Trade fairs may look all colorful and classy but what may escape your eye is the brutal fact that it is a warzone. Every single exhibitor that makes an appearance at a trade show is there to outdo everyone else, and they use everything in their power to gain the upper hand. The competition gets so fierce at times that people end up clashing and even suing each other over IP infringements. This is why every trade show has an arbitrator in stand to help quell these flare-ups.
We are going to explore the many things you can do to make your trade show booth stand out and attract more foot traffic, what you should avoid doing and why all these efforts are very necessary. If you have been entertaining the idea of attending a trade show sometime in the future, then these tips will come in handy for you when the time comes.
How to Stand out in a Trade Exhibition
The tools at your disposal are unlimited. You can choose to go with visual elements, introduce irresistible services, offer people incentives and gifts, among many others. When it comes to trade fairs, as long as you are not breaking any law or rules, then everything is game. The following are some of the things you can do to make your trade show booth to really stand out.
Advertise
Do not stop advertising your booth. Start even before the event begins by creating maximum hype about your trade booth and what you will be showcasing on all platforms you can get your hands on. Whether it is the radio, TV, social media, podcasts, simply spread the word about your business out there and make sure it is repeated over and over again until people can’t ignore it anymore. But be cautious about the line between being obtuse and being moderate. The last thing you would want is to annoy people.
Benefits
- It increases the reach, even to people who may not have had any idea about the trade show.
- It is cheap, especially when done through social media platforms.
- It makes people look forward to what you will be showcasing.
- It gives you the freedom and the time to come up with a good ad that further increases the reputation of your brand.
Link up with Publications
Every trade show has a number of media people who usually cover them, doing profiles on what they expect to see and some of the companies they expect to make a splash. Make sure you are one of those companies by all means necessary. This means you have to make connections with reporters, bloggers and podcasters and convenience them to do a company profile on you. Making an appearance in a trade show publication is the best way to catch the eye of frequent visitors who are always looking for something new.
Benefits
- It solidifies the brand of your company and generates great interest from the visitors.
- It immortalizes the name of your company because that publication stays forever.
Go Personal
At any given time, you are surrounded by other competitors who will be fighting for the attention of anyone that passes by, that include the ones that may choose to come your way. To stop this, you may have to go the extra mile, and the most effective way is being personal.
When you treat every visitor for who they are and start a personal conversation that connects you to them, they tend to stay longer, and the impression of you stays with them. This increases the chances of them calling back when you change contacts. Find that common ground with every person that comes to your booth to make your booth stand out.
Benefits
- It helps you learn more about the visitors, and this gives you the ability to tailor products and services to their liking.
- It increases the chances of the attendees getting in touch later on.
Give Gifts
Everybody loves its samples and giving them out is the fastest way to spread the word about your trade show booth. You can create small presents that don’t cost too much but are well branded with your identity. Give these out to the people, and you will see a beeline of people headed your way. Gifts and samples work best when you are running a food-related booth as you can create small portions of what you are showcasing for people to taste as they walk in.
Benefits
- It is the easiest way to attract people since everybody loves free gifts.
- It is a good ice-breaker that can trigger long conversations, which in turn, leave a bigger impact on the people that come to your booth.
Introduce Games
Alongside gifts, the next best thing that you can combine with this would be introducing sets of engaging games that will attract people and keep them around your booth for longer. Games elicit excitement, and this excitement attracts crowds, and crowds attract more crowds. Games could range from a simple “shoot the ball” or “spin the wheel,” where the prizes are company merchandise. Staging games like these will also leave an impression on every visitor that walks into your booth.
Benefits
- They are fun.
- They attract huge crowds, and this translates to more leads if handled right.
- They are an easy way of starting a conversation about the company and the things you are showcasing.
Create a Recreational Area
This may be hard due to space constraints, but if you can pull it off, it would be the most significant coup that no competitor can match. Setting up trade show furniture for the visitors to take short rests after walking around for long and even charging their phones as they take a breather is the best way to ensure that visitors keep streaming in. But you have to take advantage of that to ensure they don’t simply lounge and bounce; they have to be introduced to every product you are showcasing. It is all about how good you are at reading the room and turning it to your advantage.
Benefits
- It attracts people faster because a resting palace is the most irresistible thing in any busy space, like a trade show.
- It opens up opportunities to start conversations about your brand as the visitors get to stay for much longer.
