Trade shows displays can work extremely well for the right business, with the right exhibition stands, at the right trade fair. There are a few ways to get it right though, from incorporating pull-up banners and pop-up banners to give your display depth, through to being consistent with the right message and branding on all your collateral. Trade shows can be very visually ‘noisy’ places – getting through all the clutter and activity can definitely be challenging!
Here are some tips to being seen, and being remembered long after the trade show has ended!
1 | Know your objectives. Why are you exhibiting at this particular trade show? Are you trying to get leads, create awareness, or position yourself as a market leader?
2 | Decide on a budget and stick to it. Developing a fantastic custom trade display doesn’t have to break the bank – you just have to be creative and consistent. Nothing sells more than strong, repetitive branding with messages that are full of benefits for the customers. If you are getting custom pieces produced for your trade show stand, make sure they are generic so you can reuse them for future trade fair events.
3 | Nab the best location you can! Use strong blocks of colour to be the one that walk-bys notice first. Notice in the custom trade display shown here that we created for PPC, we focused on using blue as the hero colour and worked from there.
4 | Get active! Don’t sit waiting for people to come to you – your trade show booth is not a safe place to hide, it should be a launching pad to get interest. And whatever you do, get out from behind the table or desk – nothing makes you appear less approachable than being behind a piece of trade show furniture.
5 | Stay away from cheap gimmicks! Unless it is original, and something people actually will want to use, don’t overspend on gimmicky promotional pieces. If you are going to give something away, make it a quality piece which is well designed and laid out. Or just have a lot of really nice chocolate – people love it, and it makes them feel good, so guess what they will remember when they think of that particular trade show? Your stand.
6 | Make appointments BEFORE the event. Invite your key customers, potential targets, prospective alliance partners a couple of weeks prior to the trade show.
7 | Make friends with the organisers – these guys know who do it best, and why, and by just having regular conversations with them, you will pick up some gems.
8 | Pre-empt. Know the questions that you are most often asked, and train your staff to answer them in the most positive way, so that the benefits of your products shine.
9 | Be succinct. Be able to describe the benefits (rather than the features!) simply, and specifically. Don’t say that your product saves time and money, because 99% of the rest of the trade show displays will be saying that. Tell your potentials what is COOL about your product, and why you are different. Standing out requires being different from the rest.
10 | If your business has a story, tell it. There is nothing more engaging than a story that people can relate to. Your story will form the basis of a pitch that people can’t ignore.
And if you want to talk through your ideas, we can come up with ideas that support your objectives.
If you are looking for custom designed trade show displays that pack a punch, just get in touch with us.