Pre-show LinkedIn outreach,how we actually ran it

Reaching out before an overseas show rarely brings back as many replies as you would hope.

The 3D AI team we worked with at VivaTech 2026 was no different.

We researched 573 companies — VivaTech exhibitors plus companies based in Paris — and sent LinkedIn connection requests to 291 of them.

59 accepted and 4 replied. In the end three teams were met in Paris.

On the numbers, 291 messages produced three meetings.

In practice, most of the time went into the stage before any message was sent.

It started with 573 companies

We began with VivaTech exhibitors and companies worth meeting in Paris during the show.

This team builds a 3D AI product that cuts the time between design and production.

So we did not only look at fashion companies.

Jewellery and eyewear, where there is a design and production process and that time turns into cost, went on the list too.

Having looked at all 573, we then settled which ones to contact first.

291 people were actually contacted

Finding the company did not mean the connection request went out.

We checked again whether there was a genuine overlap with the product, and worked out who inside the company to write to.

Within the same company, business development and engineering are looking at different things.

With both the company and the person settled, 291 LinkedIn connection requests went out.

59 of the 291 accepted

Of the 291 requests, 59 were accepted.

Some people do not check LinkedIn often, and some simply do not accept requests from people they do not know.

So we did not read the acceptance rate on its own as a verdict on the targeting.

We looked at which companies the acceptances came from, and which roles were responding.

4 of the 59 replied

Of the 59 connections, 4 replied.

At that point we led with why we wanted to meet during VivaTech rather than a long explanation of the product.

Whether they were attending, what there would be to talk about, and whether the dates worked — kept short.

Outreach before a show is less about explaining the product online and more about getting a time to meet in person.

Three of them became meetings

Once a reply came in, we matched dates straight away.

Rather than ending with "see you at the show", we settled the day, the time and the place.

That gave three meetings booked before the team flew to Paris.

What happened after each meeting was different

One was a Taiwanese AI fitting startup.

The initial reason to meet was the technical overlap, but in conversation it turned out the data was applied differently.

No follow-up meeting was booked.

An AI eyewear brand went the other way, through to a second meeting.

Its founder had moved from architecture into product design, and understood the problem of cutting design time straight away.

On the original list, both were companies worth meeting.

It was only after meeting them that it became clear which one to take further.

When replies are thin, the message is not the only thing to fix

When replies are thin, the message is usually the first thing to get rewritten.

A different opening line, less product explanation, a different send time.

We do that too.

On this project, though, something else came first.

Which companies had been picked, who inside them had been written to, and whether there was a reason for contacting that person.

When the targeting is off from the start, rewriting the message rarely moves it much.

So alongside the reply rate we kept checking the list and the people behind it.

Same approach, different numbers at MWC

The team we worked with at MWC 2026 looked like this.

Six booth meetings were confirmed on the floor, and five video meetings followed after the trip.

One of those companies requested an NDA.

The 29 business cards collected on site were also worked through right after returning.

Who to send material to, and who to contact again, is easier to sort while it is still fresh.

Outreach that starts before a show does not end with the trip.

After meeting on the floor there is still writing back, sending what was asked for, and booking the next meeting.

If you have already sent outreach, start there

Before building a new list, it is worth going back over the outreach already sent.

Which companies were contacted, who the message went to, whether the connection was made, and whether anyone followed up after a reply.

If it stopped somewhere, that is the place to pick it up.

The full VivaTech project is set out in Will exhibiting at VivaTech get you in front of European customers?.

Choosing who to meet from an exhibitor list is covered in There are hundreds of exhibitors — who should you actually meet?.

What Scailout takes on before and after a show is set out on our exhibitions page.

On this project too, the number of people contacted was never the whole measure.

Which companies were chosen, who was written to, and how far the meetings and the conversations after them went — all of it was tracked alongside.