Matchmaking Meetings

If you have received a user name & password (by virtue of having registered as an Exhibitor at the Trade Show, Visitor to the Trade Show or a Conference Delegate), click here (link to come shortly) to access the on-line Matchmaking Meeting Programme.

Click here to register for the International Mohair Summit.

One of the main objectives of the International Mohair Summit is the facilitation of trade opportunities and this is achieved by providing a constructive environment for business interaction.

Besides the opportunity to participate in the Trade Show, Conference, Flock and Stud Breeders Competitions, Networking & social opportunities the Facilitators would like to encourage ALL participants to participate in the official Matchmaking Meetings Programme.

All confirmed delegates and exhibitors will automatically be profiled into the Matchmaking Meetings Programme and receive a username and password to access the online matchmaking system from 1st August 2009.

Within your online account, you can edit your profile, view matched participant profiles attending the event and the ability to select who you want to meet. Track your meeting requests through your online diary.

More about the Business Matchmaking Programme and how it works

What is Business Matchmaking?
The business matchmaking program creates a proactive, pre show platform enabling conference delegates, exhibitors, key speakers, pre-registered visitors and sponsors to view profiles of participants and select who they want to meet at the event.

As soon as you are confirmed to attend the event, the business matchmaking team will profile your company and provide access to the online matchmaking program.

Our business matchmaking team works 8-12 weeks before the event by pre-profiling all confirmed participants creating individual matching reports, encouraging meeting selections and pushing meeting requests into confirmed interactions that take place at the event.

In addition, the onsite matchmaking team assists you with your meeting arrangements.

Benefits of Business Matchmaking
This proactive program enables you to be proactive before arriving at the event maximising the networking experience!

Researching through event profiles, you can select exactly who you want to meet, send a meeting request and confirm all your meetings that take place at convenient times for the meeting invitee.

Online diaries allow you to track your meeting requests in a real-time environment providing up to date information through your private online matchmaking account.

How the Business Matchmaking Program will work:

Depending on when you confirm your attendance, you will be emailed a username and password from August to access the online matchmaking and meeting account.

Once logged in, you can view all your matches as well as search on company names and keyword searches

View the profiles and select who you want to meet

Ensure a strong meeting value proposition as this increases your confirmation rates!

Your meeting invitee will be emailed your meeting requests - they will accept, decline or propose a new time

Track the status of your meetings via your online diary

All confirmed meetings include the contact details of the other participant - please re-confirm your meetings by e-mailing your invitee

Tips

Once you receive your access details, please check your profile is correct. It will be viewed by all other companies and the target industry sectors are used to generate your matchmaking report.

Within your profile - check your time availability. Meetings will be scheduled in these times selected

The earlier you access your matchmaking account, update your profile and start selecting who you want to meet - the more meeting confirmations will result

As new delegates, speakers, sponsors, exhibitors and pre-registered visitors are confirmed to attend, they will be profiled into this program so access your account on an on-going basis to view new matches and companies to meet

Personal Service
We have a team of matchmakers to assist you with your meetings. We are available on the below email and telephone details.

Please contact us if you have any questions,

Thank you and we look forward to assisting you!

Best Regards

The Business Matchmaking Team

info@businessmatchmaking.co.za

+27-84-244-4407

The business matchmaking team is based in South Africa and will attend to your query as quickly as possible.

The Outsmart Marketing Business Matchmaking team is contracted by the organiser to provide the matchmaking service. There is no charge or commissions for the business matchmaking service and all interactions are confidential.

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A guide for International Exhibitors on maximising networking at the event

Experience Exhibitions! A Guide for International Exhibitors

Welcome to South Africa
We look forward to assist you with your exhibition experience. Your key objectives in exhibiting will be to meet possible business partners. You will meet these partners within the exhibition hall over the show days.

These visitors will be attracted to the exhibition through two methods:

Advertising of the exhibition in newspapers, street pole adverts, industry magazines
Through the business matchmaking program. Once you are confirmed to attend the exhibition, you need to supply us with information on your company so we can invite the right partners to interact with you on your stand. Please see the form at the end of this document to complete so we can match you effectively

Hot Tips to assist you at the South African Exhibition

When in Africa, do businesses like an African?

