obvious thing is well,
of course, we should contactpeople ahead of the show and and
try and uh lure them into ourbooth for lack of a better word,
um, but what you're saying andI think this is the key to all
(06:18):
of it, it's the reason for thefirst episode of the podcast is,
you know, find a reason forthem to go.
Why should they come and seeyou?
And so contacting people isgreat, but if you contact
someone with a message that theydon't care about, it's probably
at best a wasted contact andperhaps worse because they'll
(06:42):
become annoyed, whereas itsounds like what you're
suggesting is for adding valueto that contact, that messaging
that resonates with them, givesthem a reason to stop or put
your booth or stand or whatever,on their attendee list.
Cindy (07:04):
Yes, well, said exactly so.
And we talked about reachingout with that message, those
four messages, for example, toto the people that you know
already, and one way is email,of course.
So another way is social, likeare you actually connected to
those people on social?
By the way?
Are you connected to thosepeople on social?
By the way, are you connectedto those people who visited you
(07:25):
at your booth last week, lastmonth, last year?
That would be great.
Grab a coffee and get connectedto those people.
If not, right.
Steve (07:38):
So now we're at the show and people are either responding
to our messaging or, forwhatever reasons, they're coming
to our booth.
What's the key to engagementfrom your perspective, while
you're there?
Cindy (07:52):
So a little bit dialing back to the top of the
conversation is knowing why theymight be there.
And if you don't know and weshouldn't assume we know we
should definitely ask them.
So if I see someone in thebooth I mean there's a number of
conversation starters you can,you know, fire away with like
how's your day going?
(08:13):
And stuff like that whatbrought you here?
I think the thing to do is tobe in a mindset of I'm not
bugging anybody.
People are here because they'reat the show, they want to find
out what's going on.
And so, having thatconversation with them and
asking them like what's up, whatare you looking for?
What are your top goals,Without sounding cheesy, but
just try to have a normalconversation where you can ask
(08:34):
them what brought them there,what you can do for them, what
do they need?
Ask them about themselves, it'swhat do they need Ask them
about themselves.
Steve (08:42):
You know it's actually so brilliant and yet, like we've
talked about, so obvious.
In fact, one of the thingsthat's becoming apparent as I
have conversations with you andother folks putting this podcast
together is most of this stuffis hiding in plain sight, right,
but it's how you think about it.
(09:02):
It's how you think about it anddoing something about it based
on all the knowledge you collectthat really can help elevate
you from you know just time tomake the donuts at another trade
show, kind of thing.
You know, in fact, askingquestions of people at trade
(09:23):
shows, of course, anybody who'sbeen in sales knows about the
open-ended probing question idea, you know.
And if I had a nickel for everytime somebody, as I've walked
through a show, has said can Ihelp you with something?
I'd have a hell of a lot ofnickels.
Can I help you with something?
(09:44):
I'd have a hell of a lot ofnickels.
But my answer is always thesame and that's the kind of
question that gives the customer, the prospect, the attendee,
the ability to say no, thank youInstead.
You know, the open-endedprobing question that I use the
most is what do you like bestabout what you see or hear at my
booth and I have a great storyand I'm going to name drop here
(10:13):
for a second, but I think it'sone of my favorite experiences.
I was at the I think it wasComdex it was either Comdex or
one of the consumer shows, ces,anyway and bill gates walked
into the booth I was working andhe had in tow a bunch of his
staff, all in suits, walkingvery orderly behind him as if he
(10:36):
was mama duck, and I lookedbill gates in the face.
I tell people, the way I tellthis story usually is I talk to
Bill Gates, and it's importanthow I phrase that because I
looked Bill Gates in the face.
We're standing right facingeach other and I said what do
you like best about what you seehere in the booth?
And Bill is notoriously private, and so he looked to his left,
(11:01):
he looked to his right, helooked up, he looked down at his
shoes, and this happened acouple of times and in the
matter of a second or two, heturned around and walked away
without ever saying a word.
But he could not say no, thankyou, thank you, oh my gosh, it's
(11:30):
so good, I love it so much.
So, anyway, on that point, whatare some of the other things
while they're in the booth,besides asking them why they're
there.
That you think, from maybe amore technical standpoint, can
really help up your know, upyour show presence.
Cindy (11:43):
I was just at a trade show in Barcelona and one of the
things that helped me in thebooth I was working in is that
the folks who built the boothput a couple things on the wall
that I could use and I couldalso point to while I was
talking with somebody.
So if somebody walked by, theycould see this short tagline on
the wall that actually said whothey're for and what they solve,
(12:06):
and so if someone's walking byand in three seconds they can
see ah, I'm that kind of person,oh, they're solving that thing.
Actually, that's been somethingon my list.
So if there's something big onthe wall that you can use while
you're working in the booth andyour, your customers, your
prospects can see as they'rewalking by and go, aha, I relate
(12:27):
, I think that's me.
Steve (12:28):
That is super good as we record this and that's awesome
as we record this interview.
Um uh, we're just about to comeout with the second tier of
messaging episode and that'sexactly what we're going to talk
about, so you couldn't havepromo'd that episode better, I
(12:48):
love that here's.
Cindy (12:51):
One might feel like it's I don't know, non sequitur, but
anyways, I'm going for it.
