You’ll hear all year about how crucial The PPAI Expo is for promo firms. It represents make-or-break business for plenty of the industry. But what’s often left out of that conversation is the fact that all that those three days of action don’t mean much if they aren’t followed up by strategic persistence.

Strike while the iron is hot, as they say. Here are a few tips from firms in attendance for following up after The PPAI Expo 2026.

The Personal Beats The Generic Email List

An email list used to work wonders. That was back when people used to get a handful of emails each day. Those days are long gone. Julie Schneiderman, founder and CEO of EcoStiks, says that personalizing a follow-up takes real, legitimate effort now, and it’s worth making choices of who you should connect with in that way.

“Being able to connect with people after an event has become more challenging because emails, with AI and the sheer volume of emails that go out competing for attention, and even with LinkedIn, which can be a beautiful place to connect professionally, there are people who are using it in a spammy way, so people have to sort,” Schneiderman says. “We have changed that follow-up process to focus on quality over quantity and really home in on the 10-20 relationships that we really want to pursue, rather than a generic email list.

We have changed that follow-up process to focus on quality over quantity and really home in on the 10/20 relationships that we really want to pursue, rather than a generic email list.”

Julie Schneiderman

Owner & Founder, EcoStiks

“I’ve been really specific throughout Expo, slowing down and taking notes about who I should be following up with in real time and perhaps others can still get put on an email list,” she adds.

Look For Blind Spots And Fill Gaps

According to Jenna Quaranta, director of sales training and development at HPG, PPAI 100’s No. 4 supplier, a sale is as simple as listening to a customer and observing what is out there. Then you just do the math. What can you tell them about that you know they don’t have and you know they might need?

“Think about customers you want back and think about what you’re not selling those customers,” Quaranta says. “Think about the products you saw and blind spots, and then go have those conversations. Go fill in the gaps. I could come back from Expo thinking about my top three clients and what I saw there that I wasn’t selling them, and I need to talk to them about that. It’s really that simple. I might not need to show them product.”

Think about the products you saw and blind spots and then go have those conversations. Go fill in the gaps.”

Jenna Quaranta

Director of Sales Training and Development, HPG

Follow Up Immediately

Patrick Napurski, president at IDLine, PPAI 100’s No. 84 supplier, emphasizes that if you have a team that you left back home, utilize them in the follow-up process. There’s no rule that says that you have to wait until the event is over to follow up.

“We follow up immediately because we have a team back home,” Napurski says. “We’re not waiting two to three weeks when everyone is filling everyone’s inbox. We had a conversation on the trade floor about what they wanted to move. We reached out to our inside sales rep. He reached back out to us. We already had something to them within an hour and a half. We’re not waiting. Our booth can be an educational piece for a more drawn-out conversation, but if we talk to someone with active needs, we’re not waiting.”

We follow up immediately because we have a team back home.”

Patrick Napurski

President, ID Line

A Visual Element Helps With Follow-Up

A lot of exhibitors like to add a showstopping element to their booth on the trade floor. There are endless ways to stand out, and creativity is welcome at The PPAI Expo. Wayne Cimperman, owner of Vegas Golf, which has a lively and interesting booth and dresses up its exhibiting employees in colorful golf outfits, explains that the follow-up should leverage that memorable aspect. Why let it go to waste? The firm also utilizes the SAGE mobile app to track all of its interested distributors.

“The scan that we get at our show is very important,” Cimperman says. “So, we’ll send a note: ‘Thank you for stopping by our booth.’ And we’ll actually send a little video clip to remind them of our booth and the products we show.

We’ll actually send a little video clip to remind them of our booth and the products we show.

Wayne Cimperman

Owner, Vegas Golf

“If they have any questions, want free virtuals or just want to contact us, they can,” he adds. “Then we wait a week or two to give them time to present to their clients. After that, we’ll follow up again.”