Trade Show Booths: A Perspective

Introduction: The Role of a Trade Show Booth

In a day of ever increasing virtual communication, the trade show retains its importance for what it provides: face-to-face contact. Trade shows provide opportunities for businesses to showcase their products and services to a motivated audience and the high level networking that results is good for both vendors and buyers.

For the vendor exhibiting at a trade show, attendance translates to reaching a large group of potential customers in a very brief amount of time. For the attendees, the show floor is an exciting place to see the latest products -- but it is also a place full of stimuli clamoring for attention.

To reach the most people in this busy environment, an exhibitor should recognize and utilize all the tools available to him to create a presence that not only attracts but welcomes a show visitor. A well-conceived exhibit space creates an appealing and interactive environment -- the best conditions for conducting business. A large part of this environment is the trade show booth.

To make the greatest return on renting space at a trade show, exhibitors should create a presence in the trade show venue with an effective display. It is easy to get caught up in the visual and physical qualities of an exhibit design because it needs to have impact and be fresh. However, it is better to think of booth design as the foundation that supports the human interaction that is at the heart of business. A good booth design creates the atmosphere where vendors and customers meet and do business.

The Perfect Sales Meeting

Like a sales meeting, a trade show booth has three objectives:

• to attract the customer with a clear and focused message
• to create the opportunity for staff to engage the customer in a professional manner and convince the customer about the value of the company’s product and services for purchase either now or later
• to leave the customer with a clear and positive image of the company and its mission.

The Elements of a Successful Trade Show Booth: Form and Serviceability

To accomplish these objectives, the exhibit space must be thoughtfully designed around the ideas of form and serviceability. These qualities are interrelated and each must inform the other.

Continued in Part 2 > >