When we talk with people, if wecan use the word you, you
demonstrated it perfectly inyour story right there.
So instead of me saying I havethis, we have this, our things
that are new are this If there'sany way to dial down the I, we
and us and dial up the you yourin that conversation, it's going
(13:15):
to put the focus on the personyou're talking with, and so if
we're talking about here aresome new items that you might be
interested in.
They might help you with yourfacility, that kind of thing.
So it might feel forced atfirst, but actually just give it
a go.
I think you'll find it helpsyou focus the conversation on
(13:36):
the customer.
Steve (13:37):
I had a boss who reminded me over and over again.
The thing people like to talkabout most is themselves, and as
the seller, we should becautious.
We should guard ourselvesagainst that tendency and
encourage it in the folks we'retalking to.
Exactly, so Exactly so Also interms of lead capturing or any
(14:05):
of that sort of stuff.
While you're at the show,what's the Cindy Zulsdorf secret
sauce there?
Cindy (14:13):
Oh man, so many fun things.
Well, keep it simple so you canactually do it.
Don't make anything socomplicated that it doesn't
happen.
So complicated that doesn'thappen.
When we're talking to a prospect, a customer, a client, we could
think, for example, we're goingto categorize them in three
ways.
One, hot, I need to call themsoon.
(14:36):
One you know could be likeprobably not a fit right now,
but cool to meet them.
And somewhere in the middle.
So, instead of making 10buckets, make you know two,
three, four buckets so you canthink about people being in.
I love to meet anybody.
So even if it's someone that'snot my perfect prospect, that's
okay If I can benefit them andwe meet later and it's all good,
it's cool, but I'm still goingto put them into a bucket of
(14:57):
like, hey, I need to call thisperson right away.
So categorizing people is onething I want to say.
Just take a picture of yourselfin the booth with you and your
team, or if it's you solo,that's all good.
And then, if you can have asystem built up in advance of
going to the show where you cansend a quick email or a quick
(15:21):
text that says great to see youtoday, I got that picture in
there.
So they go oh yeah, I rememberthem.
That was cool talking to themand then have one or two helpful
links to something that arekind of like the top things that
people ask you for and theycould say, hey, here's a couple
of quick helpful things and ifyou need more info we'll talk
soon.
It kind of leaves it open.
(15:41):
It works for any conversationand so having a plan where you
can send that text or emailright away from the show floor
or the day after the show, thatis a good thing to do that's
awesome.
Steve (15:55):
in fact, one of the things that you reminded me of
as you were talking about thatwas the importance of having
visual connections for peoplewhen they've left the show and
(16:16):
we're going to transition intotalking about post-show stuff in
a second, transition intotalking about post-show stuff in
a second but that picture, Ithink, really gives them an
opportunity to sort of burnishtheir memory of the experience
that you had.
So if you did your job rightwhile you had the encounter,
they're going to be able toremember it better after they've
(16:39):
left the booth.
So that's I just.
I've often wished that everydatabase of clients that is
based on their badge reader orwhatever, would show their
picture, because there are manytimes the next day.
I have a lot of, if I've had alot of contacts with people I've
forgotten you know Now whichone is Barron.
(17:03):
You know, I remember talking toBarron, but I don't remember
what Barron looks like.
Cindy (17:08):
I think, yeah, oh my gosh , steve, I haven't seen you in
so long.
Let's do a selfie, let's do aquick picture and then,
depending on the person, theymight go, don't post it.
I'm no, I just you know, or doyou care if I post it or you
know.
So that's sort of a secondarything.
(17:28):
But primarily, now I have apicture of Steve.
I know you, cause we know eachother, but you know what I'm
saying.
Steve (17:35):
Yeah, exactly, and, and, uh, but I just think it's.
I think there's one of thethings that I and you and I an
interest in, what they're allabout and why you two should do
(18:09):
business together.
Right, you know what's thepoint.
Not only do I believe stronglyin the listening to WIIFM, I
also believe very strongly thata good deal is a good deal for
both of us.
Cindy (18:27):
Oh my gosh yes.
Steve (18:29):
So if you remember what's their motivation and let's make
sure they get that motivationhas some part of its needs
fulfilled with what I'm givingthem.
At the same time I get acustomer, I get a client, I get
(18:50):
possibly a business partner fora very long time.
So part of the reason you wantthat is to further the
relationship after the show endsand obviously it's all about
sales.
So the main goal is to be ableto capture the people who want
to buy and follow up and buy.
(19:10):
But how do you suggest peoplefollow up once the show is done?
You know?
Cindy (19:16):
people uh, people talk to so many people at shows,
whether you're the vendor or theclient um it all becomes a blur
what's the key to?
standing out well, one of themis giving value.
So when I meet you at the showand say, oh my gosh, gosh, I
have the perfect checklist forthat that you were just talking
(19:37):
about.
You're doing this type of youknow system, business technology
, whatever Can I send it to you.
So, instead of can I scan yourbadge, I just like, can I give
(19:57):
you something that will help you?
And so that's a really goodthing right there.
So now I know what you want andyou say, yes, oh my gosh, I
totally need that, or no, Idon't need that, or whatever.
But most people are like, oh,you have a checklist that'll
help me with this very thing.
Well, of course, I'm talkingwith people in my space, so it's
likely that I have somethingthat will help them, and so just
having that system in place tosend it to him is good.
