Protecting Your Interests:
Using Competitive
Intelligence Gathering Techniques at Trade Shows to Safeguard Your Bottom
Line
by Susan A. Friedmann,CSP
The Trade Show Coach
November 2008
"This looks absolutely amazing!" The attendee was smiling,
eyes bright, a wide grin. "If this is what I think it is,
I'm pretty sure this piece of equipment will solve all of our problems." He
turned to the booth staffer, a young woman at her very first show. "Could
you tell me how it works?"
The staffer, thrilled at the possibility of selling a piece of equipment
that sells for hundreds of thousands of dollars, was more than accommodating. She
answered every question, even the most technical. When the prospect
wanted to take some pictures, she helped him get good shots -- from every
conceivable angle.
When the prospect left, he had every relevant piece of sales literature. He
also had a dozen great digital pictures, the card of the booth staffer,
and a promise that someone from the exhibitor's company would be following
up directly after the show.
However, the attendee didn't let the grass grow under his feet. His
organization was in touch with the exhibitor's organization within days.
However, instead of a purchase order, the communication was coming from
the attendee's legal department -- who had a pretty good case that the
exhibitor's display model was based on their proprietary design!
Tradeshows offer the most overt intelligence gathering environment imaginable. There
is no other place where you can find all of the companies in one industry
gathered in a convenient location, with all their offerings on display. Helpful
booth staffers will answer questions, often those questions that should
raise red flags among an exhibiting team.
This can work against you, or, as illustrated in the story above, it
can work for you. The world is getting smaller every day. Ideas
are stolen. They're copied, reverse engineered, you name it. However,
as the owner and originator of these ideas, you may have no idea that
this has happened -- until you stumble across the results at a tradeshow
or industry event.
In an increasingly competitive world marketplace, you can't depend on
chance discoveries! Savvy tradeshow exhibitors and attendees know that
they have to take the initiative, and carefully approach tradeshows with
one eye toward protecting their own intellectual assets.
Determine a goal for your staffers or employees you're sending to attend
a show. Make it clear to them what type of thing they're to look
for: products that duplicate your own, for example, or that incorporate
proprietary technology without permission.
It is never your employee's role to have a confrontation about these
topics at the show. Instead, their role is, as illustrated above, to
gather as much information as possible about the product and company,
and relay that data back to your headquarters, where it can be acted
upon by the appropriate personnel.
Preparation is essential. You can't send your staffers in with
the command to protect your interests without equipping them to do so. Here's
how you start that preparation:
Prior to the show, study the exhibitor list. Identify which companies
you already know, and make special note of any new names. It is
far more common for emerging, smaller organizations to engage in unscrupulous
activities -- if only because the larger, behemoth firms have legal firms
that keep them from getting into trouble! Sometimes show organizers make
this easy by listing exhibitors by industrial categories, but other times
you're left facing an alphabetical list.
Create a 'hit list' of companies that you absolutely have to see. Of
course you'll want to visit your major competitors – but don't
be myopic. It is important to pay careful attention to any unfamiliar
exhibitors, even if they are only tangentially related to your industry.
Augment your target list with pre-show research, including what readings
from trade publications and industry knowledge. This will generally
give you a starting point for your investigations. Pinpoint those
items you definitely want to know more about, and include these on your
team's list of goals and objectives.
At the same time, it is vitally important to remain aware and open to
any information that may arise serendipitously. It is impossible
to know ahead of time what your team will encounter while they're walking
the show floor.
Having the skills and wit to recognize copyright infringement and intellectual
property theft, no matter what form it takes, is a valuable asset in
any employee. Make sure you recognize and reward your team appropriately!
About the Author
Written by Susan A. Friedmann,CSP, The Tradeshow Coach,
Lake Placid, NY, Author: “Riches in Niches: How to Make it BIG
in a small Market” and “Meeting & Event Planning for
Dummies.” www.thetradeshowcoach.com & www.richesinniches.com
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