Contents:

• Overview
• Use Cases
• Prerequisites
• Creating a Tradeshow
• Meeting Rooms
• Tradeshow Meeting Types
• Booking Meetings at a Tradeshow
• Monitoring Tradeshow Activity
• Best Practices & Considerations
• Summary

 

Overview

LeanData Scheduling provides purpose-built scheduling for tradeshows and in-person events through BookIt for Tradeshows. A Tradeshow is a custom object that defines the scheduling context for an event: its name, date range, daily hours, timezone, meeting rooms, and the reps attending. Meeting types associated with a Tradeshow will inherit these settings, and all three LeanData Scheduling products, BookIt for Forms, Routing Links, and BookIt Handoff, can book tradeshow meetings through their standard booking experiences.

 

Key terms used throughout this guide:

• Tradeshow: The LeanData custom object that anchors all event scheduling configuration. Tradeshows move through a status lifecycle of Draft, Active, Inactive, and Expired, and the status controls bookability across all associated meeting types.
• Meeting Room: A bookable resource such as a demo room or booth station. Rooms are native LeanData entities, so they do not require a connected calendar account or a paid Salesforce license.
• Tradeshow Participant: A registered BookIt user attending the event whose calendar is protected from non-tradeshow BookIt meetings while the tradeshow is active.
• Tradeshow-scoped meeting type: A meeting type associated with a Tradeshow. Selecting a Tradeshow on the meeting type is what activates tradeshow behavior everywhere that meeting type is used.

Example: Dana is the event manager preparing for an upcoming industry conference. Dana creates a Tradeshow in BookIt for Tradeshows with the conference dates and expo hours, attaches demo rooms and booth stations, adds the attending reps, and associates meeting types with the Tradeshow. Prospects can then book booth meetings before and during the show, each with a rep and a room automatically assigned.

Use Cases

• Pre-tradeshow lead capture: Embed a tradeshow-scoped BookIt for Forms flow on a pre-event landing page so registrants can immediately book a meeting during the show, with availability limited to the tradeshow duration and a room included in the confirmation.
• Booth self-booking with a QR code: Display a QR code on booth signage that opens a tradeshow BookIt Link, letting walk-up prospects book a demo slot in real time with a rep and room automatically assigned.
• Rep-assisted booking at the booth: Booth staff open BookIt Handoff on a tablet, enter a prospect's details, and convert a live conversation into a confirmed meeting in under a minute.
• Meetings with existing customers: When a known account visits the booth, BookIt Handoff identifies the account owner or a designated AE or executive in Salesforce and books the meeting with that person, preserving account ownership and attribution.
• Booking during or after the show: A multi-meeting link can offer both a tradeshow meeting type and a standard meeting type, so prospects choose to Meet at the tradeshow or Meet after the tradeshow.
• Protecting rep calendars: Tradeshow Participants cannot receive non-tradeshow BookIt meetings during the event window, keeping high-value booth time reserved for event meetings.
• Event pipeline reporting: Meetings booked through tradeshow meeting types are tagged with the tradeshow in the Salesforce meeting log so RevOps can report on event-sourced pipeline.

 

Prerequisites

• LeanData Scheduling must be installed and configured, and reps must be authorized BookIt users. See the BookIt General Settings Guide for setup details.
• Tradeshow reps must be registered BookIt users, whether added individually or by pool.
• Each tradeshow requires its own meeting types. Meeting types belong to exactly one tradeshow and can only be used during that tradeshow's period.

 

Creating a Tradeshow

The Tradeshow is the central place to configure everything about your event.

1. Navigate to the Tradeshow settings in LeanData Scheduling.

2. Create a new Tradeshow and configure the following settings:
   • Tradeshow Name: The display name for the event, such as Dreamforce 2026. Required.
   • Status: The lifecycle status of Draft, Active, Past. Status controls bookability for all meeting types associated with the tradeshow.
   • Start Date / End Date: The date range during which the tradeshow is bookable. Booking pages do not show availability outside this range.
   • Tradeshow Hours: The daily time window during which meetings can be booked, for example 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. All associated meeting types inherit these hours.
   • Timezone: The locked timezone for the tradeshow. All scheduling pages display availability in this timezone, regardless of a rep's home timezone or the meeting type timezone.
   • Meeting Rooms: The rooms attached to this tradeshow. Rooms are automatically assigned to meetings at booking time. See the Meeting Rooms section below.
   • Fallback Room: A designated room to use when no rooms in the pool meet the guest criteria or all eligible rooms are at capacity, but a rep is still available.
   • Tradeshow Participants: The users attending the event whose calendars should be protected. See below.

Adding Tradeshow Participants

Tradeshow Participants are the roster of people going to your event.

