It’s important to have a de-brief with both internal teams (and if relevant, supplier teams) to agree on what worked well and any areas for improvement. It means next year (when you exhibit at HETT again! 😉), the information is captured, and your exhibition booth and participation will be completed in half the time and effort.
Rather than juggling lots of checklists, here is a simple guide to getting a post-show debrief right:
Step 01 – Plan the workshop
Consider the debrief a ‘workshop’ where your both an attendee and organiser. Spend a little time planning in advance to make sure you get out of it what you need.
Step 02 – Start with your objectives and summary
The buying cycle with the NHS can be long and complex. Therefore, measuring the success of exhibiting against revenue generated a few weeks after the event may not be the best KPI to use. Instead, look at the data that you do have access too i.e. the number of leads vs quality leads, good conversations, follow up actions, notes and responses.
Step 03 – Ask the critical questions
Break it down into a narrative:
With an atmosphere of improvement, sending out a feedback survey to your team soon after the event makes sure everyone has a chance to share their thoughts and gives you a valuable 360-degree perspective.
Step 04 – Go through each key function
Next, wade into your event debrief by going through each key function of your event and asking your team critical questions.
Key functions include…
Step 05 – Send out an event debrief survey
An event debrief survey is a questionnaire that asks the same questions you would discuss at the meeting. It’s for people who couldn’t attend the meeting or weren’t invited. You might send it to non-leadership people who work on your events, and even some of the attendees you met onsite.