So a combination of automatedfollowup and personal followup
(20:19):
so we already took a picture ofyou in the booth, you know,
during setup or on the first day, and then now have a text and
or email set up to go to thatperson that's following up with
them instantly or right afterthe show.
Hey, great to see the showpicture linked link to a couple
cool things.
I took a picture with you inthe booth, steve, so now in my
personal follow-up I'm like putthat picture in that email to
(20:43):
you.
Oh, my gosh, great to see youat the show Photo of both of us
in there.
I already sent you the link tothat thing, but I'm attaching it
here just in case you know it'seasier for you.
Um, how's your schedule looknext week on Monday or Tuesday?
Could we just get on the phoneand have a quick chat so know
what your goal is like.
When I go to a show, a lot oftimes my goal is to have a
(21:05):
conversation with that personafter the show off the show
floor.
Yours might have a demo, like,think about what that is and
make it really easy for theperson, like you said, to say
yes, make it super easy.
Hey, can I show this to you?
Can we jump on a call Monday orTuesday?
It's incremental and it's easy,and you've got that combination
(21:25):
of automated follow-up andpersonal follow-up where you're
giving some value some value.
Steve (21:40):
And and not only that, um , you're getting a commitment to
do, or hoping to get acommitment for the next step,
whatever that next step is,which I think is brilliant, um,
it's just really part of thewhole chain of engaging with
prospects and turning them intobusiness partners and customers,
and so one of the things thatyou also just said is you know,
(22:03):
have a purpose for what thatfollow-up is, and we've spent a
lot of time on the podcast sofar talking about having a
purpose, knowing why you'regoing to the show, knowing what
the metrics are.
The very last episode is goingto be I call it the reckoning,
and that's when you have themeeting with all of the people
who your bosses and everybodywho's got a stake in the show
(22:27):
and they ask you so what thehell did we get for that $10
trillion we spent on this show?
And so knowing what you'retrying to accomplish in the
first place makes that meetinggo better.
And knowing what you're tryingto achieve in your post market
or your post show follow-up, Ithink is brilliant.
So, um, anything else and anduh, that you think is important
(22:54):
with respect to trade shows,because we're kind of getting
close to the end of our timehere.
Um, and then also, um.
How are some ways folks canreach out to you and, and you
know, tell us about what you canoffer for folks that are
listening to this who might wantto uh, you know, investigate
further how you might be able tohelp them out?
Cindy (23:14):
yeah, yeah, great um you.
You asked about sort of lastthoughts, other ideas yeah, two
questions, really sorry, that'sall good I don't mind multi-part
so I did want to share thisidea of of the dream 100, and
that is, you know, taken fromthe Ultimate Sales Machine book.
(23:36):
It's somebody else's book, whichis by Holmes, but anyway, the
idea is, before we go to theshow, we have that list of the
like.
If I only see 100 people at theshow, or if I only see 20
people at the show, I'm going tofeel like this is so worth it
and I could leave.
I'm not saying you're going toleave, but you know you hit it.
(23:57):
You're like, yes, I saw allpeople on my dream 100 list or
my dream 20 list or whatevernumber that is, and so we don't
always know who those people are.
But if you just grab a coffeeor tea and sit down and think,
oh my gosh, I love working withso-and-so, you know, even if
you've just grab a coffee or teaand sit down and think, oh my
(24:17):
gosh, I love working withso-and-so, you know, even if
you've just got a few customers,I want to work with more people
like them.
Okay, who are more people likethem?
Let's write it down.
And you know LinkedIn tools,other things that you can use to
find out referrals hey, do youhave a friend?
So you can generate that listby thinking about customers you
have now and you'd like morepeople just like them.
That would be one way to do it.
(24:38):
It could certainly be join anassociation.
There's tons of associations inthe space I work in, so I'm
speaking at an association.
Steve (24:50):
All right here in the frozen tundra, not so frozen.
Cindy (25:00):
Join an association and maybe there's a few people in
there.
So generate that list and I dohave a template, a sort of
methodology on how to generatethat and what to do with that
dream 100.
That and what to do with thatdream 100.
You can text the word dream tome at plus one five three zero
(25:20):
two zero three, five seven zerothree.
Steve (25:23):
We'll put that in the show notes, I'm sure steve and
yeah, absolutely, and it'll beon our website and as well as
any you know.
We'll have a bunch of links foryour value-added stuff on the
website.
Cindy (25:40):
Yeah.
So grab that list to help youcreate that Dream 100, to think
about who you'd love to see atthe show.
And this works well, too, forthe people who aren't going to
be there, because you still wantto have that secondary plan for
if you're not going to be atthe show, let's still get
together and do these things.
So, putting that list togetherand really knowing who you wish
you'd see and want to see, andthen putting that effort in
(26:03):
before the show to reach out toeach of those people and connect
to them, it might be like lookat their profile so, so, um the
number again.
Steve (26:12):
Yeah, the number again.
Yeah, the number again 203-5703.
Cindy (26:20):
When you text the word dream, it's going to come back
and say hey, I'm going to sendyou this thing.
What's your email?
Put your email in.
I'm going to ask for your firstname, and then you guys can use
this technique for yourself.
It shows.
Then I come back, I go hey,what's your top challenge around
building your perfect customerlist?