Offer Free Wi-Fi
Another ingenious tactic that you can use to nab the attention of people that are walking by. Most trade show fairs provide internet connection, but when you consider the number of people around, the signal strength is never that solid. Providing a dedicated Wi-Fi connection to anyone who shows real interest in your booth is the best way to ensure they don’t wander too far and in turn, these crowds attract more people curious to know what is happening.
Benefits
- You get to attract more people than your competitors.
- Wi-Fi will make people linger a little longer at your stall, and this can increase the chance of them learning more about your company.
Use In-House Mailing Lists
Never ignore your existing customers. The fact that they are already familiar with your products and services doesn’t mean they are no longer a priority. Make sure of your mailing lists to notify and invite them over to attend the trade show. This is the easiest way to create a commotion around your booth since other people will be curious to know why there’s so much traffic to your booth. Use your current customers to get new ones without spending any extra dime.
Benefits
- It is free of cost and fast.
- It is the best way to notify your current customers of new upcoming products.
Choosing the Right Location
Location matters a lot. Trade shows are usually housed in huge complexes that are subdivided into dea[rtment, which are further subdivided into sections that house trade show booths based on the industry. Sometimes the show may have so many exhibitors that others are forced to showcase their products in peripheral areas without traffic. Make sure you book the right location early so that you can nab the juiciest spot that receives a lot of people. This way, it will be harder for anyone to ignore your booth.
Benefits
- The right location receives the most foot traffic, and this translates to more interest which in turn becomes leads and sales.
- A strategic location increases your brand visibility, and it gets seen even by people who may not even walk into the booth.
Using Graphic Displays
Dazzling people with colors and beautiful displays of images has never failed. A human being’s attention is easy to attract and when you combine your company branding with great images, you are assured of people coming over eventually. Another way to take advantage of this would be to present your products in a very neat way that can be seen from a distance away. It is the small things and the intricate patterns that matter the most.
Benefits
You have the freedom to do what you want since they are your booth designs that feature your brand.- They are the most convenient ways of advertising your brand since anyone who passes close by has no other option but to look at them.
Using Video Displays
One thing that works better than static graphic displays is audiovisual displays. Make use of display screens designed for trade shows to attract more people. The advantage of using these visual aids is that you can change content any time you want, and this breaks the monotony and creates a bigger interest in people who may be walking by. Audio visual aids like screens also tend to transform the space inside the booth into a classy and a more professional-looking one.
Benefits
- It is a very good way of publicizing your brand.
- It is a good avenue for entertainment, both for your staff and the visitors.
- It gives you the freedom to showcase other products that may have been too heavy to carry with you to the fair.
Hire the Right Staff
You will be surprised by how far you can go by simply hiring the right people for your trade show exhibition. Trade shows are all about engagement; it is not about making sales on the spot but creating awareness for the brand so that the networks you create there come in handy later on. Therefore, for you to stand out, you first need your staff to wear the right clothes that will make them look classy and professional since image sells. They should also be clear when talking and well versed with the products and the services you are showcasing. Get the right people, and you will not have to worry about a thing.
Benefits
- Having the right staff means your brand is explained in clearer and more understandable formats for the audience to get.
- The right staff makes the booth appear more professional, and this inspires confidence and attracts more people to your booth.
Use Bright Colors
Sometimes, it is the simplest tactic in the book that gains you the most number of visitors. Trade booths are some of the best lit structures you will ever come across, and the best way to take advantage of this ample light is to blend all kinds of matching bright colors. Using bright yellows and lime greens, for example, will be noticed from a long distance away no matter how hard the person may try to avert their eyes. These colors simply scream. Therefore, find the right combination of bright colors and use them well to make your booth stand out more.
Benefits
- Bright colors are very attractive and ignoring them is very hard.
- When combined with bright lights, your booth will definitely overshadow the rest standing around you.
Incorporate Some Empty Space
This is the opposite of adding a couch but works the same. Sometimes, a booth can be so packed with products and staff that finding any space to work through becomes hard. This will make visitors think twice before walking in as they will feel claustrophobic. Space also gives structure to the booth, allowing people to really check out the products that are on display if you space them out strategically. Never ignore space if you want things to stand out.
