Key takeaways
Deutsche Messe AG, one of the world's leading trade fair organisers, needed better, more up-to-date data to support its sales teams. Its database had grown large and mixed, while new topics, formats, and target groups kept appearing.
With Leadfeeder, the team found companies with real potential faster and cut down manual research. A pilot for DOMOTEX turned 2,100+ identified companies into 96 qualified accounts, 20 opportunities, and 2 closed deals. Leadfeeder is now being rolled out across the company.
Key takeaway: Deutsche Messe built a structured pipeline for a new DOMOTEX target group in a single pilot.
Products used: Companies to find new target accounts, and Web Visitors to see which of them engaged with the website.
Standout strategy: precise target groups that include or exclude existing customers, combined with targeted campaigns and website behaviour data.
Real-world results: the top 5% of 2,100+ companies qualified, 1 in 5 qualified accounts became an opportunity, and 2 deals closed, followed by a company-wide rollout.
[This summary was created with AI assistance, using our original content]
*This summary was created with AI assistance, using our original content.
Get to know Deutsche Messe
Deutsche Messe AG is one of the world's leading trade fair organisers. Based in Hannover, its 650-strong team runs around 150 trade shows and events a year, in Germany and abroad. In 2024, those events welcomed roughly 30,000 exhibitors and 3 million visitors.
Every one of those events depends on finding the right exhibitors and target groups. That makes data a core part of how Deutsche Messe's marketing and sales teams work, and they're always looking for ways technology can make sales more efficient and smarter.
For us, a trade fair isn't just business, it's an experience and emotion. Our goal is simple. We want our customers to leave our events feeling more successful and inspired than when they arrived.
The challenge: an outdated, mixed-quality database
Over the years, Deutsche Messe's database grew significantly. It held old and new records, complete and incomplete ones, and contacts of very different value. Finding the companies worth the sales team's time meant a lot of manual research.
"It had everything. Old and new data, complete and incomplete, high-priority contacts and, well, less relevant ones."
At the same time, the market was changing. New topics, formats, and target groups appeared, and since the pandemic everything has moved faster. The sales team needed data that could keep up:
Mixed-quality data: a growing database where outdated and relevant records sat side by side
Slow research: too much manual work to spot companies with real potential
Shifting audiences: new topics and target groups that existing data didn't cover
"Our challenge was clear. We needed better, more up-to-date, and relevant data to give our sales teams targeted support. It was about spotting companies with real potential faster, while significantly cutting down our manual research."
The solution: precise target groups from Companies and Web Visitors
Deutsche Messe adopted Leadfeeder step by step. The team started with Companies to find new leads, then added Web Visitors to see which companies were engaging with its content. Together, they let the team define target groups precisely and track how those companies behaved on the website.
"This allowed us to define target groups with high precision, including or excluding existing customers as needed, while analysing behaviour on our website. We also ran targeted campaigns and got a much clearer picture of the entire customer journey."
The clearest test came with DOMOTEX, the world's leading trade fair for carpets and floor coverings. Deutsche Messe was extending the show to new topics and target groups, starting with the wall and ceiling sector. The team defined that audience in Leadfeeder, reached it through campaigns, and analysed every interaction.
"The result was a crystal-clear funnel. From over 2,100 identified companies, we generated 96 qualified accounts. This led to 20 concrete opportunities and ultimately two closed deals."
The results: a structured pipeline from a single pilot
The pilot gave Deutsche Messe a much more structured pipeline for DOMOTEX, and the confidence to go further. Christine Meibert set up a project with the Salesforce and IT teams to build Leadfeeder into day-to-day sales operations.
"The results showed us loud and clear there's so much potential in Leadfeeder for our trade fairs, and we've only just scratched the surface."
What the DOMOTEX pilot delivered:
2,100+ companies identified in a new target segment
96 qualified accounts, the top 5%
20 sales opportunities and 2 closed deals
Leadfeeder is now being rolled out across the company. Deutsche Messe is building interfaces to send live data and insights straight into its CRM. The team is also gaining account-level insight into its audiences' interests and behaviour for the first time.
Adoption has grown on its own. It started with marketing and the new events team, and now selected sales colleagues use Leadfeeder daily. The visitor marketing team uses it too, to find relevant contacts for targeted follow-ups.
"What's really cool is that the tool wasn't forced on anyone, it spread organically."
Close support helped Leadfeeder fit into Deutsche Messe's processes from day one.
"A huge factor in our success is the close collaboration with our customer success consultant Antonia. Every time we weren't sure how to map a specific need in the tool, she was there to help and figure it out together with us."
"I would definitely recommend Leadfeeder, no question about that. For one, because of the powerful tool that delivers real value without needing massive investment, but also because of the excellent support that truly helped us move forward."