And that's an open-endedquestion, and if you reply.
(26:43):
I'm going to get that reply andI will answer you so you can use
these type of tools.
It shows with QR codes, withopt-ins, with something of value
to start that conversation withyour perfect customer.
Steve (26:59):
I love this for so many reasons.
First, the whole concept offinding your dream list is it
forces one to think about theprospects as people, who they
actually are right, humanizesthem and turns it personal right
.
And the second thing is you'refulfilling it in a similarly
(27:21):
personal way, the way you justdescribed.
So, for a whole bunch ofreasons, the idea of getting it
right, not missing a beat,having the automation in place
to be able to ensure theconnections are made and
followed up and you're notletting things fall through the
cracks, but doing it all in away that maintains the personal
(27:45):
relationship of what I think isthe essence to all good business
.
It comes down to people, right?
Yes, it's about money, it'sabout yes, it's about money,
it's about job titles, it'sabout products, about features,
about benefits, but in the end,it's about relationships.
Right, it's the people involved.
Cindy (28:04):
Yeah, yeah, hey, you were so nice to mention my book
before that hit number one onAmazon's list for small business
.
And I can also offer a chapterof that to anybody who wants
awesome.
Steve (28:18):
How do they get that?
Cindy (28:19):
yeah.
So if you just text the wordseven, sev, en to that same
number five, three oh two ohthree.
Five, seven oh three samesituation gonna ask for your
email and your name and you'llautomatically get a chapter of
the book and I've got sometemplates in there that we use
with customers day to day.
That the seven marketing basicsbook came about when people
(28:42):
asked me I don't know what to doin my marketing.
What's working?
So I went through a process andwrote down the seven things
that we do the most that workthe best, and that's what this
is all about.
Steve (28:53):
It's a great book and I have it.
Cindy (28:54):
I've read it maybe twice, um, and if you don't take cindy
up on the offer you're missingout I hope, I hope everybody
takes it because it's my way ofgiving back and sharing and then
obviously, if we can work withyou further, great.
But I'm just glad to share theinfo.
Steve (29:14):
Yeah, and that's the whole point of this podcast.
You know I'd love to work withanybody who thinks I can give
them a hand.
But you know, over all theyears of doing trade shows, you
know you pick up a lot ofinformation and I think this
kind of you know historical,institutional knowledge deserves
(29:34):
being shared with the world.
I sure appreciate your comingon the podcast and taking some
time to share your thoughtsabout this.
Cindy, any parting thoughts?
Cindy (29:48):
Be yourself, be authentic , give value.
Let's all work together.
Steve (29:54):
Awesome.
Thanks, Cindy.
Have a great day and toeverybody listening, thanks for
downloading us and check out thewebsite for links if you missed
anything here in this podcastor any of the other episodes.
Cindy (30:06):
Thank you, Steve.
Steve (30:10):
Marketer Morsels is an APIX
Solutions production.
Here is more Marketer Morsels bonus content.
Cindy Zuelsdorf is the founderof Kokoro Marketing and a real
wizard when it comes to applyingthe human touch through
technology to createlong-lasting, deep relationships
(00:24):
with clients and prospects.
I recently had a great chatwith Cindy about how to apply
that wizardry to trade shows.
Here's that conversation.
Welcome to Marketer Morsel'sBonus Content with Cindy
Zuelsdorf.
Hi, Cindy.
Cindy (00:41):
Hey Steve.
Steve (00:43):
How are you doing today?
Cindy (00:44):
So good, happy to be here .
Steve (00:47):
Awesome.
Hey, cindy is the founder ofKokoro Marketing, author of
Seven Marketing Basics and anexpert on engaging with clients
and prospects through automatedtechnology.
Did I capture that okay?
Cindy (01:02):
I love that.
That was perfect.
Yes, did I capture that?
Okay, I love that.
That was perfect.
Yes, all about it using thattype of technology to connect
with people and still be humanand have conversations.
Steve (01:14):
And that's, I think, one of the great things that I like
about your work and we'll diveinto that is it's important to
have a human connection, not arobot connection, and I think
that's one of the things you doreally well.
But before we get deeply intothat, in the very first episode
of the podcast I talk about theimportance of why and, in terms
(01:38):
of trade shows, why are we going?
Are we going to generate sales?
Are we going to introduce a newproduct?
Are we going to collect leads?
Whatever the reasons are, thosehave to be zeroed in before you
do anything else.
Now the folks listening haveanswered the why are they going
to the trade show?
And now what they want to knowis why do they need to engage
(02:05):
with customers in a deliberatecampaign and how do they do that
?
So maybe you could talk alittle bit, cindy, about what
you do, your perspective on thatand your philosophies and
practices.
Cindy (02:23):
Oh yeah, there's so much fun stuff to dig into there.
Firstly, when you go to theshow, of course you got into the
why already in your otherepisode and just knowing why
you're there versus why yourcustomers are there, why your
clients are there, so why theattendees are there, because
(02:43):
this may just be Captain Obvious, but, that said, your reasons
for being at the show, myreasons for being at the show,
are different to what theattendees reasons are for being
there, and so knowing that justputs puts you ahead of the curve
, I think.
Steve (03:02):
I think that's a really great point and in our first
bonus content, when we talkedabout brand with Carol Phillips,
she talked about insights anddove into that and she said a
lot of times, the insight isstaring you right in the face,
(03:24):
um.
