Trade Show Display Pros

If there is one thing about trade shows that you want to be well-versed in, it is the trade show display shipping process. Making sure all of your exhibit materials get to the show in one piece and on time, is critical to the success of your show. If you have materials that require hiring a freight company to ship, there are several things you should be aware of well before the show. Keep these ideas in mind as you prepare for your upcoming events.

Don't fall for the exhibitor marketing tactics.

As an exhibitor, you will be subject to a plethora of marketing directed towards you in order to make your trade show experience more successful. Many trade shows will take exclusive distributors for certain services and freight companies will likely fall into the category. It is important to understand that the recommended freight company is not your only option. Be sure to still do your research and choose a company that will work well with your needs.

Be sure to carefully consider your timeline.

Having a clear calendar of your arrival, setup, take down and departure will help you manage your shipping timeline. Understand that the "expected" shipping date does not guarantee that your items will be in your booth on that date. If you have to do some adjusting to your schedule in order to ensure that your collateral arrives safely and on time, do so. This may require you to arrive earlier and leave the event later in order to ensure that all job are carried out.

Understand the process and all of its moving parts.

Having a clear understanding of the process is going to help you tremendously. If you are a new shipper, you probably don't realize how many moving parts and responsibilities are involved in the process. In order to plan more efficiently for your event, be sure to take note of what is required before, during and after the show in order to ensure a seamless process for all that are involved.

Always be aware.

If you are a experienced shipper, understand that processes change and making assumptions can add a great deal of unneeded stress. Consistent and thorough communication with your freight company will help all parties avoid mistakes and any miscommunication. Don’t fall into the traps that assumptions will often lead you into. Every show is different and will generally result in different requirements to fulfill your shipping needs.

Keep track of your paperwork.

We can't tell you how many replacement orders we process because people lost track of their displays and their paperwork at the show. Whether you are setting up or taking down, it is important to realize how many things are happening at once and how easily it is for items and communication to be lost. Be accountable for your displays and ensure they are taken care of properly. Taking the time to ensure that all of your belongings are accounted for and taken care of will save you a lot of money in the long run.

Be sure to do your research on reviews of trade show shipping and exhibition logistics companies before you send off your valuable and essential trade show displays. Running into shipping problems right before an event is the last thing you want to be dealing with.

When you are attending a trade show as an exhibitor, there are a lot of things you need that you might not have thought of. We have complied a list of essentials for you to gather and a to-do list before you go.

First up, stating the obvious, remember your banners, hardware and marketing signage. Odds are, you probably have some table covers, floor graphics, kiosks or other trade show graphics to help show off your products and services. A great way to make sure that you haven’t forgotten anything is to draw a bird’s-eye view of your booth space and get a sense for where everything will be placed. Having this will not only get you more familiar with your space, but you’ll also be able to check items off the list when you’re packing everything up.

While you are busy worrying about the big stuff you need to bring, don’t forget the little things that will be crucial to your success. Be sure to stock up on pens, business cards, note pads, sticky notes, paper clips, rubber bands, staples or any other office supplies that you know will come in handy while you’re at the show. Consider if you’ll be handing anything out and what you’ll need to make that process go smoothly. You might even consider literature racks if you have brochures and fliers that you’re handing out. This will make it so people can gather information about your business if you are already speaking with someone else.

Next, you’ll want to consider your setup. An actual tool kit with a screw driver, hammer, pliers, etc. will typically come in handy and always provide for a much more efficient setup. The last thing you are going to want to be doing while you’re setting up is running around trying to track down a tool. Some other great items to have on hand, just in case, include velcro, tape (preferably tape that matches your banner stands and setup), baby wipes, box cutters… you see where we are going with this. Try to think of what your setup will consist of and the tools and accessories you can bring to help aid your process.

If your trade show display has any type of electronics involved, make sure you have all of your adapters. If you have certain equipment that is essential for your display, it is never a bad idea to have a backup if possible. Having a monitor or speaker go out in the middle of a show could be catastrophic. Extra extension cords are also never a bad idea. Just remember to tape them to the floor so that people are not tripping over your cords or damaging your equipment.

