Keptrow

Trade Show Lead Form Template (Free, Printable)

By Keptrow · · 6 min read

At a busy booth you meet 40 people a day. By the evening, the business cards in your pocket have lost everything that mattered: who wanted samples, who asked for a price, who was only collecting catalogs.

A lead form fixes that, if it's short enough to fill in while the buyer is still standing there. Below is a free form you can copy or print, built for exhibitors who sell products to buyers in other countries: factories, wholesalers, and small brands. Every field on it is something you'll use in your first follow-up.

The form: 12 fields, about 30 seconds

Fill in the top half with the buyer, or staple their card over it. Fill in the bottom half yourself, right after they walk away.

About the buyer

  1. Name: one field, the way they introduced themselves
  2. Company
  3. Country: it changes the price basis, the shipping and often the language you'll use
  4. Email and Phone / WhatsApp
  5. Prefers: ☐ Email ☐ WhatsApp. Ask; don't guess.

About the conversation (you write this part)

  1. Interested in: the item, model or code they looked at
  2. Rough quantity: what they said, even if it's vague ("2 shops", "a container", "test order")
  3. Wants next: ☐ Price / quote ☐ Samples ☐ Catalog ☐ Call ☐ Nothing yet
  4. One line about them, starting with "you": "you are restocking two shops before Christmas"
  5. Promised to send, and by when: "price list for 4 designs, Monday"
  6. Grade: ☐ A ☐ B ☐ C (see below)
  7. Met on (date) and Talked to (your staff member's name, if you're more than one at the booth)

That's it. If a field won't change what you send next, leave it off.

Copy-ready version

Paste this into Word or Google Docs and print 2 per A4 page, or 4 per page on card stock:

TRADE SHOW LEAD — [Your company] — [Show name, booth no.]

Name ____________________   Company ____________________
Country _________________   Email ______________________
Phone / WhatsApp _________   Prefers:  [ ] Email  [ ] WhatsApp

Interested in __________________________  Rough qty ___________
Wants next:  [ ] Quote  [ ] Samples  [ ] Catalog  [ ] Call  [ ] Nothing yet

"You..." ________________________________________________________
Promised to send ______________________________  by ____________

Grade:  [ ] A   [ ] B   [ ] C        Met on ________   Talked to ________

How to grade a lead in 5 seconds

Grade before the next visitor arrives, while you still remember the conversation:

  • A: a clear project, a quantity or a date. "We're opening a third store in March."
  • B: real interest but early: good questions, no timeline.
  • C: picked up a catalog, scanned a badge, chatted briefly.

The grade decides how much follow-up each lead gets. Our trade show follow-up plan gives A leads 7 touches over 90 days, B leads 6 and C leads 4.

The one field people skip: "you..."

Name, company and email are on the card already. What the card can't hold is why this person stopped.

Write one short line that starts with "you":

  • "you need a private-label version for your online store"
  • "you asked if we can ship to Rotterdam by August"
  • "you liked the blue glaze but the MOQ was too high"

Starting with "you" forces you to write about the buyer, not your product. And it becomes the first sentence of your follow-up email, which is what makes your message different from the ten other exhibitors who write "Great to meet you at the show."

Paper, phone or badge scanner?

Use whatever you'll actually fill in during a rush. Each has a weak spot:

Method Good at Weak spot Fix
Paper form on a clipboard Fast, works with no signal, buyers can see you're taking them seriously Gets lost; has to be typed up Photograph every form at the end of the day
Business card + note on the back Quick for walk-ups No space; context gets lost Write the "you" line and the grade on the back
Badge scanner (from the organizer) Captures contact details instantly Usually no notes, and it may cost extra Use the scanner for contact details and the paper form for the conversation
Online form on your phone Data is already typed Slow to fill in mid-conversation Fill it in right after the buyer leaves, not during

Many exhibitors end up combining two of these: scan or take the card for the contact details, and use the form for everything the card can't hold.

The same evening: 10 minutes that save the week

  1. Count your forms and cards. Put the A grades on top.
  2. Type each one into one spreadsheet, one row per lead, using the same 12 fields as columns.
  3. Add a Next follow-up date for each row (for example, tomorrow for A and B, the day after for C).
  4. Send Day 1 messages to A leads before you go to sleep, or first thing tomorrow.

If you type the form into a sheet with the same columns, nothing gets lost in the move. That's why the form above uses the same fields as our tracker.

Want the spreadsheet already set up? The free Lead Follow-Up Tracker has these columns and works out the next follow-up date for you. The free version covers 5 leads with the Day 1 and Day 7 steps. It works in Google Sheets and LibreOffice and is built for Excel with standard formulas only.

If a buyer asks for a price at the booth

Tick "Quote" and write down what they need priced: the item, the quantity and where it ships to. Then send the quote within a day or two, with a validity date and clear terms. Our guide to the export quotation format lists what to include, and the free Export Quote Template builds a one-page quote. It works in Google Sheets and LibreOffice and is built for Excel with standard formulas only.

Common mistakes

  • Too many fields. A form that asks for budget, authority and decision process doesn't get filled in at a busy booth. Twelve short fields is already plenty.
  • Asking for the company website. It's on the card or in their email signature. Spend the space on the "you" line.
  • No grade. Without it, you'll send the same slow email to your best lead and to someone who wanted a free pen.
  • Forgetting what you promised. "I'll send the price list" is easy to say 30 times a day. Write it down, with a date.
  • Waiting a week to type it up. By then your notes don't make sense to you either.
  • Adding everyone to your newsletter. A buyer who asked for a price list asked for a price list. If you want to add them to marketing emails, ask separately and keep a note. Rules on this differ by country.

FAQ

What should a trade show lead form include?

Name, company, country, email and phone or WhatsApp; what they were interested in and roughly how many; what they want next; one line about the conversation; what you promised to send and by when; a grade; and the date you met.

How many fields should a trade show lead form have?

As few as you'll actually use in the follow-up. The form above has 12 short ones, and half are tick boxes or one or two words.

Should the buyer fill in the form or should I?

Let them write their contact details, or staple their card. Write the conversation part yourself, right after they leave. It's faster, and it's your notes that make the follow-up good.

Is there a Word version?

Copy the form above into Word or Google Docs and it keeps its layout. It's plain text on purpose, so it prints well in black and white.

What do I do with the forms after the show?

Type them into one spreadsheet the same evening, grade first, and follow a fixed schedule. Our trade show follow-up plan has the schedule and email lines you can copy.

Free tools from Keptrow

Questions? Email keptrow@proton.me.