And she also said what Ithought was one of the greatest
lines in the whole interview wasum, the reason the customers
are at the trade show usuallydon't have anything to do with
what your product managers thinkit is.
Cindy (03:35):
It's so spot on.
It's so spot on.
Steve (03:38):
How many times have you walked into a trade show booth
and the person just startstelling you all the things, and
they will go on for ten minutesor more explaining why they're
there and what they want you toknow right right, yeah, and, and
so I think what I'm hearing yousay is the first thing is to
(04:01):
figure out what's in it for thepeople you're trying to engage
with.
Cindy (04:05):
Oh, yes, yes, I always joke.
My next tattoo is going to be aWIIFM.
I need the what's in it for me,and I don't mean me, I mean
them.
Steve (04:17):
Right, it's my favorite radio station.
Cindy (04:19):
It's my favorite radio station, exactly so, wiif
station.
Steve (04:24):
Exactly so.
Cindy (04:25):
W-I-I-F-M.
Exactly.
So once at a show we want toget people to the booth, right,
and so do you want to talk aboutgetting people to the booth or
what happens once they get tothe booth?
What do you think?
Steve (04:40):
Well, let's go serially.
You know how do we get themthere, okay, Right.
Cindy (04:46):
So I'm thinking you've been to a show before, so you've
got a list of people who you'vetalked to in the past maybe
last week, maybe last month,maybe last year and so while it
seems obvious to you that theyshould come see you at the show,
it may not be obvious to youthat they should come see you at
the show.
It may not be obvious to them.
And so sending out severalreasons why to them, why they
(05:11):
should come see you, is such agood thing to do.
I work with lots of folks whoare worried about.
Oh, I'm just going to send oneemail the week before the show.
I don't want to bug anybody,we're not.
They're going to the show andif you take, for example, the
top four things you solve or thetop applications that people
ask you about, and send out fourdifferent emails with those
(05:33):
four different angles and say,if any of this resonates with
you, let's get together eitherat the show or if you're not
going to be there, let's getthere, get together on Zoom,
that kind kind of thing.
So that's just one of the manyways to get people to come see
you.
And it seems so obvious andclear.
And yet we talk with folks allthe time who aren't doing that
(05:54):
because they're afraid theydon't know what to say.
Steve (05:55):
They don't want to bug people, so do that well I think
it's interesting, um, in thatthe most obvious thing is well,
of course, we should contactpeople ahead of the show and and
try and uh lure them into ourbooth for lack of a better word,
um, but what you're saying andI think this is the key to all
(06:18):
of it, it's the reason for thefirst episode of the podcast is,
you know, find a reason forthem to go.
Why should they come and seeyou?
And so contacting people isgreat, but if you contact
someone with a message that theydon't care about, it's probably
at best a wasted contact andperhaps worse because they'll
(06:42):
become annoyed, whereas itsounds like what you're
suggesting is for adding valueto that contact, that messaging
that resonates with them, givesthem a reason to stop or put
your booth or stand or whatever,on their attendee list.
Cindy (07:04):
Yes, well, said exactly so.
And we talked about reachingout with that message, those
four messages, for example, toto the people that you know
already, and one way is email,of course.
So another way is social, likeare you actually connected to
those people on social?
By the way?
Are you connected to thosepeople on social?
By the way, are you connectedto those people who visited you
(07:25):
at your booth last week, lastmonth, last year?
That would be great.
Grab a coffee and get connectedto those people.
If not, right.
Steve (07:38):
So now we're at the show and people are either responding
to our messaging or, forwhatever reasons, they're coming
to our booth.
What's the key to engagementfrom your perspective, while
you're there?
Cindy (07:52):
So a little bit dialing back to the top of the
conversation is knowing why theymight be there.
And if you don't know and weshouldn't assume we know we
should definitely ask them.
So if I see someone in thebooth I mean there's a number of
conversation starters you can,you know, fire away with like
how's your day going?
(08:13):
And stuff like that whatbrought you here?
I think the thing to do is tobe in a mindset of I'm not
bugging anybody.
People are here because they'reat the show, they want to find
out what's going on.
And so, having thatconversation with them and
asking them like what's up, whatare you looking for?
What are your top goals,Without sounding cheesy, but
just try to have a normalconversation where you can ask
(08:34):
them what brought them there,what you can do for them, what
do they need?
Ask them about themselves, it'swhat do they need Ask them
about themselves.
Steve (08:42):
You know it's actually so brilliant and yet, like we've
talked about, so obvious.
In fact, one of the thingsthat's becoming apparent as I
have conversations with you andother folks putting this podcast
together is most of this stuffis hiding in plain sight, right,
but it's how you think about it.
(09:02):
It's how you think about it anddoing something about it based
on all the knowledge you collectthat really can help elevate
you from you know just time tomake the donuts at another trade
show, kind of thing.
You know, in fact, askingquestions of people at trade
(09:23):
shows, of course, anybody who'sbeen in sales knows about the
open-ended probing question idea, you know.
And if I had a nickel for everytime somebody, as I've walked
through a show, has said can Ihelp you with something?
I'd have a hell of a lot ofnickels.
Can I help you with something?
(09:44):
I'd have a hell of a lot ofnickels.
