Safety magazine | Interview

Returning from the 2024 edition of Safety Expo in Bergamo and the Preventica trade fair in Lyon, we would like to make a few remarks on a question that we are asked very often: Is it still worth participating in trade fairs? We asked this question to Martina Pieropan, Export Sales Manager of Coval Safety. Here is what she told us: There is no doubt that organising an event such as a trade fair and managing several days off-site involves a major commitment, both in terms of costs and time, and many companies are no longer willing to take on this burden without seeing a tangible feedback in the immediate future. In recent years, due to the various economic crises and a pandemic that has totally changed economic and social structures, the approach to this type of event has also changed considerably: some have switched to remote meetings with customers and suppliers, organising online calls and meetings, thus reducing expenses and eliminating distance through technology. But, in my turn, I want to ask a question: are we really sure that what at first sight seem to be advantages, are not in the long run counterproductive in the relationship with the customer?. How important is face-to-face contact with distributors and users? I would say it is essential. The efforts to participate in a trade fair, which takes months of planning and preparation, always lead to one of the fundamental things in the relationship with one's customers: real knowledge of the problems they face every day. This happens through listening, confidence and empathy that we know how to demonstrate in contexts of mutual exchange. All of this is undoubtedly an added value, a way of offering the customer excellence in expertise and a strong and reliable pre-sales and after-sales service . Safety Expo and Preventica: Review of the past few days in the field of safety The days spent at Safety Expo and Preventica were precious days, where we were able to present our product families and all our new articles live . Not only that, we met a dense network of agents, distributors and customers, who gave us different points of view on the common denominator of Safety at Work. It is precisely in thedaily experience of each of them that we find inspiration and energy to study even better PPE and that we understand the course to follow to fill certain gaps, not only in products, but also in after-sales management. The importance of warehouse management, the need to manage orders in a lean and fast way, the need for ad hoc training to train personnel on the correct use of protective clothing at work, are issues that especially with direct contact and live communication can come to the surface and be handled competently. In our case, this was also possible thanks to the presence at the fair of an experienced and ready-to-listen sales team. We can therefore say that, even if participation in trade fairs does not immediately guarantee certain orders, it does however allow us to consolidate relationships with companies, building their loyalty and showing them live what we can offer them, and this, in the long run, is priceless. While waiting for the next trade fair, click here to discover all Coval Safety products.

Interview

Trade fairs: do they still have any value in the Safety market?

Coval Safety: strong roots, big wings

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