Collect brochures. Even if you don’t have time to visit all the stands of interest, ensure you collect brochures. You can always follow up later.

1. With exhibition season around the corner, Margot Parker, European Spokesperson for the British Promotional Merchandise Association (BPMA), offers a 10-point plan for making the most of visitor times at exhibitions: Exhibitions offer prime opportunities to learn, network and do business, therefore it’s vital to know your reasons for visiting and ensure you meet those objectives. Here are a few steps to getting this right.

2. Research and plan. Make it your business to read the publicity, show guide and promotional material so you can earmark exhibitors of interest.

3. Make appointments. If there are key people you want to meet, don’t expect them to be available on the day. Book them in well in advance to make sure you get to speak to them at a dedicated time.

4. Use the show guide. To save time, plan a route and mark all the exhibition stands you would like to visit most.

5. Pre-register. Save yourself time and possibly the entrance fee by registering online through the exhibition website.

6. Networking. Exhibitions offer a prime opportunity for meeting potential customers and suppliers. Face to face customer contact is the best way to build relationships. Make sure you’re prepared, have business cards and try to investigate which exhibitors or other visitors you would like to target.

7. Visit seminars. This is a prime opportunity to gain a key insight into industry leaders. Ensure you arrive 15 minutes early to guarantee seating, and take notes! If it’s an open forum, don’t be afraid to put questions to the speakers.

8. Make time to discover new things. With your planned schedule in place, make sure you leave time to explore and to discover things you otherwise would not have, you might just surprise yourself!

9. Dress up. When networking with an abundance of industry people make sure you’re well dressed. Yes, first impressions count!

10. Follow up! Now that you’ve networked, met the right people, ensure you follow up promptly!