Scan My Badge and Send Me 5 Catalogs... Please

An old friend and business colleague, supplier Jay Busselle from Digital Art Solutions posted a LinkedIn poll question asking why people go to trade shows.

The featured answers were:

• Nothing better to do
• "Scan my badge and send me 5 catalogs"
• Look for new ideas/new products
• Source new vendors/suppliers
• Participate in education/training

I have been to countless trade shows through the years. As I have visited with suppliers, other folks are often seen in the time-honored, trade show ritual of walking up to booths with their badge held out... asking the supplier to: "Scan my badge." It's a common line. Being the rabble-rouser I am, I had to be the one vote for "Scan my badge and send me 5 catalogs" in Jay's poll. As a supplier, Jay has experienced this a few times which is why I believe it was included as an answer... obviously in a tongue and cheek way.

In a time where the cost of catalogs is high and an excessive use of paper is uncool, perhaps it's time to rethink the burden we put on suppliers. This is a big expense for them. I'm not against catalogs. I just think we shouldn't abuse suppliers by asking them for more catalogs than we need.

People also shouldn't ask for catalogs from companies they may never use, simply because they are walking down an aisle past them. Some may feel that's what they are "supposed" to do, but it isn't. It's always been a pet peeve of mine how this whole badge-scanning thing works. Words don't need to be said. It's just implied that if your badge is scanned... you get "something."

Going the other way, it seems some suppliers want to scan your badge for no other reason than the scan. I understand that they want to capture information, which makes sense, but I wonder... how is this valuable? Especially if the "scannee" could care less about the goods or services that supplier offers?