But my answer is always thesame and that's the kind of
question that gives the customer, the prospect, the attendee,
the ability to say no, thank youInstead.
You know, the open-endedprobing question that I use the
most is what do you like bestabout what you see or hear at my
booth and I have a great storyand I'm going to name drop here
(10:13):
for a second, but I think it'sone of my favorite experiences.
I was at the I think it wasComdex it was either Comdex or
one of the consumer shows, ces,anyway and bill gates walked
into the booth I was working andhe had in tow a bunch of his
staff, all in suits, walkingvery orderly behind him as if he
(10:36):
was mama duck, and I lookedbill gates in the face.
I tell people, the way I tellthis story usually is I talk to
Bill Gates, and it's importanthow I phrase that because I
looked Bill Gates in the face.
We're standing right facingeach other and I said what do
you like best about what you seehere in the booth?
And Bill is notoriously private, and so he looked to his left,
(11:01):
he looked to his right, helooked up, he looked down at his
shoes, and this happened acouple of times and in the
matter of a second or two, heturned around and walked away
without ever saying a word.
But he could not say no, thankyou, thank you, oh my gosh, it's
(11:30):
so good, I love it so much.
So, anyway, on that point, whatare some of the other things
while they're in the booth,besides asking them why they're
there.
That you think, from maybe amore technical standpoint, can
really help up your know, upyour show presence.
Cindy (11:43):
I was just at a trade show in Barcelona and one of the
things that helped me in thebooth I was working in is that
the folks who built the boothput a couple things on the wall
that I could use and I couldalso point to while I was
talking with somebody.
So if somebody walked by, theycould see this short tagline on
the wall that actually said whothey're for and what they solve,
(12:06):
and so if someone's walking byand in three seconds they can
see ah, I'm that kind of person,oh, they're solving that thing.
Actually, that's been somethingon my list.
So if there's something big onthe wall that you can use while
you're working in the booth andyour, your customers, your
prospects can see as they'rewalking by and go, aha, I relate
(12:27):
, I think that's me.
Steve (12:28):
That is super good as we record this and that's awesome
as we record this interview.
Um uh, we're just about to comeout with the second tier of
messaging episode and that'sexactly what we're going to talk
about, so you couldn't havepromo'd that episode better, I
(12:48):
love that here's.
Cindy (12:51):
One might feel like it's I don't know, non sequitur, but
anyways, I'm going for it.
When we talk with people, if wecan use the word you, you
demonstrated it perfectly inyour story right there.
So instead of me saying I havethis, we have this, our things
that are new are this If there'sany way to dial down the I, we
and us and dial up the you yourin that conversation, it's going
(13:15):
to put the focus on the personyou're talking with, and so if
we're talking about here aresome new items that you might be
interested in.
They might help you with yourfacility, that kind of thing.
So it might feel forced atfirst, but actually just give it
a go.
I think you'll find it helpsyou focus the conversation on
(13:36):
the customer.
Steve (13:37):
I had a boss who reminded me over and over again.
The thing people like to talkabout most is themselves, and as
the seller, we should becautious.
We should guard ourselvesagainst that tendency and
encourage it in the folks we'retalking to.
Exactly, so Exactly so Also interms of lead capturing or any
(14:05):
of that sort of stuff.
While you're at the show,what's the Cindy Zulsdorf secret
sauce there?
Cindy (14:13):
Oh man, so many fun things.
Well, keep it simple so you canactually do it.
Don't make anything socomplicated that it doesn't
happen.
So complicated that doesn'thappen.
When we're talking to a prospect, a customer, a client, we could
think, for example, we're goingto categorize them in three
ways.
One, hot, I need to call themsoon.
(14:36):
One you know could be likeprobably not a fit right now,
but cool to meet them.
And somewhere in the middle.
So, instead of making 10buckets, make you know two,
three, four buckets so you canthink about people being in.
I love to meet anybody.
So even if it's someone that'snot my perfect prospect, that's
okay If I can benefit them andwe meet later and it's all good,
it's cool, but I'm still goingto put them into a bucket of
(14:57):
like, hey, I need to call thisperson right away.
So categorizing people is onething I want to say.
Just take a picture of yourselfin the booth with you and your
team, or if it's you solo,that's all good.
And then, if you can have asystem built up in advance of
going to the show where you cansend a quick email or a quick
(15:21):
text that says great to see youtoday, I got that picture in
there.
So they go oh yeah, I rememberthem.
That was cool talking to themand then have one or two helpful
links to something that arekind of like the top things that
people ask you for and theycould say, hey, here's a couple
of quick helpful things and ifyou need more info we'll talk
soon.
It kind of leaves it open.
(15:41):
It works for any conversationand so having a plan where you
can send that text or emailright away from the show floor
or the day after the show, thatis a good thing to do that's
awesome.
Steve (15:55):
in fact, one of the things that you reminded me of
as you were talking about thatwas the importance of having
visual connections for peoplewhen they've left the show and
(16:16):
we're going to transition intotalking about post-show stuff in
a second, transition intotalking about post-show stuff in
a second but that picture, Ithink, really gives them an
opportunity to sort of burnishtheir memory of the experience
that you had.
So if you did your job rightwhile you had the encounter,
they're going to be able toremember it better after they've
(16:39):
left the booth.
So that's I just.
