You would like to use a trade fair lead app at your trade fair. Which devices should you use to capture your leads?
There are different types of scanners in the market. And some tools you can install on your own smartphone or tablet. What is best for you? As always this depends on your own objectives. Read here about the advantages and disadvantages of the different devices.
Small scanner without feedback: These devices are cheap and very simple to use, both big advantages. But there is also a payoff: The scanners beep, but there is no reliable confirmation that the device has really stored the QR code, you have scanned. Are these devices always online? Normally not, then there is the risk to lose the leads you have collected after the device was last online. And there are nearly no additional functions. You might be able to define a small questionnaire and assign a barcode or QR code to each answer. But without feedback this is not reliable. And more data cannot be assigned to your leads. Result: These devices are suitable, if you want to collect very many contacts without additional information and when you can afford to lose some, because the single contact is not really valuable, but the mass of contacts counts.
Your own smartphone or tablet (BYOD): This is the cheapest solution as you only pay for the software. For more and more trade fairs, one or sometimes even several licenses are part of your marketing package, which means that you can use the trade fair lead app at no extra cost. Another advantage: you really are using your own device that you know. And the biggest advantage over the small scanners: you can add additional data such as a comprehensive questionnaire, voice recordings, images, additional GDPR confirmations, etc. For some trade fairs without mandatory badges for visitors, the most important thing is that you can also take a photo of your visitor’s business card instead of scanning the QR code on the badge. The software called OCR (meaning optical character recognition), which is usually part of your trade fair lead app, fills in the data fields automatically. The recognition quality is usually pretty good, only very artistically designed company names can lead to funny recognition results. Is the BYOD strategy only positive? Almost, there is only one disadvantage – and that is the camera. Scanning the QR code with the camera of your smartphone and tablet can be a bit tricky, especially if you have very bright and intense light at your stand. Then you need to learn how best to scan. Please also read our article “How to scan the QR code in very bright surroundings”.
Scanner in form of a smartphone: These devices look like smartphones, but they have a scanner in addition to the camera. These devices offer all advantages of your own device. But since they have an additional scanner, QR codes can be easily scanned also in very bright surroundings. These devices combine all advantages: quick scanning together with maximum of data addable to each lead and full reliability. If the light on your stand makes the scanning with the camera too difficult, you should take such rental scanners into consideration. Are they expensive? Normally not. The renting price should be less than that for an iPad.
Terminals for self-registration: Good systems for digital lead capture also offer smart standalone terminals for self-scanning. Visitors can scroll through images and films themselves in which you present your products and services. They can simply mark their main interests. And last but not least, visitors can use these terminals to scan the QR code on their tickets or badges or their business cards themselves. Automatic processes can also be configured. For example, an email can be sent to the visitor with further details and attachments about the products they have marked. Or they can take part in a competition. The main advantages of such self-registration terminals:
- Such a terminal is an eye-catcher and attracts visitors to your stand who do not want to be approached directly.
- Visitors have fun “playing” at the terminals, so lead generation at your trade fair also includes the gamification approach.
- You get the data of your visitors and normally also data about their interests without human manpower.
- Of course, sales consultants can and should also contact visitors personally at the terminals. But especially at peak times, more trade fair leads can be recorded at your stand
Ask the provider of your trade fair lead app about self-service terminals for rent and the automatic processes supported. If the price is acceptable, you should give this most modern and resource-saving form of lead generation a try.
