Agents Abroad

Few can sell overseas exhibitors faster than reliable, reputable international agents.
Get the facts before making a move.

By Michael J. Flynn and Linda Kephart Flynn

When Art Weldy plans expositions in foreign countries, he often turns to local agents for assistance in selling booth space. But the President of Exposition Planning + Products Inc. in Pittsburgh, PA, notes an important exception. For the 35-year-old International Air Cargo Exposition, to be held October 1996 in the United Arab Emirates, Weldy says, "Our contact there is the Sheik (Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum). You can't have a better in than that."

Indeed. Finding the inside track beyond North American boundaries is the reason many show managers turn to international agents. Whether you're expanding international participation in a domestic event, launching a lucrative country pavilion or bolstering booth sales for a venue outside the United States, you need someone who has the market access and selling skills that can make your show a success.

From Brussels to Bangkok, Riyadh to Rio de Janeiro, these independent sales representatives can put their contacts, language skills and local business acumen to work for you. But you need to know how to find them, what they bring to the table and how to create a mutually beneficial working relationship.

Market intelligence
"When establishing a new show, we secure the venue and find the agents who can make it happen," says Betty Webb, Senior Vice President at Bobbin Blenheim, the Columbia, SC, organizer of international apparel and textile shows. "We've got agents in Taiwan, China, Italy, Latin America and many other areas where we can sell exhibitors."

An international agent's most immediate advantage is an existing command of the language and business customs of your target market. They know what to say and when and how to say it, and they can communicate directly with the people who make the buying decisions.

"Anything you can do to have an in-country presence, to speak to companies on their own terms, in their own language, is invaluable," notes Betsy Hoch, Exposition Manager for the Massachusetts Dental Society. Formerly Director of International Exhibit Sales for the Food Marketing Institute, Hoch says, "You can print all the native-language brochures and direct mail pieces you want, but face-to-face direct selling is where you'll find success -- especially when it comes to an international clientele."

Then there's the cachet -- and marketing advantage -- you gain by having overseas agents sell your event. "Having exposure in another country is invaluable," says Denyse Selesnick, President of Woodland Hills, CA-based International Trade Information, a show management company specializing in Latin American events. "Domestic exhibitors love it when you offer an international presence. It puts your show in another class, which makes it that much more important to sell your event in the best way possible."

Search committee
Recognizing the need for an international agent and finding one are two different things. Fortunately, sources for international agents abound. Ask sister organizations abroad. Seek out trade publications, other show managers and contacts you've developed at U.S. or Canadian events. And poll your existing exhibitors, a growing number of whom have international experience.

"It all goes back to networking, networking, networking," says Weldy. "You need to find someone others have worked with and had good results from."

Such research can be challenging, especially if it involves boundary-crossing communication. "The Japanese, for example, won't come out and say anything bad, so you have to read between the lines," Weldy warns. "They may say, 'Yes, we know that person, but we don't have much to do with him.' They'll be courteous; if they're doubly courteous it should be doubly alarming."

Embassies can also be a source of agent contacts. Most countries are represented in Washington, DC. American embassies, as well as the American Chamber of Commerce (represented in most major cities), also can help.

In addition, consider the Agent Distributor Service (ADS), a U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) program that helps firms find qualified overseas representatives, agents or distributors. The ADS assists in devising cover letters, brochures and pricing guides, which are then distributed to commercial offices of appropriate U.S. embassies. The embassy then conducts a personalized search to select promising agent prospects and reports on up to six qualified, reputable and interested candidates. ADS charges $250 per report.

Also available from the DOC is the Foreign Traders Index, part of the National Trade Data Bank. Current international agent contacts can be accessed through CD-ROM subscriptions ($360 a year or $40 for the most recent month) and in libraries classified as federal depositories.

One nearly fail-safe search method, according to Weldy, is to choose your site, form a host committee and solicit that group's help in your screening process. "Besides helping to plan spouse tours, banquets and other events, the committee becomes a well-connected group that can research reputable agents," he says. "They will serve as your local eyes and ears better than you ever could."

Screening candidates
Once you've narrowed the pool, ask international agents about their track records, other clients they work for and who they know in your industry. While they may not reveal proprietary information about clients, ask them to describe business increases from their territory, market penetration they've achieved and similar success indicators.

Also consider meeting the agent in person. "Bringing someone to the United States can be expensive," Weldy says. "But these are the people who will sell your show, and it's always better to deal with them face-to-face, especially the first time you've worked together."

If all this sounds like too much trouble, but you still want an international agent, consider using a middleman. Companies such as World Access Corp., in Wellesley, MA, evaluate a show's needs, contract with an agent and handle the day-to-day details of the agent/organizer relationship.

