Did you know that trade show exhibit graphics only have three seconds to grab convention-goers and pull them into a booth or display area? Trade show sales presentations, including marketing material, banners and signs must form a cohesive unit that makes an immediate impact.
Then why do so many trade show booths use tiny fonts, inconsistent themes, poor imagery and low-quality giveaways? These drawbacks waste significant company investment in trade show booth construction and other convention expenses.
For many companies, the annual trade show is where success for the entire year is won or lost. It is worth taking the extra time to evaluate and improve each element of a trade show display to ensure maximum results. Here are several tips to keep in mind when planning and creating graphics for the next trade show.
Advance Planning
• Try to create an entire experience for your booth visitors. Avoid a generic sales presentation. Design a powerful theme that uses emotion and storytelling skills to make a memorable booth.
• Don’t forget the rear wall of the trade show booth. Drape it in appropriate banners that help follow the theme you have developed.
• Include adequate light. Giant trade show halls tend to develop dark spots and shadows in individual booths. Make sure the lighting is even and designed for the theme.
Theme Focus
• Utilize existing images already developed for marketing collateral for trade show exhibit graphics. This will help cut down costs, and make it easy to develop a consistent theme–from the smallest document to the largest banner in your space.
• For smaller spaces, do not try to be too many things to too many people. Develop a single powerful theme that is simple to communicate, and carry that concept forward through the whole convention.
• One downfall of many trade show exhibit graphics is they are simply not legible. Ensure that text on banners and standing signs is large enough to be seen from quite a distance. Put the text on the upper half of the sign. This keeps the display from being blocked when a crowd of people standing is in front of it.
Quality Giveaways
• Make sure all promotional items follow the theme and pertain to the major points of the overall sales presentation. Check each giveaway to see that contact information has been printed clearly and accurately.
• When possible, avoid handing out trinkets and instead provide useful quality gifts. Examples might be a quality calculator or other useful office item. It is also a good investment to buy enough products that you have some left over for additional giveaways from the company office.
• The standard business card is often forgotten in the rush to develop high-quality promotional material for an upcoming convention. Make sure there are plenty of business cards because you will go through more than you think.
Planning trade show exhibit graphics is a significant undertaking. By following these simple tips, you can ensure that your clients and prospects will enjoy your presentation, and you can look forward to more customers and increased sales from the effort.