How to Collect Your Own Leads at the Bridal Show
One flaw with the millennial consumer is that they don’t like to buy things on-the-spot. It is almost impossible to get someone between the ages of 18 and 34 to immediately agree to what you’re selling. When they walk out of your office or away from your booth at a trade show, that doesn’t mean that they’re not interested; it just means it’s now your job to turn that lead into a sale.
why follow-up is important
If you exhibit at a Today’s Bride Show, you may be qualified to receive a list of brides actively planning their wedding and their contact information. This list allows you to follow up with them from the show and remind them of your services. Let’s be honest – these brides are meeting nearly a hundred vendors in one place. They’re hearing a lot of number and facts and are collecting a lot of information. You can’t rely on them to remember your company’s name among the rest once they leave the show. That’s why it’s so important to make the first move and contact them. Remind them who you are, what services you provide, and any basic details they may need to know. These initial communications work best when you have personal information and details you talked about with them. If you are going off of a list we provide you, the email will read as generic and impersonal. If you’ve collected your own leads, you can take notes about conversations you had, whether or not their wedding date is available for you, who attended the show with them, etc.
Check out the examples below and note how different these two emails could sound:
Generic Email sent to Show Leads List
Hey there!
It was so great getting the chance to meet you at the Today’s Bride Show this past Sunday! I would love to talk with you further about booking my services. Maybe we can set up a time for you to stop by the studio and see my portfolio!
Looking forward to hearing from you, Your Company Name
Personal Email based on your own collected leads
Hi Jenna!
I really enjoyed getting to talk to you and your mom about your wedding plans. I can’t believe we both love the song Loveshack! I’ve never met someone else who loves it like I do, and I hope I get the chance to play it at your wedding. If you have any questions about the packages or pricing we discussed, please don’t hesitate to give me a call or quick email. If your fiancé is anything like your mom said, I can’t wait to meet him! Bring him in when you set up an appointment!
Looking forward to hearing back, Your Company Name
Just reading the second email feels like you are chatting with a friend rather than being sold to. Plus, the bride gets a clear idea of what services you provide (obviously a DJ or musician), and will recall the exact conversation she had with you.
Want more bridal show advice? We can help!
how to collect leads
Collecting your own leads isn’t all that difficult, either. You can easily create a form online to have interested couples fill out on a tablet or laptop at your booth. If your website host – like WordPress – give you the ability to create a form that links to your website and emails you a list of every interested bride. That way, you can keep that page up at the show and will also be collecting bride’s information after the show when they visit your site! FYI – Check on your wifi situation at the show you are participating in, or make sure you can connect to a hotspot that day.
If you’re not a huge fan of using technology, you can always go back to the trusty pen-and-paper tactic. Create a form where couples can write down their information. At Today’s Bride Shows, we actually instruct brides to bring along address labels that have their name, wedding date, address, and email on them so they can pass them out to vendors they love. On the back, write a quick note about them so you can recall exactly who they are when you go back to write a follow-up email.
Millennials are notorious for not making the first move. It’s up to you to contact them. Keep in mind that these couples have never done this before; they don’t know what to expect or what to do when it comes to planning a wedding. Because you have the knowledge and experience, you can make their planning process more comfortable by contacting them first and offering your advice. Keep it personal and conversational rather than sales-y. And most importantly – don’t let that interested lead slip away. If they don’t hear from you, they’ll lose interest quickly. Collect your own leads and follow up!