• Add participants individually or in bulk by adding a round robin pool. All participants must be registered BookIt users.
• Adding participants by pool is a selection mechanism only. It determines who is on the roster, and round robin pools otherwise work exactly the same as they do elsewhere in LeanData Scheduling.
• While the tradeshow is active, each participant's calendar is blocked from non-tradeshow BookIt meetings during the tradeshow hours and timezone.
• Meetings that were already scheduled before the tradeshow was activated will remain on participant calendars.

 

The following table summarizes how booking sources treat a Tradeshow Participant during the active tradeshow window:

Booking Source	Behavior During the Active Tradeshow Window
Tradeshow-scoped meeting type (same tradeshow)	Bookable normally.
Non-tradeshow BookIt for Forms form	Rep is treated as unavailable and the slot is not shown.
Non-tradeshow BookIt Link (personal or shared)	Rep is treated as unavailable and the slot is not shown.
Non-tradeshow BookIt Handoff flow	Rep is excluded from routing and assignment.
Outside the tradeshow window	Normal availability is restored and all meeting types book normally.

Activating the Tradeshow

When configuration is complete, set the tradeshow status to Active. Activation makes the associated meeting types bookable and applies calendar blocking for all Tradeshow Participants.

 

Meeting Venues

Meeting Venues are bookable resources with a dedicated Venues settings and configuration page, separate from Tradeshow settings. Locations represent physical spaces such as demo rooms, booth tables, and meeting stations. Because Venues are native LeanData entities managed by LeanData admins, they do not require a connected calendar account or a paid Salesforce license.

Create Venues on the Venues page, then attach them to one or more tradeshows. Configure the following for each room:

• Venue Name: The display name, such as Convention Center or Event Space. Required.
• Location: The physical location within the Venue. The location is included in the calendar invite.
• Min/Max Capacity: The minimum and maximum number of guests, including the prospect, required for the room to be eligible. Rooms above or below the threshold are skipped during assignment, which prevents a 2-person meeting from taking a 10-person room.
• Assigned Tradeshows: The tradeshows this room is associated with. A room must be attached to a tradeshow to be bookable.

 

How Rooms Are Assigned

When multiple rooms are attached to a tradeshow, LeanData Scheduling assigns rooms to booked meetings automatically using round robin, the same mechanics used for rep round robin. Three factors decide the assignment:

1. Capacity fit: Is this room the closest in size to the meeting's party size? Rooms that do not meet the minimum guest threshold are skipped. For example, if a 2-person room and a 6-person room are both available for a 5-person meeting, the 2-person room is skipped.
2. Availability: Is the room free at the requested slot? Rooms are never double-booked.
3. Rotation: If multiple rooms are tied, the room booked least recently is selected next.

Additional room behavior:

• The assigned room name and location are included in the calendar invite sent to the prospect and the rep.
• A meeting is never booked into a room that is too small for the party size.
• If all rooms are at capacity for a slot, the slot is suppressed from the booking page, even if a rep is available.
• If no rooms meet the guest criteria or all eligible rooms are at capacity but a rep is still available, LeanData Scheduling assigns the Fallback Room so the booking can proceed. If no fallback is configured, the meeting is not booked for that slot.

 

Tradeshow Meeting Types

The meeting type is how LeanData Scheduling will know that a booking is tradeshow-scoped, across BookIt for Forms, BookIt Links, and BookIt Handoff. Selecting a tradeshow on the meeting type activates all tradeshow behavior for that meeting type.

• Each tradeshow can have multiple meeting types, so you can offer different meeting lengths and formats at the same event, such as a 30-minute booth demo and a 60-minute executive briefing.
• Each meeting type belongs to exactly one tradeshow and can only be used during that tradeshow's period. Create new meeting types for each new tradeshow.
• Associated meeting types inherit the tradeshow's timezone, tradeshow hours, and date range. Meeting type working hours and user-level working hours do not apply while a tradeshow is selected.

For general steps on creating meeting types, see the BookIt General Settings Guide.

Booking Meetings at a Tradeshow

Tradeshow meetings book through the same LeanData Scheduling products you already use. The tradeshow-scoped meeting type carries the event context automatically.

Guest Collection Before the Calendar

On all tradeshow booking surfaces, guests are added on an interim screen before the calendar is shown. LeanData Scheduling needs the guest count before displaying the calendar so it can accurately calculate room availability based on party size. The guest list is reflected in the calendar invite and used for room assignment at booking time.

BookIt for Forms

Use a tradeshow-scoped BookIt for Forms flow for pre-event landing pages and registration follow-up. Because BookIt for Forms supports multiple forms, you can create a dedicated tradeshow form independently of your standard booking forms.

