Every contact needs one accountable owner, a next action, a due date and the notes that explain why. Agree the sales and marketing handoff rules before the event, and report any contact without an owner as an exception.
A great booth conversation can still go nowhere if nobody knows who should follow up. Ownership is what turns a list into action.
Checklist
What every contact needs
- One accountable owner
- A clear next action
- A due date
- Relevant notes
- The correct account
- The appropriate sequence or workflow
What a handoff note contains
The person receiving the contact was not at the booth. The note should let them write a relevant message without asking anyone.
What happened
- Where the contact was met
- What was discussed
- What they care about
What was agreed
- What the team promised
- The next step agreed
- Who else may need to take part
Constraints
- Timing the contact asked for
- Privacy or regional limits
- Anything sensitive to avoid
Reference
Handoff rules to agree before the event
| Question | Decide |
|---|---|
| What qualifies as sales-ready? | The signals, such as a demo request or an agreed next step |
| Which contacts stay with marketing? | Early-stage contacts and those with unclear timing |
| How fast must sales accept or reject a lead? | A response window for each tier |
| Who follows up when ownership is unclear? | A named fallback owner |
| What must be present before handoff? | The minimum record and the handoff note |
| How do rejected leads return to nurture? | A route back with the reason recorded |
By role
Who owns what
Prepare and route the data
- Clean, match and tag contacts
- Route by the agreed rules
- Run the exception report and the nurture track
Carry out the conversations
- Accept or reject within the agreed window
- Update the status and next action
- Return unready contacts with a reason
Worksheet
Worksheet: event lead handoff checklist
| Contact and company | |
| Owner | |
| Where and how we met | |
| What they care about | |
| What we promised | |
| Agreed next step | |
| Due date |
For pipeline handoffs and meeting booking, see the Exhibitor's Pipeline Guide and the Exhibitor Meetings Guide.
Frequently asked questions
Who owns event follow-up?
Every contact should have one accountable owner. Marketing usually prepares and routes the data and sales or account owners usually have the conversations.
How should sales and marketing divide event follow-up?
Agree before the event what makes a lead sales-ready, which contacts stay with marketing, how fast sales must respond and who is the fallback owner.
What is a lead handoff note?
A short summary of where the contact was met, what they care about, what was promised and the agreed next step, so the owner can write a relevant message without asking anyone.