Trade shows are a great opportunity to get in front of potential buyers and network within the industry. But, you may unconsciously have fallen into bad habits, which can affect the effectiveness of your trade show participation. Sales professional Don Lee has noticed five common bad habits among trade show vendors, and he addresses them in a recent blog post. Read on for a few examples from his post:

Tardiness. Showing up late to a trade show doesn’t give others a very good first impression of you or your company. Each minute you aren’t in attendance is more time for buyers to spend with your competitors.

Not allowing enough time for set up. You never know what can and will go wrong before a trade show, whether it’s travel delays or glitches setting up your booth. This is why you need to give yourself lots of time for arrival and set up.

Sitting still. Don’t get too comfortable standing or sitting–you need to engage with attendees. “It amazes me that companies will spend thousands of dollars sending salespeople to attend trade shows and they don’t engage with attendees,” Lee writes, noting that he often sees salespeople staring at their phones or laptops rather than interacting with visitors. On a similar note, Lee warns salespeople against relying only on their displays to attract people to their booths. You should be up and actively engaging passersby. “You have to think of attendees as cattle – you have to drive them home through the open range,” he adds.

These are just three habits that you may unknowingly have picked up, and they could be sabotaging your efforts at trade shows. With a few simple adjustments, you can make sure you’re getting the most out of these opportunities and heading home with quality leads!