Core conclusions:The 140th Canton Fair exhibition opened on October 15th. As of October 9th, over 196 countries and regions had reported that over 210,000 buyers had completed their pre-registrations. Professional buyers accounted for nearly 80% of these registrations. Letters of invitation for the exhibition should be written using three measurable criteria: the letter should be sent 7 to 14 days before the exhibition begins; the text should consist of no more than 150 English words; and the letter should clearly state both the duration of the exhibition and the specific booth number (or city and date). Only by meeting these requirements can a letter have a chance to be opened and responded to.
1. First, determine the window for sending messages and the three quantitative criteria.
The most common mistake in sending out invitations is choosing the wrong timing. If the invitation is sent 1 to 2 days before the event, buyers’ schedules will already be full. If the invitation is sent one month before the event, the buyers still don’t have any specific plans, and the email will be categorized as “to be considered later.” It’s better to send the invitation 7 to 14 days before the event, because by then, buyers’ schedules are generally settled, and there’s still room for adjustments.
The second point is regarding the length of the email. During the exhibition period, buyers have to handle dozens of emails every day. It’s unlikely that they will read all the emails, which consist of over 150 words in English. The third point relates to the subject line. It’s important for buyers to be able to determine within three seconds whether this email is related to the exhibition or not. Please clearly state the exhibition date and booth number, or at least the city and date. At least two of these details should be included in the subject line.
II. Four essential elements that must be included in the text
| elements | Writing requirements | maximum length |
|---|---|---|
| Verifiable facts | At least two of the following items must be specified: extension date, exhibition venue, and booth number. | 1 row |
| Product orientation | Only list 2 to 3 models or categories that are related to the other party’s business. Do not include the entire catalog. | 2 to 3 lines |
| requests for appointments | Provide two specific time periods for the other party to choose from. Do not use the phrase “when it’s convenient to talk”. | 1 row |
| The next step towards lower barriers | Table of Contents: Choose either the PDF file, sample number, or pre-registration code. | 1 row |
Among the four elements, the third one is the most easily overlooked. Writing something like “If you come to the booth, we can talk” essentially means there’s no real request being made. On the other hand, writing something like “October 16th at 2 PM or October 17th at 10 AM, I’ll be waiting for you in Hall 9.2, Section B. Which time slot works best for you?” allows the buyer to simply respond with either a yes or an no. Reducing the cost of responding is the most practical aspect of creating effective invitation messages.
III. Two types of letter templates: one for existing customers and another for new buyers
Template 1: For old customers with regular transactions.The subject line should read “Meeting at Canton Fair October 15-19 / Booth X.X.X”. The main text consists of four sentences: The first sentence describes the specifics of the previous interaction (which quotation, which model, what issues involved); the second sentence indicates what new items were brought along this time (new models, new certifications, new pricing structures); the third sentence lists two possible meeting times; the fourth sentence includes a product catalog or updated quotes, along with the note “If you need other models, please send back a message. I will prepare samples in advance.”
Template 2: For pre-registered buyers who have never been contacted before.The subject line should read: “Canton Fair, October 15-19 / Supplier from [city], [your category]”. The body of the text consists of four sentences: The first sentence should indicate the source from which the buyer learned about the products you offer; the second sentence should briefly describe your production capabilities and main markets, mentioning 2 to 3 specific product categories that you can produce; the third sentence should provide two possible meeting times and booth numbers; the fourth sentence should include a direct link to the catalog or sample numbers, along with the message “If you cannot visit Guangzhou this time, we can arrange a video tour of the factory.”
The common principle of these two letters is to avoid mentioning the company’s history, self-praise statements like “We are leaders in our industry,” and not to include any price information in the first letter. The first letter should focus solely on one thing: achieving a meeting schedule, or receiving a clear rejection from the client.
IV. Sending Rhythm for Three Segments
The first email should be sent 10 days before the event starts. Use one of the templates mentioned above; the purpose is to arrange a meeting. The second email should be sent 3 days before the event starts. It should contain only three lines: “I’m at the booth”, “My phone number”, and “Is the last appointment still valid?” The role of this email is to remind the recipient not to introduce the product repeatedly during the meeting. The third email should be sent within 24 to 48 hours after the meeting. It should include a list of the models, quantities, and packaging requirements mentioned during the discussion, along with details about the next step in the process.
The third step is effective because buyers will meet with several suppliers during the exhibition. After 48 hours, their memories of those meetings will be vague. Whoever can write down what they discussed and what steps they plan to take next will be considered among the candidates. This step doesn’t require any special skills or expertise, but most suppliers can’t do it—it requires working overtime that night to organize all the notes.
V. Five Common Mistakes
First, the attachment size should be kept under 5MB. Emails with attachments exceeding this limit are likely to be flagged as spam or get stuck in the recipient’s server. It’s better to convert attachments into online links or compress them to a size of less than 2MB. Second, avoid including short links in the body of the email. Many enterprise email services truncate these links automatically; if possible, include the full link address. Third, listing 20 different models in one email lacks focus. Fourth, mentioning prices in the first email without even meeting the buyer is a mistake. Fifth, using words like “cooperation invitation” in the subject line doesn’t convey much information, and buyers will quickly skip such lines when reading emails on their phones.
6. Common questions
1. Without stalls, can we still send invitations to buyers?
Yes, and this is the most cost-effective way to attract visitors during the exhibition period. In the wording, simply replace “exhibition booth number” with “location and time for meeting nearby the exhibition hall”. For example: “October 16th at 2 PM, café located next to Exit A of Pavilion 8 at Pazhou Exhibition Hall.” The main purpose of inviting buyers to visit the exhibition is to find suppliers. The location of the meeting shouldn’t be an obstacle; what matters is ensuring that the meeting can be scheduled within a specific time frame in their schedule.
2. How many invitations should be sent at a time?
Reverse the process based on the target number of contacts. Do not send emails to everyone on the list at once. Suppose the goal is to meet with 15 customers during the exhibition. According to the experience of sending 30% of emails in response and 50% of them being attended by the recipients, it is necessary to reach around 100 target buyers. The list should be filtered based on the relevance between the products purchased and your own products. It’s better to send 100 targeted emails than 1,000 generic emails. Sending emails to everyone at once not only results in low response rates, but it also damages the reputation of your email account due to many emails being rejected or causing complaints. As a result, it becomes difficult to send other important emails as well.
3. If I can’t write in English properly, is it okay to use translation software to send the text?
It’s possible to use tools for translation, but it’s still necessary to review the text manually. The most common issues with machine translations arise in terms like product terminology and specifications. For example, mistakes in translating words like “material”, “surface treatment”, or “number of items per package” can lead buyers to doubt your professionalism. A more reliable approach is to prepare a list of product terms in both Chinese and English, fixing 30 to 50 commonly used terms. When writing letters to markets in different languages, it’s important to ensure that the terms are written in the local manner before sending the letters out.
For factories that organize exports, the value of an exhibition invitation letter doesn’t lie in its literary quality. Instead, it lies in clearly stating three key details: “Where I am, what I have to offer, and when we can meet.” With this information, buyers can respond quickly, thereby finalizing the timing of the meeting.
Qihang Zhilian Foreign Trade Research Institute·Let China's intelligent manufacturing industry set sail to sea·Tel: 180-0327-6609