"Our service relieves the burden from organizers, so they don't have to deal with individual exhibitors until they actually confirm the space," explains Managing Director Robert Lapides. "Much of our work is with trade organizations that are too busy trying to promote themselves domestically, but they still want an international presence."

Among World Access clients is the Kansas City, MO-based Business Technology Association (BTA), which contracted with the group after its joint-show sponsor, the Business Products Industry Association (BPIA) of Alexandria, VA, succeeded in attracting international exhibitors.

"BPIA went from four or five international exhibitors to about 50 in three years, and they're expecting 60 or 70 for their next show," says Colin Findley, BTA's Convention Manager. "World Access has connections we don't have. Our sales staff can't negotiate booth sales in languages like Korean or Japanese, and World Access has a proven in with exhibitors.

"The hardest part has been letting go of the sales control. But I'm comfortable with them, and we communicate every two weeks at least. Although we'd have some success doing this on our own, it would be limited compared with what they can do for us," Findley says.

Expense report
International representation sounds great. But what will it cost? The answer depends on who you're working with, where they're selling, the nature of your target industry and the negotiations that take place. Arrangements range from base plus commission to a percentage of the gross, but straight commission is by far the most common compensation.

"Commissions range from 10 to 30 percent," explains Lapides at World Access. "Negotiating the commission depends on a variety of factors, like how well-established the show is and how it's marketed."

Several show organizers follow a commission format, but structure it on a sliding scale. "At one show, the agents got 15 percent for every new exhibitor the first year, 10 percent the second year the exhibitor signed up and 5 percent the third year," says Weldy. "After that it becomes a house account with no commission, because we figured the amount of selling involved was minimal."

Commission details also vary if you employ a middleman. In BTA's arrangement with World Access, for instance, the association pays an up-front fee to cover advertising and mailing costs. Actual booth sales are handled on a commission basis, between 15 and 30 percent, Findley says.

Regardless of the finances, your relationship with an international agent should appear in a contract. The more you have in writing, the fewer disagreements you'll have later. "I suggest spelling out everything," advises Weldy. "Not so you're understood, but so you're not misunderstood in what you expect."

Among the contract details should be: when you expect the work to begin, the size of the prospect universe, how prospects will be contacted, when and how invoices will be submitted, how expenses will be handled, the expected review process, territorial exclusivity rights, clauses specifying adherence to U.S. law, confidentiality concerns and the agreement's termination dates.

Your agent contract might also include non-compete clauses. Weldy once employed an agent who started planning a competing show. "It was certainly entrepreneurial of him, but you have to be careful you're not paying to put the competition in place."

Lapides believes the competition question must be taken on a case-by-case basis. "If your show's in the States, the agent's in Hong Kong and he sells a similar show in Spain, is that really competition? You have to put parameters on what's acceptable, but they have to be reasonable parameters," Lapides says.

Absentee management
Now comes the challenge of managing from afar. From the start, you must view your agents' efforts realistically. It's going to take time before they produce the exhibitors you expect. "When we worked to set up our agent system, they told us up front, 'You're not going to be happy with us the first year,'" Findley recalls. "Four or five new exhibitors the first year won't have an impact, but 60 in three or four will. We know it takes time to develop interest."

Such thinking doesn't come easily among show organizers accustomed to speedy sales. As International Trade's Selesnick says, "Patience is not the long suit of U.S. business. Unfortunately, international business often doesn't work that way. Relationships take time and effort to pay off."

Meanwhile, make sure your agents have the information they need to sell for you. That means putting them on exhibitor and press release mailing lists, contacting them on a regular basis and listening to their concerns.

"The most effective way to manage is to make sure you respond quickly to your agents," says Webb at Bobbin Blenheim. "We update them every month. They're in the field, but they have to know what's going on in the company, the show and the industry."

Similarly, you need to keep tabs on their progress. Daily call reports, the staple of inside-sales forces, may not be realistic. Focus instead on specific goals and objectives and a workable way to gauge progress.

"Lots of times I feel I'm dealing more with my agents -- imparting ideas, motivating them and sending information -- than with my clients," admits Webb. "But that's OK, because I'm a multiplier, and so are they, so I put my effort there."

Finally, for all their advantages, know that agents may not always be your best avenue to build international exhibitor sales. Joint ventures with established foreign show organizers, for example, could make agent sales efforts redundant. Perhaps your extensive expansion plans justify a full-time sales office abroad. Or your ability to attract and capitalize on sister-association synergy might present commission-free promotional opportunities, allowing that money to be spent elsewhere in your budget.

Despite such considerations, most show organizers who venture abroad find international agents helpful, culturally enlightening and financially productive. Says Bobbin Blenheim's Webb, "The advantages far outweigh the disadvantages."