Benefits
You get more room for people to walk around and examine products better and even get the chance to try them.- Space gives the booth some professional structure and look
Find a Theme
Theother tactic that could work more efficiently than slapping around bright colors would be to find a theme that combines several colors and ties into the rproducts and your branding. In a nutshell, find a defining combination of colors and art that will give your booth a unique and seamless look that is closely related to the products and services you are showcasing. This creates a solid appearance that looks well made, inspiring confidence in anyone interested enough to walk into your booth.
Benefits
- A theme will tie everything up into one blended look that makes sense to the onlooker.
- It makes the booth look beautiful and makes the branding stand out more
Tell Your Brand’s Story
If you have ever walked into a museum, you may have come across placards that explain what a plant or an animal is or was and the place it occupied when it was alive. The same tactic can be utilized for the trade booth. On top of the products you chose to showcase, create a huge placard and place it near the entrance with a brief history of the company and what you stand for. The two minutes it takes to read through that is all you need to get the attention of the attendee and drag them in to introduce them to your company.
Benefits
- It is an easy and efficient way of telling your story and giving visitors something to connect with, opening them up to suggestions.
- It humanizes the company and the brand.
Invest in Lighting
The power of lighting will transform a drab booth into a dazzling masterpiece that can be seen all the way from the entrance. Trade show domes usually come with their own bright lights, but it never hurts to add yours within your booth to better illuminate your products. There are some types of lights that you can use to make things more visible, and they include the following.
- Spotlights of various colors to create dramatic effects inside the booth by focusing on certain products at a time to draw attention to them. You can use halogen, incandescent, or fluorescent bulbs for this.
Strobe and Gobo lights for creating varied visual effects like projecting the company’s logo on the floor, the ceiling, or the walls where anyone who walks in can be able to see them clearly.- Hanging lights for illuminating both the outside and the inside of your booth to attract the attention of the people passing by to other booths.
- Accent lighting for adding texture to the graphics, the walls, and any art and products you may choose to decorate the space with.
- Ambient lighting for adding some dimension to the displays in the booth. Ambient lighting can be achieved by using LED strips of various colors, and they usually come in handy when the both are dealing with electronics.
Benefits
- Lighting brings the booth to life by making things visible and colors to pop out more.
- Light is used to create focus on the products on display, and this is the fastest way to get the attention of anyone who may be passing by.
Use Demonstrations
Actions speak louder than words, and if you want to grab the attention of anyone around, then do live demonstrations. Just like magic shows, people will always spare a minute or two to see how that new innovative product works, and having a live demo is the best way to start a conversation on the spot and generate enough interest for people to buy or leave their contacts for future business and correspondence. Demonstrations could be the key between finding success or ending in failure, so invest in that.
Benefits
- It gives the visitors an idea of how a product can be used
- It raises the reputation of your brand since demonstrations cannot be faked; if the product works exactly as you had described it in front of everyone, then that raises the trust people have in you, and this translates to instant sales.
Flooring
Another often ignored side of the trade show booth is the floor. People will carry custom wall displays and lighting for the ceiling, but somehow, they neglect the floor for some unknown reason. Paying attention to the floor will win you more points than you care to know. For example, the material you use could determine if the floor is slippery or not. A custom trade show flooring with traction will be safer for people to move around compared to one that is slippery. Nobody wants to walk on that kind of floor with thigh-high heels, for instance.
Benefits
- A good floor adds an aesthetic touch to the studio booth, making it more appealing and professional.
- A floor with good traction makes it safer for people to move around.
Add an Eco-Touch
Everybody is concerned about the environment right now, and the collective effort to enforce small changes towards the goal of enhancing sustainability is strong. You can tap into this to attract like-minded visitors by using an eco-display for your trade show booth. Add some plants, use renewable items and ensure there is no plastic in sight. This will leave anyone who comes around to your booth impressed and more likely to leave their contacts with you or even make an instant purchase.
Benefits
- Plants add a natural touch to the booth, and this is something that is rarely seen in trade shows, making your booth more unique.
- You will leave a bigger impression on people since everyone will remember that one booth that was eco-friendly.
Conclusion
There are countless other things you can do to ensure that your booth stands out at any trade fair and exhibition. The choice of improvements that you go with should be guided by the nature of your presentations and the industry you are in. If you have any future plans of attending a trade show and would like to know more about acquiring ready-made rental booths, then check out our website and go through our catalog to find what suits your needs best.
