Events and field touches

An event earns its place in a cadence when it creates a next conversation with someone who fits. A good exchange is only the midpoint. Work before the event puts the right people within reach. During it, test whether there is a reason to continue. Afterward, turn interest into a scheduled conversation. Treat the field touch as a qualification and appointment-setting step. If the event leaves you with contacts but no agreed next move, it has created activity without progress.

Choose the event

Start with the audience, because the event determines who can enter the conversation. A crowded room is not useful if the people there cannot become buyers.

Events aimed at members of a target market can help you learn more about the niche and meet new prospects.¹ Choose events that can connect you with potential clients.² No single type of event works for everyone, and results depend on timing, market conditions, client interests, and your personal strengths.^{3, 4}

Before you commit, answer these questions:

• Who do I expect to meet there?
• What would make a conversation worth continuing?
• Which existing contacts could open a useful introduction?
• What follow-up can I offer that fits the reason people attend?

Events require time and money, and their return is minimal when prospects do not become clients.⁵ Give the event a job before you put it into the cadence. If you cannot describe the audience and the next conversation, choose a different touch.

Prepare before the event

Preparation gives the field touch a route into the right conversations. Arrive with meetings and introductions in motion, so the room adds opportunities instead of carrying the whole burden.

Book several meetings before the conference starts when you can.⁶ Ask people you have already met whether they will attend.⁷ If you attend with people you know, use their introductions to reach others.⁸

Write down the questions you want answered and the reason you will ask for a follow-up. Keep the plan short enough to use while moving through the event. Your aim is to recognize fit quickly, remember what the person said, and know what to ask for next.

Put the event inside an organized sequence of buyer-customized content and messages over a defined period, with the goal of generating a sales meeting.⁹ The field touch then has a place before you arrive and after you leave.

Work the conversation

Whether to continue

If the fit is there

Schedule an appointment

If the fit is unclear

Keep the exchange short

Whether to continue

• If the fit is there, schedule an appointment
• If the fit is unclear, keep the exchange short

Use the room to learn whether a useful business conversation exists. Let the other person explain why they came, then decide whether to continue.

Open with: "Why did you personally want to attend this conference?"¹⁰ Ask questions, let people talk about themselves and their businesses, and use the exchange to assess whether they could be good customers.¹¹ People asked this question will typically bring up their company and explain why the conference suited it.¹²

Listen for a clear reason to keep going. Ask what prompted the interest and what they are trying to change. Agree on what a useful next discussion would cover. You are looking for a fit you can explain in their words, along with a reason for a later conversation.

When the fit is there, schedule an appointment for a more detailed discussion.¹³ Put the agreed subject into your notes before you move on. When the fit is unclear, keep the exchange short and continue through the room.

Use a field visit with a clear reason

A field visit needs a business reason that makes the next conversation easy to accept. Tie the visit to the work you have already agreed to discuss.

For a substantive demo, suggest an on-site meeting by mentioning planned travel to the customer's city.¹⁴ Use the travel as a concrete reason to propose a time and topic. The invitation should make clear why meeting in person helps the discussion.

Convert the touch after the event

The handoff determines whether the event enters the pipeline or disappears into a contact list. Follow up on what you learned, and make the next action specific enough to schedule.

Event conversations can be difficult to move into engagements.¹⁵ The path from an event introduction to a call or meeting, then to a proposal and close, can run too long, with conversion rates falling short.¹⁶ Prospecting aims to create interest and convert it into a sales meeting.¹⁷

After each useful conversation, record why the person attended, the fit you heard, the problem they described, and the next discussion you agreed to. Ask for the appointment while the context is fresh. A vague promise to reconnect gives the touch no route forward.

Follow up with an organized sequence of buyer-customized messages over a defined period.⁹ Prospecting should begin showing action in the pipeline on a timely basis.¹⁸ Use the first follow-up to prove you heard the conversation, then make the next appointment the clear action.

What not to do

These mistakes turn a promising event into activity that cannot be carried forward. Remove them from the plan before you enter the room.

• Do not treat putting the event on your calendar as preparation. Advisors often make that their last preparation before walking into a conference.¹⁹
• Do not use a hard sell. People who are pitched throughout the day may shut down when an interaction looks like an attempt to make a sale.²⁰
• Do not call attending a networking event prospecting to avoid doing the prospecting work.²¹ Networking operates on a different timetable from prospecting.²²
• Do not count a loose coffee promise as a next step. That follow-up is a waste of time and effort 98 percent of the time.²³
• Do not treat interest as proof that you have reached the decision maker. The agency often learned during the sales cycle that an interested contact was not the real decision maker.²⁴