Our 2017 survey of Photonics West attendees showed that companies are coming to trade shows prepared with a variety of measurable goals and generating qualified leads.

1. | launchsolutions.com
Photonics West Lead Generation
Benchmark Survey
March 2017

2. | launchsolutions.com
Q1: What type of business are you?
• Respondents represented a variety of market segments:
– Instrumentation (29%)
– Lasers (21%)
– Glass manufacturer
– Plastic manufacturer
– Engineering services
– Imaging systems
– Sensors
– Capital equipment
– Optical components
– Abrasives and chemicals for optical fabrication
– Test equipment and services
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3. | launchsolutions.com
10-ft booth,
77.8%
20-ft
booth,
11.1%
Island, 5.6%
Tabletop, 0.0%
I didn't exhibit—
I walked the
show, 5.6%
I didn't exhibit—
presenter /
instructor, 0.0%
Q2: How did you participate in Photonics
West 2017?
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Getting a Foot (or 10)
in the Door
• Only 6% of
respondents walked
the show, down
from 22% last year
• The majority of
exhibitors went with
10-ft booths
• Others shared booth
space, had 30-ft
booths or two 20-ft
booths

4. | launchsolutions.com
Rented a badge
scanner
from show
organizers,
52.4%
Brought my
own badge
scanner, 4.8%
Collected
business cards,
28.6%
Used a lead
capture app,
14.3%
Q3: How did you collect leads this year?
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Lead Capture Tech
• Half of respondents
used rental badge
scanners to collect
leads, while the rest
used their own
methods, such as
collecting or
photographing
business cards.

5. | launchsolutions.com
Q4: How many total leads did your company
generate this year?
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More Leads
• Respondents
generated more
leads this year, with
most in the 36-50
range or >150,
compared to last
year when 40% were
in the 26-35 range.
<15, 0.0%
15-25, 0.0%
26-35,
14.3%
36-50, 33.3%
51-75, 0.0%
76-100, 0.0%
101-125,
14.3%
126-150, 4.8%
>150, 33.3%
I don't know,
0.0%

6. | launchsolutions.com
<10, 20.0%
10-25, 25.0%
26-50, 20.0%
51-75, 5.0%
76-100, 5.0%
101-125, 5.0%
>125, 15.0%
I don't know,
5.0%
Q5: How many qualified leads did your
company generate this year?
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47% of total leads
were qualified (on
par with last year’s 46%)

7. | launchsolutions.com
More leads,
28.6%
Better quality
leads, 28.6%
Both more &
better leads,
23.8%
Fewer
leads,
4.8%
Weaker leads,
0.0%
Both fewer &
weaker leads,
0.0%
I don't know,
9.5%
NA—We didn't
exhibit last year,
4.8%
Q6: How does this year's show compare with
Photonics West 2016?
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81% of respondents
noted more and/or
better leads
compared to 2016
(up from 60% last year)

8. | launchsolutions.com
Q7: What were your goals for this show?
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Increase
sales leads
Launch new
products
Develop new
business
Increase
exposure
Gain new
program
members
Attendees had specific, measurable goals
such as:
• 10% increase in leads over 2016
• Obtain 125 leads
• Get at least 10 qualified leads and close 2
orders from those leads
Maintain
lead flow
from 2016
Other goals included:
• Determine if a 10' booth would draw more
qualified leads than our previous table top
display
• Develop relationships with optics company
reps to join our membership program
• Introduce new products

9. | launchsolutions.com
Q8: What metrics do you track for trade show
success? (check all that apply)
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Qualified Leads Remains Most-Used Metric
• Respondents tracking qualified leads rose again, from 63% in 2016.
• Percent of respondents with no metrics jumped from 5% in 2016.
47.6%
66.7%
42.9%
33.3%
28.6%
38.1%
14.3%
0.0%
0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0% 60.0% 70.0% 80.0%
Total leads
Qualified leads
Resulting RFQs
Resulting quotes
Close rates
Revenue
We don't track/measure
I don't know

10. | launchsolutions.com
94.7%
0.0%
26.3%
26.3%
0.0%
0.0%
10.5%
36.8%
0.0% 20.0% 40.0% 60.0% 80.0% 100.0%
Photonics West
Defense + Commercial Sensing (DCS)
Laser Munich
Optifab
MD&M West
MD&M East
CLEO
Optics + Photonics
Q9: What are your best performing shows?
(check all that apply)
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Respondents consistently name Photonics West one of their best shows.
Optatec and SHOT Show were other write-in favorites.
“We only participate
in Photonics West.”

11. | launchsolutions.com
Q10/Q11: How effective are you at trade
show preparation and follow-up?
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Many respondents are still not sure if their efforts are effective.
One respondent said they’re “always catching up.”
Preparation Follow-up
1 = Poor | 2 = Needs Work | 3 = Good | 4 = Excellent
2.90
2.71
2.60 2.70 2.80 2.90 3.00
Consistency
Effectiveness
2.90
2.86
2.84 2.86 2.88 2.90 2.92
Consistency
Effectiveness

12. | launchsolutions.com
Q12: What does follow-up look like in your
company? (check all that apply)
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Mix of Digital and Traditional
• Email is still the primary method of lead follow-up, though many companies are
also calling and snail-mailing as additional touches.
• The percent of companies using a CRM rose from 55% in 2016.
• LinkedIn is the preferred social media channel for connecting with leads.
social media
email
nurture
campaigns
23.8%
71.4%
71.4%
81.0%
23.8%
33.3%
28.6%
0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0% 60.0% 70.0% 80.0% 90.0%
Connect with leads on LinkedIn/social…
Add to database for email…
Add to CRM (like Salesforce)
Email
Call 1x
Call multiple times
Send card/literature

13. | launchsolutions.com| launchsolutions.com
For more tips to improve your trade show
strategy, visit launchsolutions.com/blog
Or download our tip sheet:
Maximizing Trade Show ROI
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