It is always handy to have a list of local vendors that are close to the convention center or your hotel in case you have any last minute needs or emergencies. Small and large format printers are great contacts to have as well as any specialty items that you can think of. Doing your research prior to the show will help ease your stress if something unexpected comes up before or during the show.

Last, but not least, don’t forget to take care of yourself and the team. A first aid kit is always a great thing to have on hand in case someone ends up getting a headache, sore throat from talking or encounters and unforeseen injury during the show. Throat lozenges, bandaids, aspirin, ibuprofen, and eye drops are all worthy attributes to a trade show first aid kit. While considering the health and well-being of the booth staff, make sure that you are stocked up with plenty of easily accessible water and power bars. As the show goes on, you’ll most likely end up getting shorter and less breaks than you had anticipated. Be sure to stay hydrated and nourished!

If you’re questioning whether or not you should bring something, it is better to be safe than sorry. Being over-prepared is a good strategy when it comes to preparing your trade show tool kit. Remember to always refresh your tool kit after the show so that there isn’t anything missing the next time.

Everyone in the business world has their first trade show experience at some point or another. After your first show, there always seems to be the most takeaways that you know you'd incorporate or do differently the next time. Below are some tips to hopefully give you a head start before your first or next show.

Positioning

Odds are, when you booked your last trade show, you didn’t give as much thought to “where” your booth was, until you arrived at the show. Once you’re at the show, it seems to be a lot more obvious where all the traffic is drawn to and where you wish your booth was at. Try to remember where the booth was that had all the traffic at your last event; most likely it was in the main walkway. Just like selling products, positioning at a trade show has a huge impact on your overall success. Remember, the earlier you book your booth, the more spaces you’ll have to choose from, so get a head start and book sooner rather than later.

If you find yourself booking a space late in the game and you’re left with spaces that aren’t the most ideal, it’s not the end of the world. This is when it might be worth the extra investment to get directional pop up a-frame banners or floor graphics to point people in your direction. There’s always a place for display that will get people where you want them.

Display Quality

If your last trade show was your first trade show, you might have gotten shown up by the competition who weren’t experiencing their first rodeo. If you think back to the booths that had swarms of people around their booth at any given point in time, not only were they in the main walkway, but they probably had an irresistible display.

Focusing on a stellar display may seem like frivolous spending of your precious budget, but you have to keep the study of human psychology at the forefront of your decision making process. People are naturally drawn to things that look good. Don’t make the mistake of slacking on the overall presentation of your trade show booth. You’ll regret it when your competitors are driving all the traffic to their booths with their immaculate trade show displays.

Get Social

Not only is it important to be social and outgoing at the show to create new relationships, but being active on social media will help your success tremendously. Start by creating a campaign on the platforms that you have established the most. This will help you let people know about the upcoming show and help you drive more traffic. A great way to get people excited about visiting your exhibit is by sharing sneak peaks or possible prizes/deals you’ll be featuring at the show. Give your followers an additional incentive to share the information you’re posting, by offering additional prize entries, or something creative that doesn’t cost you extra.

A common mistake that exhibitors make, is getting carried away with the event and neglecting their social feeds during the show. If you need to hire an intern or someone to manage the engagement on your social media during the show, do it! Keep the excitement going and keep the feed updated throughout the event. Social campaigns during an event are a also a great way to gain new followers. Small giveaways for a “like” is a great strategy for this.

Share What’s New

Back to the human psychology, people love anything “New”. If you have products or services that haven’t been introduced to the public yet, share them at the show! Don’t worry; if you don’t have anything that is “new” remember that often times, when we work with certain products or services every single day, they don’t seem new to us, but to the rest of the world, it is new! That being said, don’t be afraid to tack on “New” to your displays that feature your products or services that aren’t widely recognized by the general public.

If you’re looking for ways to display what is new, tension fabric displays or banner walls are a great way to showcase your product or service in a big way. These eye-catching displays will surely bring in the inquiries. If you’re looking to provide additional information, a table top display is a great solution for more content to go into further explanation.