• Select a tradeshow-scoped meeting type on the scheduling node. The tradeshow context flows automatically from the meeting type. If the meeting type has no tradeshow association, BookIt for Forms will not treat it as a tradeshow booking.
• The guest screen is displayed before the calendar picker so the booker can add attendees.
• The calendar picker shows only slots within the tradeshow's date range and hours, displayed in the tradeshow timezone.
• Round robin uses the assigned pool with the same mechanics as standard BookIt for Forms.
• If rooms are attached to the tradeshow, a room is automatically assigned at booking time and included in the invite.
• The confirmation page displays the tradeshow name, rep, room assignment, and meeting time in the tradeshow timezone.

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BookIt Routing Links

BookIt Routing Links supports several tradeshow booking patterns:

• Shared team links: Generate a shared routing link tied to a tradeshow for use on the event website, in email campaigns, or on booth signage. The routing link can route directly or round robin across the assigned tradeshow reps, respects the tradeshow scheduling window, and automatically assigns a meeting room.
• QR codes: Create a QR code from any link to QR converter. Walk-up prospects can scan the code at the booth to self-book a slot in real time using routing links, with a rep and room automatically assigned.
• Multi-meeting links: Include both a tradeshow meeting type and a non-tradeshow meeting type on one link. This way, the prospect can choose to Meet at the tradeshow or Meet after the tradeshow, and the non-tradeshow option books outside the tradeshow period without restrictions.

On all tradeshow routing links, the guest screen appears before the calendar view.

For general link configuration, see the BookIt Links Admin Guide.

BookIt Handoff

BookIt Handoff turns live booth conversations into confirmed meetings. A rep opens Handoff on a tablet, enters the prospect's name, email, and company, and the system routes the prospect to the correct rep and books an available slot with a room automatically assigned.

• Routing setup: To route records down a Tradeshow Handoff path, create a Decision Node in your FlowBuilder graph and stamp a value on the user record in Salesforce, or toggle a field indicating the user is attending the tradeshow. Standard non-tradeshow Handoff graphs are unaffected.
• Guest collection: Reps add guests on the left-hand panel before the calendar is shown, and the calendar updates in real time as guests are added. When a tradeshow-scoped meeting type is selected, any person can be added as a guest. Guest eligibility is not limited to contacts associated with the account in Salesforce.
• Room assignment: A room is automatically assigned from the tradeshow room pool at booking time and included in the invite.
• Confirmation: The confirmation screen displays the rep, room, and time, and can be shown to the prospect on the tablet.
• Known customers: When speaking with an existing customer or named account, BookIt Handoff can identify the CRM account owner or a configured AE or executive from Salesforce, surface that person's availability within the tradeshow window, and book the meeting with a room assignment. The rep who initiated the Handoff would retain attribution credit in Salesforce.

For general Handoff configuration, see the BookIt Handoff Admin Guide.

 

Monitoring Tradeshow Activity

The tradeshow activity log is the central place to see everything scheduled for your event.

• View all meetings scheduled for the tradeshow, organized by rep and by location, so you can confirm rooms are being filled and reps are where they should be.
• Reschedule meetings directly from the activity log. If plans change on the show floor, you can manually move any meeting to a different person, location, or time.

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Meetings booked through a tradeshow meeting type are also tagged with the tradeshow on the meeting log in Salesforce, so you can report on meetings and pipeline sourced from each event. For more on meeting reporting, see the BookIt Metrics and Reporting Guide .

 

Best Practices & Considerations

• Create your tradeshow and its meeting types well before the event, keep the tradeshow in Draft while configuring, and activate it once the roster and rooms are final.
• Set Minimum Guests on larger rooms so small meetings do not occupy space intended for bigger groups.
• Configure a Fallback Room so bookings can still complete when the primary room pool is exhausted but reps are available.
• Remember that meetings already on participant calendars before activation are not removed. Review rep calendars before activating the tradeshow.
• A room can serve multiple tradeshows, but not on the same day. Plan room assignments accordingly for overlapping events.
• Calendar protection applies only during the tradeshow window. No cleanup is needed afterward, since normal availability is restored automatically.

 

Summary

LeanData Scheduling gives event teams one place to manage in-person tradeshow booking: a Tradeshow object that defines dates, hours, timezone, and the rep roster, Meeting Rooms that are bookable without calendar accounts or Salesforce licenses, calendar protection for attending reps, and tradeshow-aware booking across BookIt for Forms, BookIt Links, and BookIt Handoff. The activity log and Salesforce meeting tagging then let you manage the event in real time and report on the pipeline it produces.

For questions or additional assistance please contact LeanData Support.