If you have decided to attend a Trade Show, the next step is to get your stand organised. One option is to hire the standard package from the show’s preferred supplier, but this has the disadvantage of your stand potentially looking just the same as many of the others at the Trade Show. You can avoid this by custom designing and building your very own stand, and it doesn’t need to cost you the earth either.
Before you go out spending a lot of money on materials, do your research. If you do an online search for ‘Trade Show stand designs’, you will find thousands of photos and articles of various stands from all sorts of industries. Spend your time going through these and take note of those that really catch your eye. What is it in particular that draws your attention?
Once you have discovered the look that you like, it’s time to start drawing up plans for your own stand. You don’t need to be an artist, or an architect, just a simple sketch is all you need so that when you start buying parts and getting to work you have an idea of what you want to achieve. However, working with an expert stand designer can be helpful and a cost effective way to make sure your design is right for your needs.
Don’t forget that whatever type of stand you build, it will need to be easily portable and sturdy enough to handle a lot of foot traffic and some bumps and collisions. Something else to take into consideration is that after the trade show is finished, if you are planning on keeping the stand until the next show, you will have to store it somewhere. You probably don’t want a large stand taking up your entire storeroom and preventing you from using it for other purposes.
Another consideration to keep in mind is that this stand will need to be transported, assembled and disassembled – probably many times. You don’t want the construction of the stand to be too difficult for you or your workers when they get to the trade show location. We’ve all spent many an hour trying to put together flat-pack furniture which claims ‘Easy-to-Assemble’ – there’s nothing worse. Some exhibition companies will help you with the assembly and disassembly of your stand, so it can be worth considering this option.
It is a great idea to check out the competition whenever you attend a trade show. Look at how they have designed/built their stands and think about whether there is anything you could adapt for use with your own. Trends change over time and you don’t want to be exhibiting with an outdated, tired looking display. This is another reason why hiring an expert in the field can help you make your business stand out. The experts in the industry know the latest trends.
Finally, when building your Trade Show stand you need to remember that it will be representing you, your business and your product at every Trade Show that you attend. Ensure that your stand is easily identifiable as belonging to you, by adorning it with your business logo and colours. Also, don’t be afraid to make alterations if, after attending a Trade Show or two, you identify changes you could make to your stand for convenience or ease of use, and always make sure that the stand is well-maintained.