Be Nice

While making your booth visually appealing is important and helps to bring traffic, don’t forget to bring it back to the basics of customer service. While your Expand banner stands might get potential customers in the door, it will be your charisma and customer service that makes the impression that lasts. Make the impression a good one; remember to smile and concentrate on forming quality relationships.

Hold Your Horses

It’s no secret once you’ve worked a trade show; they’re exhausting! It is easy to get antsy about leaving and you’re going to want to pack up as soon as the show starts dying down so you can beat the traffic and be done. The truth is, you never know when you’re going meet the person you were hoping to meet the entire show. While there aren’t any guarantees, a good rule of thumb is to plan on sticking it out until the end. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve met the most valuable contact of the entire show after the crowds died down. Good things come to those who wait and don’t pack up at the first sign of traffic slowing down.

Analyze the Show

You may have noticed at your first trade show, that you forgot to implement something to track how many people visited your booth, how much product you sold, or how many appointments you setup. Make sure you have things in place to be able to track your success. Everyone will measure their success differently based on their goals, so it is important to set your goals before the show and then implement a strategy to track it so you can do better at your next show.

If you need help with any of your trade show booth design or layout, let the Trade Show Display Pros help! Give us a call at 877-389-8645.

Trade shows can be a great investment and opportunity for branding and meeting qualified decision makers. Although the benefits of a trade show are easy to point out, there are undoubtedly a lot of costs that go into planning and executing a successful trade show. The costs of a trade show often scare businesses away from the opportunity, but there are a plethora of ways to save and still run an efficient and successful show.

Getting the Word Out

Advertising your event is an essential part of your trade show execution. You want to get the word out in order to drive as much traffic to your event as possible. Now, there are countless ways that you can advertise and they range tremendously in cost. If you're looking to save, one of the best options is to use social media and your existing networks.

If you have a following on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or any social media platform, those are all great channels to spread your message. You can either post for free or choose to allocate a small budget to reach an even larger audience outside of your followers.

If you have a database of email addresses, sending out an email newsletter is also a very affordable and effective way to get people's attention. Letting your contacts know about what they can expect at the show as far as offers, discounts or giveaways is a great way to increase attendance. Combining an email newsletter with social media by encouraging people to "share" for additional promotions could go a long way as well.

Another great way to get the word out is to take advantage of the complimentary mediums that the show is offering for the exhibitors. Often times they will offer exhibitors space on their website, magazines, press releases and more. The key is to stay informed and to take advantage of all the opportunities that are given to drive traffic to your booth.

Exhibit Materials

It's no secret that the best looking booths generally attract the most attention and therefore the most traffic. This is generally the portion of your budget that goes the quickest, but if you do your research, you can spruce up your booth for an affordable price and still look great. Tradeshow Display Pros offers the widest selection of displays from inexpensive to elaborate to fit any price range and display need.

It's important to consider materials like banner stands, table top displays, etc. as long-term investments. Keep in mind that you can reuse these materials at future shows or even as point of sale pieces. Try to leave out show/date specific content that will outdate the material for alternative uses.

Handouts and Brochures

Having marketing materials or brochures to hand out to trade show attendees can be one of the largest costs you encounter during a trade show and the majority of them will end up in the trash. A great way to save in this area is to take advantage of ever increasing and reliable technology and go paperless! Create a digital brochure and ask for people's email addresses. Not only are you getting them a copy of what they want, but you're also gaining valuable contact information which will allow you to follow up after the show.

Booth Staff

Securing a booth for the show can be quite expensive just in itself. That being said, you want to send the right team to make the event as successful as possible. Sending a low energy staff that sits in the corner of the booth the whole time will surely backfire and yield and unsuccessful event. On the other hand, if you're able to send an outgoing crew that understands the goals of the show and the long and short term benefits of the investment, your money will be well spent.

