If you are asking yourself this question you probably have decided to attend your first show or have been handed this task by your manager and have no clue where to start. Well, before you should be asking “how”, you should be asking yourself, “why”. Why am I attending the show, what is my main objective for exhibiting, and how do I intend to accomplish this with the message that my exhibit will convey?
You will convey these goals in the architecture of the booth, and the messaging or signage you choose to include. The architecture is what sets the mood of your space. If you are in the finance business you want to convey a professional, stable, and wealthy environment. If you are a surfboard manufacturer then you want something fun and attractive to your target market. Not to say you have to stick to those rules, after all your first priority is to attract attention to your booth. You need to give the attendee a reason to approach you, but at the same time generate quality leads.
So you want to include the three “W”’s of a tradeshow booth, who, what, and where. Who, refers to your company Identity. You want attendees to remember who you are and why you are better than your competitor. What, is simply what you do. State it clearly and concisely in short easily read text. Remember you only have few seconds to catch the attention of that purchasing agent walking down the aisle. They may not recognize your company name but if you sell rubber gloves then put that message out there for all to see. Attendees will spot products first sometimes not necessarily companies. And the where is how do they contact you. Is it a website? Is it a phone number? Is your product relevant only to a specific geographical region? It’s important for perspective clients to have a sense of stability, and that you have a base of operation that can fulfill their requirements. Along with the who make sure you have plenty of business cards out for the taking so they know how to reach you a month after the show and make sure you get their information so you can follow up after the show.
So now that you have answered these basic questions let’s get back to actually building a booth. If you were at this stage I would recommend you don’t actually build at all. There is a portion of the tradeshow industry known as “portables”, these booths are pre-manufactured almost off the shelf properties that offer the first exhibitor a chance to get involved for small investments while keeping your show site costs down. Because believe it or not the exhibit cost is usually only about 50% of the cost to put your booth in the show. But that’s another subject for another time.
Ultimately you want to get some quality advice from someone who knows the industry. There are many hidden costs that can translate into major investments of time and money that can sneak up and cripple the entire event for you and your company.
Like one of the articles suggest, use the your local phone directory and look for Displays or Display Designers and Producers. Call around and ask if that have portables available. It will also benefit you to work with someone local that you can meet in person and discuss you goals for the show and help you keep costs to a minimum.
The web is a wonderful tool as well. Do a search for Portable Exhibits. This will bring up several companies that specialize in portables and they can direct you to their local supplier.
Ultimately. You want someone to guide you through the process, and there are plenty of reputable companies out there that can do just that.
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