Trade show lead form: fields and an A, B, C rule
The fields worth collecting, five qualification questions (use two or three), and a grading rule that tells you who to call first a week after the show.
A lead form is the list of things you write down about every visitor who stops at your stand. A good one is short enough to fill in during a conversation and specific enough to tell you, a week later, who to call first.
The usual mistake is a form that is too long. Nobody completes twelve fields while a visitor waits, so the fields that matter most, the need and the next step, are the ones left empty.
The fields
Who they are. Name, company, job title and country. You cannot do without these.
How to reach them. An email address and a phone or WhatsApp number. Ask which one the visitor prefers, and use that one.
Why they came. The product or service they asked about, in a few words.
What happens next. The one thing you promised: a brochure, a call, a quote or a demo, and by when. This is the field that is most often missing, and the one the follow-up depends on.
How they agreed. A line that records how the visitor agreed to be contacted, for example that they handed you the card or agreed to an email. It protects you and the visitor.
Five qualification questions
Use two or three of these, not all five. The form has to survive a real conversation.
- Need. Is there a project or a need now, within six months, later, or are they only looking?
- Budget. Approved, being planned, or unknown?
- Role in the decision. Do they decide, have a say, or only collect information?
- Timing. This quarter, within a year, or no date yet?
- Promise. What did you promise, and who does it?
You rarely need to ask these out loud as a list. Ask one open question (“What are you trying to solve?”) and tick the answers afterwards.
An A, B or C rule
Grading on the spot is what turns a list into a call order.
- A: call within two days. There is a need now or within six months, the person decides or has a say, and you agreed a next step.
- B: send material and follow up in one to two weeks. The need is later, or the person has a say but there is no budget yet.
- C: say thank you and nothing more. The person was only looking, or has no need. Add them to a newsletter only if they agreed to one.
This rule is a starting point, not a standard. Change the limits to fit your sales cycle, and write the rule on the form so that everyone at the stand grades the same way. If two people grade the same visitor differently, the rule is too vague, not the people.
Paper, screen or card scan
| Form (paper or screen) | Business card scan | |
|---|---|---|
| Fields | You decide every field and question | Name, company, email and phone come from the card |
| Typing | Someone types it in after the show, and handwriting gets lost | Nobody types the contact details |
| Signal and battery | Paper needs neither | Needs a phone and, today in the browser, a connection |
| Conversation detail | Whatever you write | One spoken sentence, transcribed |
Paper is a fine choice for a small stand, if somebody types it in within a day. It is the only one of the two that works with no signal and no battery.
There is a printable one-page version of the form above, with the five questions and the A, B, C rule, on the exhibition lead capture form guide. It prints on one A4 page.
Followbooth as the card-scan version of this form
Followbooth reads the card with the phone camera (name, company, email and phone). You hold a button and say what you talked about, and the note is transcribed and saved with the lead. The brochure then goes to the visitor by WhatsApp or email. Each lead gets a company brief, an A, B or C grade and a suggested way to open the call.
Followbooth fits when the card and one sentence are enough. If your qualification needs many fixed questions, a paper form or your CRM’s own form may suit you better.