I've often wished that everydatabase of clients that is
based on their badge reader orwhatever, would show their
picture, because there are manytimes the next day.
I have a lot of, if I've had alot of contacts with people I've
forgotten you know Now whichone is Barron.
(17:03):
You know, I remember talking toBarron, but I don't remember
what Barron looks like.
Cindy (17:08):
I think, yeah, oh my gosh , steve, I haven't seen you in
so long.
Let's do a selfie, let's do aquick picture and then,
depending on the person, theymight go, don't post it.
I'm no, I just you know, or doyou care if I post it or you
know.
So that's sort of a secondarything.
(17:28):
But primarily, now I have apicture of Steve.
I know you, cause we know eachother, but you know what I'm
saying.
Steve (17:35):
Yeah, exactly, and, and, uh, but I just think it's.
I think there's one of thethings that I and you and I an
interest in, what they're allabout and why you two should do
(18:09):
business together.
Right, you know what's thepoint.
Not only do I believe stronglyin the listening to WIIFM, I
also believe very strongly thata good deal is a good deal for
both of us.
Cindy (18:27):
Oh my gosh yes.
Steve (18:29):
So if you remember what's their motivation and let's make
sure they get that motivationhas some part of its needs
fulfilled with what I'm givingthem.
At the same time I get acustomer, I get a client, I get
(18:50):
possibly a business partner fora very long time.
So part of the reason you wantthat is to further the
relationship after the show endsand obviously it's all about
sales.
So the main goal is to be ableto capture the people who want
to buy and follow up and buy.
(19:10):
But how do you suggest peoplefollow up once the show is done?
You know?
Cindy (19:16):
people uh, people talk to so many people at shows,
whether you're the vendor or theclient um it all becomes a blur
what's the key to?
standing out well, one of themis giving value.
So when I meet you at the showand say, oh my gosh, gosh, I
have the perfect checklist forthat that you were just talking
(19:37):
about.
You're doing this type of youknow system, business technology
, whatever Can I send it to you.
So, instead of can I scan yourbadge, I just like, can I give
(19:57):
you something that will help you?
And so that's a really goodthing right there.
So now I know what you want andyou say, yes, oh my gosh, I
totally need that, or no, Idon't need that, or whatever.
But most people are like, oh,you have a checklist that'll
help me with this very thing.
Well, of course, I'm talkingwith people in my space, so it's
likely that I have somethingthat will help them, and so just
having that system in place tosend it to him is good.
So a combination of automatedfollowup and personal followup
(20:19):
so we already took a picture ofyou in the booth, you know,
during setup or on the first day, and then now have a text and
or email set up to go to thatperson that's following up with
them instantly or right afterthe show.
Hey, great to see the showpicture linked link to a couple
cool things.
I took a picture with you inthe booth, steve, so now in my
personal follow-up I'm like putthat picture in that email to
(20:43):
you.
Oh, my gosh, great to see youat the show Photo of both of us
in there.
I already sent you the link tothat thing, but I'm attaching it
here just in case you know it'seasier for you.
Um, how's your schedule looknext week on Monday or Tuesday?
Could we just get on the phoneand have a quick chat so know
what your goal is like.
When I go to a show, a lot oftimes my goal is to have a
(21:05):
conversation with that personafter the show off the show
floor.
Yours might have a demo, like,think about what that is and
make it really easy for theperson, like you said, to say
yes, make it super easy.
Hey, can I show this to you?
Can we jump on a call Monday orTuesday?
It's incremental and it's easy,and you've got that combination
(21:25):
of automated follow-up andpersonal follow-up where you're
giving some value some value.
Steve (21:40):
And and not only that, um , you're getting a commitment to
do, or hoping to get acommitment for the next step,
whatever that next step is,which I think is brilliant, um,
it's just really part of thewhole chain of engaging with
prospects and turning them intobusiness partners and customers,
and so one of the things thatyou also just said is you know,
(22:03):
have a purpose for what thatfollow-up is, and we've spent a
lot of time on the podcast sofar talking about having a
purpose, knowing why you'regoing to the show, knowing what
the metrics are.
The very last episode is goingto be I call it the reckoning,
and that's when you have themeeting with all of the people
who your bosses and everybodywho's got a stake in the show
(22:27):
and they ask you so what thehell did we get for that $10
trillion we spent on this show?
And so knowing what you'retrying to accomplish in the
first place makes that meetinggo better.
And knowing what you're tryingto achieve in your post market
or your post show follow-up, Ithink is brilliant.
So, um, anything else and anduh, that you think is important
(22:54):
with respect to trade shows,because we're kind of getting
close to the end of our timehere.
Um, and then also, um.
How are some ways folks canreach out to you and, and you
know, tell us about what you canoffer for folks that are
listening to this who might wantto uh, you know, investigate
further how you might be able tohelp them out?
Cindy (23:14):
yeah, yeah, great um you.
You asked about sort of lastthoughts, other ideas yeah, two
questions, really sorry, that'sall good I don't mind multi-part
so I did want to share thisidea of of the dream 100, and
that is, you know, taken fromthe Ultimate Sales Machine book.
(23:36):
It's somebody else's book, whichis by Holmes, but anyway, the
idea is, before we go to theshow, we have that list of the
like.
