How to Get Attention

During the holidays, I encountered a woman who was quite creative in getting attention to the Salvation Army red kettle she was tending.  She used her dog.  With a Santa cap on his head, her dog stayed patiently by her side while she rang the bell.  While bell ringing often became so routine that it was easy to ignore, seeing a dog immediately attracted attention.  Many people walked over to pet the dog.  Everyone smiled at the woman and her dog.

I commented, “Bringing your dog is a smart idea.  What a great way to get people’s attention.”

“I brought him last year,” she replied, “and he did get a lot of attention.  Because of him, I talked to more people and got more donations.” 

“Most people like dogs,” I agreed.  “Good job!”  

I was so impressed by her idea that I wanted to share it with you.  Since we are in the January through March trade show season, many of you will be tending a booth in the next few weeks.  What do you do to draw attention to your booth?  Dogs may not be allowed, but you want something to attract prospective customers to stop by and talk.  Get them to interact with you.  Her dog did that well for this woman.  What can you do to accomplish that at your booth?

Sit down and think this through.  Ask yourself these questions.  What gets people’s attention?  What problems that potential customers have does your product or service solve?  How can you use the answers to the first two questions to set up something at your booth to draw in your prospective customers?

While food is always a good draw, those who stop to eat the food are not necessarily your target customers.  They are merely attendees who want something to eat.  I found that with chocolate.  A better way to get your target customer to stop is to have something that piques interest because it immediately shows that it solves a problem.  When you set that up, your time in the booth will be spent talking to prospective customers rather than to any attendee, many who may not have an interest in your product or service but may act as if they do to get the food.  Your follow-up time will also be better spent because you will be contacting people who have an interest in and a need for your product or service.

A profitable objective for a trade show is interacting with the best prospects that will lead to sales.  You are not there just to talk to a lot of people.  You are there to meet those with the highest likelihood to buy your product or service.  With her dog, the woman got attention, made people smile, and opened people’s hearts and subsequently their wallets.  Her dog brought the best potential donors to her red kettle. 

What are you doing to bring the best potential customers to your booth?

This week's marketing trivia challenge is What has attracted you to a booth and made you a customer? E-mail me your answer.

Body Language

When I stopped at a red light yesterday, I noticed a tent with a sign “Free Windshield Chip Repair * See technician for details” on the grassy area between the road and a gas station. Underneath the tent, a guy was sitting in a chair with his feet up on a tub reading a book. He was dressed in quite casual attire: khaki shorts, a tan shirt, and sandals. His shirt did not have a logo or any way to identify his connection with a business.

“What a wasted opportunity!” I thought.

If he and the business he represented had realized the message that he was sending, he would have acted differently. Fortunately, no one could tell what business he represented.

What message did he send?

His message was “I’m supposed to man this tent for a certain amount of time. What a bore! I’ll read a book.”

Somebody at his office heard of the opportunity to set up a tent in a high traffic area and offer free windshield chip repair. I don’t know if this repair happened on the spot or not. I assume that was in the “*See technician for details.” In typical knee-jerk marketing fashion, the boss said, “Let’s do it!” and ordered this guy to man the tent on that particular day. The boss implemented the idea with no thought as to how to do it well.

If you or your employees are taking time to market in this fashion, do all you can to get sales from it. Don’t use it as a time to catch up on your reading. That sends the wrong message. Even worse, it doesn’t get what you want, sales.

This is a time of the year with a great deal of roadside sales and marketing. To be successful, this type of marketing requires active involvement. Realize that 85% of our communication is nonverbal. Roadside marketing offers the opportunity to use nonverbal communication to the max.

To do so, the guy in the tent could have stood up and faced the traffic. He could have smiled and waved at the drivers. He could have held up a sign further detailing the offer. He could have promoted the business on the sign, his shirt, or a hat. He could have engaged potential customers and worked the crowd of drivers with nonverbal communication.

Whenever you market at a roadside stand or a booth, work it by actively using positive nonverbal communication. Smile, look inviting, and make customers feel comfortable. Use body language to increase sales.

Don’t look like the customer will be interrupting your reading.