Getting In The Faces Of Clients At Trade Shows
Vinod Bagdwal, who started bagging ice by hand in a garage in Pennsylvania three years ago, recently started selling bagged ice to Stop & Shop Supermarkets because he showed up at a trade show looking for customers.
In an age where the Internet has made it easier to reach vast numbers of people and get your name into the marketplace, it seems that interest in time-consuming trade shows would be dropping off.
Not so. In fact, they’re becoming even more important with a growing number of small businesses clamoring for attention.
“It presents you an opportunity to get that face-to-face interaction,” said James Sturgis, who attends trade shows on behalf of Stop & Shop and then organizes internal events for the grocery stores buyers as director of supplier diversity.
He wasn’t looking for bagged ice when he met Bagdwal, but he was impressed with the man,s story and his drive. That is the sort of personal experience that can’t be replaced by the World Wide Web.
Sturgis was in Medford last week giving small business owners a pep talk at a trade show boot camp sponsored by the Center for Women & Enterprise.
Trade shows are an irreplaceable way for entrepreneurs to reach big customers. They can help companies selling everything from organic jams to long-distance trucking services reach the big players in the market.
The key is to find the right show and then develop a strong strategy. More.
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