Tools and Tips

• By J. Daniel Hull, Jeff Durban
• Oct 01, 2001

While Medtrade can be an overwhelming business experience, one of the most valuable results from your attendance will come many weeks after you return home--after you have rested up from meeting all those people, seeing all those products, attending all those seminars and enjoying New Orleans.

There is always so much to absorb during a few short days that inevitably the learning continues once you return home. You will continue to learn from the contacts you made and the materials you collected. You will probably realize that other people should have joined you in attending the show.

Post-Medtrade planning is important; it is similar to the planning you do after those sales calls. What do you need to remember and document? How do you use the information you gathered and whom should you share it with? Let these tools and tips shape your post-show educational plan.

1. Categorize Marketing Materials

Faced with hundreds of pages of marketing materials from all kinds of companies, you should find time to place them in folders and categories. Wound care in one pile, computer and billing systems in another and rehabilitation products in another. Once you have categorized all of the materials, begin routing them to those in the office who would most benefit from the information.

After associates have reviewed the material, you should place the materials on a resource shelf or section of your office. It is often many months after Medtrade that you need to reference something you picked up at the show.

2. Review Collected Business Cards

The stack of business cards can be mind-boggling. Not sure what to do with all those business cards? Look them over and file them. You never know when you will want to contact the people you met in New Orleans. Make special notes on the cards to help you remember something about the person-- what the contact does or even what you spoke with the person about. Six months after the show, you don't want to be looking at a business card and trying to recall the specifics of why you exchanged business cards.

3. Duplicate and share conference materials.

The conference materials available on the Medtrade Web site include more than 2,000 pages of materials. Every faculty member was requested to submit handouts. Along with materials, they also were asked to provide contact information so they can be reached following Medtrade.

Go back over all of these titles listed in the conference directory and take a look at the handouts of all of the speakers. While this may be a long task, it is one of the most valuable aspects of the entire Medtrade experience. While you may have little interest in a particular subject area, it may be of great value to others in your office. They, in turn, may want to share this information with their staff or use it in some type of training program.

4. Review New Product Releases

With all of the products displayed in the new product showcase, it may take you some time to carefully review what is new to the marketplace. Many new Medtrade products are featured in this magazine. Make sure you let people in the office know about these new items. The best part of Medtrade is that many manufacturers wait until the show to debut their new products. Pay special attention to these products and determine whether or not they fit into your market. You may want to create a folder--which everyone in your office can access--where you can place information about new products.

5. Review Your Inventory

Upon your return home, take time to review your entire inventory. Many of the special sale prices available at Medtrade may be good several weeks after you return home. What should you be buying that you did not purchase at the show? Are there special offers you now want to take advantage of?

6. Present the Acquired Information

Many of the accrediting organizations involved in our industry require in-service training programs for your staff and colleagues. Many of the company representatives you met at Medtrade would be more than willing to come to your company and prepare a program for your staff. This will allow you to become a more informed consumer. Many of these programs already have been approved for CEUs by respected professional organizations and may meet the educational needs of selected members of your staff. Make a list of the issues, products and information you would like to learn about, and you should be able to find a company willing to sponsor such a program at your location. Conference attendees also will find speaker handout materials valuable in preparing educational training programs.

7. Review Sales/Marketing Seminars

With more than half of the conference programs at Medtrade dedicated to issues related to sales and marketing, print out the handouts from those sessions and review their content. The industry has many components--from working in the retail arena, to handling the business from professional referral sources and case management companies. Look through the handouts for programs in the areas of sales and marketing and use these materials as you build educational training and in-service programs for your company.

8. Review Corporate Compliance

Medtrade offers more than 20 seminars related to corporate compliance and legal issues you will be faced with during the next two years. While you may not have attended any of these sessions, you should take time to review these materials and print those on particularly important topics. Use these materials as you review and plan for your own compliance program. There is so much to know, and any of the Medtrade faculty would be happy to answer any of your additional questions. There is still time to locate the materials of the industry's authorities that were in attendance and apply the information to your company.

9. Develop Company Contact List

During your three-day visit to Medtrade you will meet hundreds of company representatives and pick up lots of marketing materials and business cards. When you head back to your company, develop a contact list of all the people you want to call--sort of like a post-Medtrade to do list. Sometimes the only telephone numbers you will have are those you can locate on the back of someone's brochure. Take the materials out, locate what you need and begin making your Medtrade call list.

10. Plan to Atten d Medtrade 2002

Medtrade has not been held in Atlanta for many years, and large crowds are expected to gather to the home where Medtrade began. Atlanta will attract thousands of people who are within driving distance to this great location. While there are many wonderful business hotels in the area, Medtrade will draw more than 25,000 people, and you should be making your hotel reservations soon. You will have loads of hotel choices and great places to eat. Plan on spending an extra day in Atlanta to see the sights of one of the nation's fastest growing cities.

The Medtrade experience should last you year round--through contacts with new colleagues met on the trade show floor or through sitting in the seminar sessions. Nothing is more beneficial than meeting people fact-to-face at the show and the rewards will continue if you continue to network. With education and information as your most powerful business tools, Medtrade gives you more than you can possibly handle in three days. Look back upon all you learned and all you carried home. You have a lot to review and learn before we all meet again at Medtrade 2002 in Atlanta. See you there!

This article originally appeared in the October 2001 issue of HME Business.