Representatives from our company attend various expos every year. At these expos, we not only promote our products, but also meet a diverse range of people and learn about important developments in a wide range of industries. I consider expos educational opportunities.
Eloquent salesmen from companies around the globe are always interesting to watch at expos. I once met several familiar dealers at Hanoverian International Logistics Expo. Their tireless descriptions of design, function, service and maintenance of their products greatly fascinated me. Our salesmen describe our products using terms such as "top quality" and "three-year comprehensive warranty." But the best salesmen first find out about the customer's hobbies and personality and begin with conversations that have nothing to do with business. Their demeanor and praise is meant to make one feel comfortable. Then, they slyly turn to business and deftly close the deal. This method has proven far superior to dryly discussing price and quality.
If you're not familiar with prospective clients, your promotion should be simple without sensationalism, or your efforts may backfire. An old Chinese joke illustrates this principle: A mother asks her child to buy some vinegar. The mother repeatedly tells the kid "to buy vinegar, not soy sauce." Consequently, by the time he arrived at the shop, the child forgot whether to buy vinegar or soy sauce, ultimately taking home the latter. Similar things happen in daily life. When we communicate with our clients, we must pay close attention to our words, which should be detailed and interesting.
Each time we attend an expo, we can learn many things specifically related to our products. I require my engineers to attend expos mainly to pay attention to five aspects of competitors. Firstly, exterior design. How to make eye-catching products? Along with quality, appearance of the product is also important. A good-looking girl can leave a good impression after a first date without any effort. So it goes with commodities.
With an attractive design, the job is half done. Secondly, interior design. International logistics expos feature myriad high-end products. Performance of the products is the most important. Learning from others to enhance our own innovation, we endeavor to create better products. Thirdly, instruction manuals. Instruction manuals and maintenance brochures display the professionalism and culture of an enterprise. We should read the material carefully because they provide telling textbooks for us. Fourthly, innovative spirit. Our attendees should closely observe the improvements of competing products to find where we lag behind.
Finally, management ideas. A good management model promotes innovation, technological development and successful expo displays. Every successful company has its own singular management system, which is ingrained in the design and quality of its products. By studying others, we can identify our own limitations to overcome.
Just like an effective class, much can be learned from an expo. We invest hundreds of million yuan annually because they're more than simple traveling. We participate in fairs with clear goals, expecting to harvest new ideas to help our company develop.