South African business people prefer an informal business style. They like to network, "chat" and develop an understanding of you, your company and your products
Most South African’s that visit an exhibition do not like formal meetings - they prefer not to be placed in a pressurizing sales situation
These visitors rarely finalise a deal onsite. They may express interest, request more information, have a few questions, browse and make an un-pressurized decision after the visit to the show
Post show follow up is very important and will seal a professional impression of your company.

How best to communicate with South African Visitors.
More than posters on your stand

Make your stand visually appealing. Colour, interesting pictures, examples of products, plasma screens with product information, case studies.

People do business with people,

Friendly, smiling, inviting attitude on the stand.
Sitting behind your laptop for 3 days will not attract visitors into your space.
Presence at your stand on all show days is compulsory. The right partner could walk past your stand, see no representation and be left with a bad perception of your company.

Business Matchmaking
The new concept of business matchmaking is one activity that starts months before the exhibition. The matchmaking team work with confirmed exhibitors, understanding your business, profiling your company and identifying what target markets you want to meet at the exhibition.

The earlier you confirm your participation as an exhibitor, the longer the time line for the matchmaking team to invite your target market.

How you can assist

Confirm your participation early so the matchmaking team can help you!
Ensure you tell the matchmaking team about your product, service and the types of companies you want to meet at the exhibition so we can profile you correctly.
Log into your private matchmaking account as soon as you get the login details. You need to select who you want to meet!!

Participate, interact, network!!

The conference breaks are held within the exhibition hall. Use these 'free networking' opportunities by being proactive.
Stand on the outside of your stand and speak to people - don't let them walk past! Push a pamphlet into their hands, tell them about a promotion, special price - BIG value proposition!
They may not interact with you at the show but they will remember your company and your energy!

Fresh Sales

Don't let the sales teams sit on the stand, they must stand and interact all the time
If the show days are too long, revolve your staff keeping them fresh!

More about the business matchmaking program

The business matchmaking program creates a proactive, pre show platform enabling conference delegates, exhibitors, key speakers, pre-registered visitors and sponsors to view profiles of participants and select who they want to meet at the event.

The process starts 8 weeks before the show dates and the business matchmaking team actively pre-profile all participants creates individual matching reports, encourages meeting selections and pushes meeting requests into confirmed interactions that take place at the event.

The onsite matchmaking team assists you with your meeting arrangements

You will be emailed a username and password in June to access the online matchmaking and meeting account.
Once logged in, you can view all your matches as well as search on company names and keyword searches
View the profiles and select who you want to meet
Ensure a strong meeting value proposition as this increases your confirmation rates!
Your meeting invitee will be emailed your meeting requests – they will accept, decline or propose a new time
Track the status of your meetings via your online diary
All confirmed meetings include the contact details of the other participant - please re-confirm your meetings by e-mailing your invitee

Tips to make this work for you!

Once you receive your access details, please check your profile is correct. It will be viewed by all other companies and the target industry sectors are used to generate your matchmaking report.
The earlier you access your matchmaking account, update your profile and start selecting who you want to meet - the more meeting confirmations will result
As new delegates, speakers, sponsors, exhibitors and pre-registered visitors are confirmed to attend, they will be profiled into this program so access your account on an on-going basis to view new matches and companies to meet

The business matchmaking team is here to assist you!
Contact us on info@businessmatchmaking.co.za or call 084-244-4407

Business Matchmaking Information Required:

Your Company Name
Your Contact Name
Your Contact E-mail
Your Contact Telephone Number
Your Company website
What does your company do? – 50 words
Why are you coming to South Africa?
What products do you want to sell/distribute in South Africa?
What industries do you want to meet?

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A guide for South African Exhibitors on maximising networking at the event

Experience Exhibitions! A Guide For Exhibitors

Trade Exhibitions are focused on specific industries and selected target markets - bringing together top players in the industry within a conference and exhibition.

Given the exclusive target markets at these events:

How will your company maximize your exposure at a trade exhibition/event?

How can you increase brand exposure, brand interaction and guarantee lead generation?

Step 1
Be Proactive!

Being niche industry events, exhibitors need to be proactive to get their brand, products and services recognised by the targeted delegates. Exhibiting offers opportunities to show case your company; however your company is seen with 99 other exhibitors with the same objective

Why Exhibit?

This is the first question - why are you exhibiting?