If I only see 100 people at theshow, or if I only see 20
people at the show, I'm going tofeel like this is so worth it
and I could leave.
I'm not saying you're going toleave, but you know you hit it.
(23:57):
You're like, yes, I saw allpeople on my dream 100 list or
my dream 20 list or whatevernumber that is, and so we don't
always know who those people are.
But if you just grab a coffeeor tea and sit down and think,
oh my gosh, I love working withso-and-so, you know, even if
you've just grab a coffee or teaand sit down and think, oh my
(24:17):
gosh, I love working withso-and-so, you know, even if
you've just got a few customers,I want to work with more people
like them.
Okay, who are more people likethem?
Let's write it down.
And you know LinkedIn tools,other things that you can use to
find out referrals hey, do youhave a friend?
So you can generate that listby thinking about customers you
have now and you'd like morepeople just like them.
That would be one way to do it.
(24:38):
It could certainly be join anassociation.
There's tons of associations inthe space I work in, so I'm
speaking at an association.
Steve (24:50):
All right here in the frozen tundra, not so frozen.
Cindy (25:00):
Join an association and maybe there's a few people in
there.
So generate that list and I dohave a template, a sort of
methodology on how to generatethat and what to do with that
dream 100.
That and what to do with thatdream 100.
You can text the word dream tome at plus one five three zero
(25:20):
two zero three, five seven zerothree.
Steve (25:23):
We'll put that in the show notes, I'm sure steve and
yeah, absolutely, and it'll beon our website and as well as
any you know.
We'll have a bunch of links foryour value-added stuff on the
website.
Cindy (25:40):
Yeah.
So grab that list to help youcreate that Dream 100, to think
about who you'd love to see atthe show.
And this works well, too, forthe people who aren't going to
be there, because you still wantto have that secondary plan for
if you're not going to be atthe show, let's still get
together and do these things.
So, putting that list togetherand really knowing who you wish
you'd see and want to see, andthen putting that effort in
(26:03):
before the show to reach out toeach of those people and connect
to them, it might be like lookat their profile so, so, um the
number again.
Steve (26:12):
Yeah, the number again.
Yeah, the number again 203-5703.
Cindy (26:20):
When you text the word dream, it's going to come back
and say hey, I'm going to sendyou this thing.
What's your email?
Put your email in.
I'm going to ask for your firstname, and then you guys can use
this technique for yourself.
It shows.
Then I come back, I go hey,what's your top challenge around
building your perfect customerlist?
And that's an open-endedquestion, and if you reply.
(26:43):
I'm going to get that reply andI will answer you so you can use
these type of tools.
It shows with QR codes, withopt-ins, with something of value
to start that conversation withyour perfect customer.
Steve (26:59):
I love this for so many reasons.
First, the whole concept offinding your dream list is it
forces one to think about theprospects as people, who they
actually are right, humanizesthem and turns it personal right
.
And the second thing is you'refulfilling it in a similarly
(27:21):
personal way, the way you justdescribed.
So, for a whole bunch ofreasons, the idea of getting it
right, not missing a beat,having the automation in place
to be able to ensure theconnections are made and
followed up and you're notletting things fall through the
cracks, but doing it all in away that maintains the personal
(27:45):
relationship of what I think isthe essence to all good business
.
It comes down to people, right?
Yes, it's about money, it'sabout yes, it's about money,
it's about job titles, it'sabout products, about features,
about benefits, but in the end,it's about relationships.
Right, it's the people involved.
Cindy (28:04):
Yeah, yeah, hey, you were so nice to mention my book
before that hit number one onAmazon's list for small business
.
And I can also offer a chapterof that to anybody who wants
awesome.
Steve (28:18):
How do they get that?
Cindy (28:19):
yeah.
So if you just text the wordseven, sev, en to that same
number five, three oh two ohthree.
Five, seven oh three samesituation gonna ask for your
email and your name and you'llautomatically get a chapter of
the book and I've got sometemplates in there that we use
with customers day to day.
That the seven marketing basicsbook came about when people
(28:42):
asked me I don't know what to doin my marketing.
What's working?
So I went through a process andwrote down the seven things
that we do the most that workthe best, and that's what this
is all about.
Steve (28:53):
It's a great book and I have it.
Cindy (28:54):
I've read it maybe twice, um, and if you don't take cindy
up on the offer you're missingout I hope, I hope everybody
takes it because it's my way ofgiving back and sharing and then
obviously, if we can work withyou further, great.
But I'm just glad to share theinfo.
Steve (29:14):
Yeah, and that's the whole point of this podcast.
You know I'd love to work withanybody who thinks I can give
them a hand.
But you know, over all theyears of doing trade shows, you
know you pick up a lot ofinformation and I think this
kind of you know historical,institutional knowledge deserves
(29:34):
being shared with the world.
I sure appreciate your comingon the podcast and taking some
time to share your thoughtsabout this.
Cindy, any parting thoughts?
Cindy (29:48):
Be yourself, be authentic , give value.
Let's all work together.
Steve (29:54):
Awesome.
Thanks, Cindy.
Have a great day and toeverybody listening, thanks for
downloading us and check out thewebsite for links if you missed
anything here in this podcastor any of the other episodes.
Cindy (30:06):
Thank you, Steve.
Steve (30:10):
Marketer Morsels is an APIX
Solutions production.
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