Trade Show Items

You must constantly bear in mind the real function of your exhibit at a trade show and weigh each idea to see how it contributes to reaching your goal. Look at the function of your exhibit. What is it trying to do? What are you trying to achieve through its use? It makes a difference in your design thinking whether you wish to demonstrate a machine in operation to the widest possible audience, or if you expect to limit attendance in your booth to a very few important customers. Will you be doing a hard sell to anybody who stops by?

Trade show rentals allow you more flexibility and the opportunity to change your booth with every expo if you wish. You can rent nearly any booth components, from portable pop-ups to completely custom looks.

If you have been to expos and trade shows as an attendee like me you would be familiar with the exciting prospect of carrying home a heavy plastic bag of trade show promotions, the end result though is usually the trade show promotions end up down the back of the couch, on the floor or in the bottom dusty drawer of your desk, hopefully reading this article on tradeshow promotions, your gift to clients and prospects will not share the same fate.

Great! You’ve finally got the approval to attend a Trade Show. Now what? Trade shows can either be a very expensive excuse to get out of the office for a few days, lug around heavy display cases, party too much and sleep too little, and get flat feet standing around on concrete all day long, OR it can energize your company’s Sales program immediately, and for many months to come. How do you ensure it’s “Door Number 2″, and not a wasted opportunity?

Be careful about choosing your next trade show display. With all the cookie cutter popup trade show displays being sold today via the web and particularly with the competitive prices, it may be tempting to save the $2000 on your next display by purchasing one of these booths online. You know the ones I’m talking about, the $995 popup display special. However, prior to looking at your initial savings with these cheap popup displays keep in mind the big picture. Your total trade show effort using this booth may be well over $100,000 throughout the next year or two considering all the costs for travel, show space, hotel, staff time, etc.

The following are nine steps to guide you in the trade show selection process.

1. Work with a tradeshow planning team or key personnel to decide who your target market is and what your objectives are.

2. Identify the tradeshows that appeal to your market and offer the greatest exposure for your message. Research the target market and your competitors to determine which tradeshows they frequently attend.