How to Write a Trade Show Follow-Up Email

4 minute read
How to Write a Trade Show Follow-Up Email

Whether you ran a booth or you were an attendee, it can be important to follow-up with the people you talked to at a trade show. There are so many reasons why you would want to connect with them, including making a sale. But, there is a lot that goes into following up with people you have met at a trade show. Keep reading to find out how to write a trade show follow-up email!

Add Their Information to Your CRM

One of the first things you should do with your list of leads is to add them to your CRM. If your company attends a lot of trade shows or events, you can create an email template that can help guide your leads down your sales funnel. You can also assign the leads to specific salespeople, so they can continue to work with them. You should include notes and key information you found out based on your time meeting the lead. This will help you keep track of your leads, and ensure their needs are taken care of.

Sooner Rather than Later

We’re all busy, I get that. But if you wait a few weeks to send your trade show follow-up email, they might not be interested or they might have forgotten about you. The best time to reach out is the next business day following the trade show. For example, if the trade show is on the weekend, send them an email Monday morning. Staying on top of your leads will make you look reliable and trustworthy to your clients. On the other hand, if you plan on reaching out to over 15 people, you should prioritize your leads.

Prioritize Your Leads

It can be very exciting to receive a ton of contact information at trade shows. But, if you have talked to thousands of people, you cannot reach out to everyone all at once. If you do this, you’re going to get leads confused and you won’t be able to answer all of them promptly. A great way to organize your leads is to split them into three categories. The first is your hot leads. This would include the people who are very excited about your product and you know there is a good chance of the lead converting. You should reach out to your hot leads within 1-2 business days of the trade show. Next, your warm leads should be contacted. This is the group that is interested but might need more nurturing. You should follow up within 5 business days after the trade show. Finally, your cold leads will follow. These are the people who are neutral about your business and have a high chance of not even answering your email. These leads can be contacted once you have emailed your higher priority leads.

How to Write a Trade Show Follow-Up Email

Subject Line

We all know that having a simple and informative subject line is important. One of the most important things you can do to ensure your emails are opened is to write a convincing subject line. It is crucial to include the name of the trade show or conference that you attended and/or your business name, so they can recall where you are from. This is because they most likely talked to dozens of people and might not remember your name or email address. When writing a subject line, try to keep it between 6-10 words. Here are a few examples of subject lines to use:

  • It was nice to meet you at [trade show you attended]!
  • <Your business name> is excited to work with you!

Keep it Short and Sweet

You hopefully got to know your leads a bit at the conference, so you have already built a relationship with them. This is helpful because you can keep your email to the point. You will want to ensure each email is customized to your lead’s specific needs. Remind them of your business’s key information, and how you can help their business thrive. Lastly, end the email with the next steps and how you can move forward with them.

Hi [Name],

It was so nice to meet you at [trade show name] last Friday!

I loved learning more about your company, [company name]. You mentioned you would be interested in [your product] to help your business with [pain point they mentioned].

Please let me know how you would like to move forward with this.

I am looking forward to hearing from you!

 [Your Signature]

Promotions

Including a promotion or discount in your email will be more encouraging for your lead to actually convert. Especially if the discount is exclusive to them, personalized, and a limited time offer. For example, in your email, you could provide them with a promo code that includes an abbreviation of their business name. This could be VQ15 for 15% off the first year of their subscription, or VQ50 for $50 off their first order. Having a promotion will encourage your lead to act fast and continue communications with you. Here is an example of how you can word this:

Hi [Name],

It was so nice to meet you at [trade show name] and learn more about your company last Friday!

We are offering an exclusive promotion to the guests who stopped by our booth. If you sign up by [date] with the discount VQ15, you will receive 15% off your first year with us!

Let me know if you have any questions,

[Your Signature]

Call to Action

When you are doing any sort of marketing, you should always include a call to action. I find a lot of people forget to do this when sending emails. Having a call to action is so important because you want to continuously make decisions that will help you get to the next step in your sales cycle. There are two routes you could take with initiating the next steps. The first would be asking your lead how they would like to move forward. This route is often less intimidating to send, but it leaves more room for your lead to say no. The second way you could do this is by being upfront. You can send them a Zoom or an in-person meeting request and say the times you are available to meet.

  • Example 1: Let me know how you would like to move forward
  • Example 2: My availability for next week is either Monday morning or Wednesday afternoon. You can schedule a time that works for you with the link below: [provide them with a calendar link]

If neither of these times works for you, let me know another time and I can free up some of my time for you!

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Personalize Your Emails

Personalization is always important when talking to prospects. So many salespeople send emails without properly addressing their leads or include information that is not relevant. Your leads probably get many emails every day, so you need to make sure you stand out! Plus, you have talked already about their company, what they’re looking for, and what problem they are looking to solve. So, use that information to your advantage!

Need More Leads?

Not everyone can come back from a trade show with an abundance of potential leads. And that’s okay, it’s hard. But there are other ways your business can generate more leads. Visitor Queue is a B2B lead generation software that tracks your website visitors and identifies the companies visiting your site, including key contact information. You can integrate your CRM with us and send your leads to your CRM for follow-up. Plus, you can see if your current clients are visiting your website, so you can follow-up with them to make sure they are satisfied.

Wrap Up

A lot goes into writing the perfect trade show follow-up email. But, you can close a lot of deals if you communicate successfully with your leads. Two of the most important factors to consider are prioritizing your most important leads and making sure you stand out from other emails they see in their inbox. I hope this article gave you some helpful tips to perfect your trade show follow-up email technique. If you are looking for email marketing tips, check out this blog here.

Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions about Visitor Queue!

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Written by

Taylor Hamilton

I am the Marketing Coordinator at Visitor Queue, overseeing the implementation of both traditional and digital marketing efforts. I love spending my spare time outside with my dog Peach! I am a firm believer that there are no secrets to success, only preparation, hard work, and learning from failure.