There are a number of objectives and these needs to be clarified and confirmed as soon as you sign the exhibition contract

Promoting your company image through effective branding of your stand and products
An opportunity to launch new Products/Services through the exhibition
An opportunity to build your own database of potential clients
Demonstration of your products and or services
Strengthen exhibiting relationships with existing customers at the exhibition
Target, test and develop new markets
Conduct market research
Network with industry peers

It is incredibility important to identify which objectives you want to achieve from the list above. Based on your selection, your stand design, the company representatives on the stand and your entire measurability is linked to these objectives.

Step 2 - Making the exhibition work for you
The exhibition organisers spend a large percentage of the costs in their marketing activities.

The majority of this spend is within weeks building up to the exhibition. Newspaper adverts, PR, street pole adverts are placed in strategic points to attract the target market to the exhibition.

The new concept of business matchmaking is one activity that starts months before the exhibition.

The matchmaking team work with confirmed exhibitors, understanding your business, profiling your company and identifying what target markets you want to meet at the exhibition. The earlier you confirm your participation as an exhibitor, the longer the time line for the matchmaking team to invite your target market.

How you can assist?

Confirm your participation early so the matchmaking team can help you!
If your participation is to push your brand and product awareness to existing clients, invite them to the exhibition.
If you don't have the resources, e-mail your wish list to the business matchmaking team who will personally invite your clients to visit your stand at the exhibition

Make your stand exciting

Run a competition, invest in great coffee, run a show promotion - do something to pull visitors onto your stand through dynamic activities
If your sales team sits behind their laptop for 3 days, visitors will not walk into your space and interact with you!

Participate, interact, network!!

If there is a conference along side the exhibition, many organisers ensure that the conference breaks are held within the exhibition hall. Use these 'free networking' opportunities by being proactive.
Stand on the outside of your stand and speak to people - don't let them walk past! Push a pamphlet into their hands, tell them about a promotion, special price - BIG value proposition!
They may not interact with you at the show but they will remember your company and your energy!

Fresh Sales

Don't let the sales teams sit on the stand, they must stand and interact all the time
If the show days are too long, revolve your staff keeping them fresh!

About the business matchmaking program
The business matchmaking program creates a proactive, pre show platform enabling conference delegates, exhibitors, key speakers, pre-registered visitors and sponsors to view profiles of participants and select who they want to meet at the event.

The process starts 8 weeks before the show dates and the business matchmaking team actively pre-profile all participants creates individual matching reports, encourages meeting selections and pushes meeting requests into confirmed interactions that take place at the event.

The onsite matchmaking team assists participants with their meeting arrangements:

You will be emailed a username and password in June to access the online matchmaking and meeting account.
Once logged in, you can view all your matches as well as search on company names and keyword searches
View the profiles and select who you want to meet
Ensure a strong meeting value proposition as this increases your confirmation rates!
Your meeting invitee will be emailed your meeting requests - they will accept, decline or propose a new time
Track the status of your meetings via your online diary
All confirmed meetings include the contact details of the other participant - please re-confirm your meetings by e-mailing your invitee

Tips to make this work for you!

Once you receive your access details, please check your profile is correct. It will be viewed by all other companies and the target industry sectors are used to generate your matchmaking report.
Within your profile - check your time availability. Meetings will be scheduled in these times selected
The earlier you access your matchmaking account, update your profile and start selecting who you want to meet - the more meeting confirmations will result
As new delegates, speakers, sponsors, exhibitors and pre-registered visitors are confirmed to attend, they will be profiled into this program so access your account on an on-going basis to view new matches and companies to meet

The business matchmaking team is here to assist you!
Contact us on info@businessmatchmaking.co.za or call 084-244-4407

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until the start of the International Mohair Summit

Promotional Video

download promotional video »

12 January 2009

Karoo Entrepreneurs Wanted

Businesses and entrepreneurs in the Karoo will cash in on unprecedented opportunities presented by the International Mohair Summit and Festival in November this year, but need to register as suppliers to the landmark event.

22 October 2008

A third of the expo sold out! Conference topic available.

34% of available exhibition space at the International Mohair Summit has already been taken, with the Summit just over a year away.

09 January 2009

Ikwezi Mayor says summit will provide opportunities

Ikwezi Municipality Mayor Sizwe Mngwevu said while it was probable that Mohair worn on the streets of Paris or Zurich, was grown in the region, the local community who produced it, was not fully benefiting.

17 September 2008

Premier's Message

The 6.3 million people of our beautiful province warmly welcome you to be a part of this dynamic trade opportunity and to experience the unforgettable beauty