Tradeshow 360 - Frequently Asked Questions

What is DecisionMaker Tradeshow 360°?
DecisionMaker Tradeshow 360° is a complete, integrated event marketing service that maximizes your event marketing investment by driving the right traffic to your booth, and qualifying your leads after the show.

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Why do I need Tradeshow 360°?
B-to-B marketers spend as much as 15% of their marketing budgets on in-person events and then return from shows and don't follow-up with the leads. 80%² of them. So, given that event leads cost nearly 61%¹ less to close than non-event lead sources, the purpose of this program is to help marketers and sales professionals close more event leads.

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How does it work?
Tradeshow 360° offers specific levels of services, for both your pre-show and post-show goals. Designed to fit your budget, timeline and tradeshow objectives, Tradeshow 360° provides the booth invitation calls, list rental, lead qualification, and data enhancement packaging that best support your direct marketing and sales needs. In a nutshell, we help get your target audience to the event, and qualify your best prospects to pursue after the show is over.

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Why do I need to rent a list? I already have the attendee list for the show.
Expand your prospect universe by building upon the tradeshow attendee list with even more key decision makers for your products and services, through DM2's proprietary DecisionMaker® databases. Before the show, DM2 can deploy a direct marketing campaign on your behalf, via postal mail, email or both, not only to the individuals already planning to attend the tradeshow, but also to more individuals just like your best prospects, inviting them to the tradeshow - and more specifically to your booth.

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Why not just have my sales staff qualify the leads?
A lot of companies share that perspective. And yet, 80%² of leads are not even called after the event. Most of our customers have sales teams that are already dedicated to specific accounts or territories, and they simply don't have the time to devote to complete lead qualification, which takes more than one email or phone call. The Tradeshow 360 post-show process involves thorough screening of your "fish bowl" leads to determine if they are, in fact, prospects. Then we ask additional probing questions to determine their buying preferences, timetable, and business needs. We also collect information that provides you with valuable business intelligence, such as: • • • Is the prospect considering a competitor? How does their purchasing process work and who is involved? When do they plan to make a decision? By the time your sales team receives the lead, they will know which leads have the highest likelihood to close, and which ones are top prospects that should fill their sales pipeline.

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What are the Tradeshow 360° packages?
Tradeshow 360° is available in your choice of 4 packages: Platinum, Gold, Silver or Bronze.

Service	Platinum	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Pre-Show Booth Invitation Calls	5,000	2,500	1,250	750
Pre-Show List Rental (Postal & Email)	10,000 ea.	10,000 ea.	5,000 ea.	5,000*
Post-Show Leads Qualified	1,500	1,000	500	100
Post-Show Prospects Added	250	150	100	100

*Bronze package includes Postal only.

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How do I know what Tradeshow 360° package to consider?
DM2 works with you to determine the best package for your needs.
Some key questions we ask to determine this include: • • • • • • • • • • • • What's your typical tradeshow investment? How many attendees are expected at the show? How many members of your staff will be there? What are your objectives for the tradeshow? Would you like to demonstrate a new product or service? Prefer to have 1:1 face time with only your best prospects? Are you exhiting to gain brand awareness? What do you do today to invite booth visitors? How do you currently handle leads? Do you have a lead tracking system? What is the bandwidth of your sales department? What are your costs and time to pre-qualify your leads? And if you don't have all the answers, that's OK. We'll help you figure out which program meets your needs.

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We're good on marketing for the show. What can you do after?
After the show, DM2 assesses your prospects' needs for your products and services. DM2 provides rich demographics, buying behavior and valuable business intelligence such as when they are buying, or what products and services they are currently using, and why. You therefore learn the temperature of your leads - i.e. hot, warm or cold - and know exactly what the opportunities are best, so you can focus your sales and marketing efforts more efficiently. Not only that, DM2 goes outside of just the tradeshow lead file and finds similar companies that meet your prospect profile and delivers individuals you can target perpetually for your post-show promotions and future campaigns.

We also send personalized thank-you messages to booth leads to engage them further with your products and services.

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We're good on follow-up after the show. What can you do before?
Before the show, DM2 works with you to define the types of individuals you need to reach, and we mine our robust database of more than 35 million decision makers in 25+ industries to deploy a targeted message promoting your presence at the show. We contact your best prospects, whom you are not already working with, by telephone and invite them to your booth on your behalf. Many marketing and event managers we work with tell us that the weeks just prior to the show are consumed with preparation and planning for the booth, and there is little time to make prospect phone calls. DM2 supplements the sales and marketing efforts to drive qualified traffic to your booth so the pre-show planning produces measurable results.

We also send personalized email messages to industry decision makers, on your behalf, inviting them to your booth, and provide you with a postal mailing list so you can reach them through multiple channels.

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What if I don't need all the components of a package? What if I need additional components?
Although the packages offer the best value, DM2 can customize a package to best meet your needs. Call 800.323.4958 or click here now to discuss your next event objectives.

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How can I get started?
It's easy! To get started, contact your DM2 representative or call 800-323-4958. Your DM2 representative will work with you to develop and manage your Tradeshow 360° program.

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How long after the tradeshow are the leads delivered to me? What do I get?
Qualified prospects are delivered within 48-72 hours of receipt by DM2. Files are typically sent in an Excel format.

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What kinds of information are delivered with the leads?
You determine the kind of business intelligence required for your lead development campaign. DM2 works with you to develop a call guide/survey script with key questions that help identify the right decision makers for your business, their need, budget, and anticipated timeline for purchase and project implementation. This powerful information defines your opportunities and shows you where your prospects are in the buying process.

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How should I follow up on the leads?
Timing is critical in lead follow-up. DM2 will provide tips and recommendations along with the leads so your sales team can effectively prioritize their calls. In most cases, the leads should be called within a few days of receipt from DM2.

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Will I close business on all the leads delivered to me?
The leads delivered are a list of people that have expressed an interest in a specific product and those that match the criteria outlined during our initial meetings based on the lead definition. Different companies are at different stages in their buying cycle and therefore, some may be looking to buy in the next 3 to 6 months while others might be early in the process and open to considering other vendors. The leads delivered will ranked as hot, warm or needs nurturing.

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How far in advance should I start planning my DecisionMaker Tradeshow 360° program?
DM2's services are versatile and we can meet you where you are in the planning process. However, depending on the size and scope of the event, you may want to begin pre-show planning as far as a year in advance. But as a general rule, it's a good idea to plan your pre-show activities at least 3-6 months prior to the event.

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What's the timeline once I decide to go with a Tradeshow 360° package?
The following is an example timeline for a typical Tradeshow 360° program:

4-6 weeks prior: Target prospect list is assembled, and pre-show marketing begins, with a direct mail and/or email campaign.

2-3 weeks prior: Attendee invitation calls begin. Initial business intelligence such as "why are you going to the show" and "what are you looking for" is gathered.

3-5 days prior: Booth visit reminder calls and/or emails go out to the prospect with your booth number and who to contact.

Within a week after the show, DM2 begins a telephone campaign to qualify your lead list. These personal phone calls can assess: the individual's role in the decision making process, their need timeline, if they have an allocated budget, and their buying authority. More business intelligence can be gathered during the call as well, based on the agreed-upon call script.

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How much does it cost?
The best package price for you is set with a goal of getting you the most value for your tradeshow investment. DM2 helps you determine the level of Tradeshow 360° that's right for you, with the most competitive price available based on the audience you need to reach. Call us today at 800.323.4958 to discuss your event marketing plans or click here.