Question: is the following a quote from an attendee or an exhibitor?
“I can’t wait to walk this show!”
It should be both! The point here is to trigger trade show exhibitors to ask themselves the follow-up question: “How am I adding life and excitement to my display to make it fun and memorable?”
Think about this statement from both sides of the carpeted trade show isle. As an exhibitor, are you making your tradeshow display fun and exciting, informative, open and embracing? Or is the environment too bland or dull; filled with pretty pictures and text with no cognitive congruency?
Many times, exhibitors can forget what it is like to be a show or event attendee, and as a result their display is boring and uninspired. This loss of perspective often leads to a loss of enthusiasm for being “there”, from both the attendees and the booth staff.
Remember that the typical trade show floor is not well lit; this can wash out beautiful graphics and make skin tones look ashen and sickly, which can cast a pall over the entire show. Counteract this vacuum and add your own trade show lighting elements: flood your space with color and variety. Consider adding other visual elements like a video monitor with a great video (remember that before you add a video monitor, content is the key – your video should make someone stop, watch and react).
Once you have outstanding lighting, look at updating and adding vibrance to your graphics. Develop colorful, straightforward and question-evoking graphics. Again, your goal is to stand out and cut through the background noise of a trade show – people should stop, look, react and pose a question. For larger exhibits, think about adding fun and interactive games or tools; incorporate music or sound effects that you may hear while using your product.
In the end remember that trade shows are like show business. If you produce a dull and uninspired show, you will be selected or deselected based on your performance. Approach your booth as a potential client; what do you see? Is it Oscar worthy or a “straight to DVD” production? Be the star; have people walk away from the show saying, “I can’t wait to get back next year to see what they do next!”