Observe the Competition and the Industry

Keep in mind that to stand out at a trade show, you really only need to look better than the other exhibitors. In some industries, having a custom table cover and banner stand would make you stand out among the competition, where others might require a much more elaborate display. Spending too little on your display can cost you traffic, but spending too much can be a waste of your budget that could have been used to help pay for the other collateral materials you’ll need at the show.

In summary, there are so many ways to save money when planning a trade show event. The key to all of it is getting a head start and doing all of your research. If you put off your planning until the last minute, you'll end up paying top dollar for everything and most likely end up being unprepared all together. Starting to plan your trade show 12 months prior to the event isn't unheard of and is generally the major key to success.

The fabric collage style of trade show display isn't new. These displays have been available for a few years now, but were only offered from a few manufacturers so they haven't had widespread exposure until more recently. We held off offering them until we could find a reliable supplier with reasonable pricing for our customers, and now that we have, we're happy to finally make the Claim fabric pop up displays available.

This style of fabric pop up display never fails to get attention, thanks to it's unique look. Another big advantage they have is that the graphics stay attached to the frame when it's collapsed, so set up takes only seconds and makes this one of the easiest to set up of any trade show display. The downside to this style of display is that instead of a large, single graphic that covers the entire display, you have a collage of smaller graphics. This makes for a more challenging design since you have less overall space for your message, and it's broken up into various sizes of individual graphics. This can work very well for certain applications, but not so well for others, so it's important to think about how you would use the graphic space available in one of these kits before deciding to purchase one.

Early variations of this style of display had button holes sewn into the corners of the graphics that fit over hooks on the frame. That left those hooks visible which wasn't very attractive. The XClaim displays have a push-fit style connection in the corners of the graphics that fit into the hubs of the frame. A twist-on cap fits over the hubs and hides the graphic attachment for a clean look that doesn't detract from the overall presentation.

Available in a wide variety of sizes, from table top displays to full 10 foot wide trade show displays, the idea behind these displays is pretty simple. Take a pop up style display frame, and instead of covering the entire display with graphics, attach graphics within each quadrant of the frame. The most basic kits fill each quadrant with single graphic. For more visual interest, the graphic can be attached in some corners to the front of the frame, and in others to the back of the frame.

By making some of the graphics cover more than one quadrant of the frame, you get a larger focal point in the display that also makes for an interesting collage.

Adding different sizes and shapes of graphics to the back of the display, and layering different graphics on the front side of the frame, creates depth and allows for some interesting shapes to be formed. This can be strictly for visual appeal, or with some creative design, the areas of the back side graphics that are visible from the front graphics can also be used to convey information. Leaving some quadrants open, or partially open is also popular, but adding graphics to the back side so they can be seen where there are gaps in the front gives even more options.

Some kits even have different shaped graphics in the quadrants, and combine that with graphics that might occupy two to four quadrants. Shapes like triangles, stars or diamonds are eye catching, but also have less usable surface area so choose kits with these alternate shapes carefully.

There are even kits where the frame is turned 45 degrees to create a pyramid shape, for even more visual interest. These have a wider footprint than the standard kits, so keep that in mind when selecting a pyramid shaped display.

These shapes are so different from standard trade show displays, that customers can't help but notice them. For the truly adventurous and creative, it's possible to create your own kit with a la carte graphics. We don't offer this on the website, so you would need to contact us for options and pricing, but if none of the kits on our site are exactly what you're looking for, this option allows you to customize one to your liking.

Each XClaim fabric pop up display kit comes with the frame, the graphics and a travel bag. The pop up frame has magnetic arms that connect to hold the display in its expanded position, so it's extremely easy to set up and take down. Hard shipping cases are available as options, as are lights, with the exception of the pyramid kits. Because the lights attach to the hubs of the frame, and the frame is rotated 45 degrees with the pyramids, there isn't a place to attach the lights on the pyramid shapes, so lights aren't an option for those.

If you're looking for a new table top display or floor standing trade show display, and you want something that's easy to set up and doesn't look like other displays, take a look at the XClaim fabric pop up displays. They may be exactly what you need to make your next trade show a big success. For the month of February, we're offering $50 off any of the 8' and 10' XClaim displays, so be sure to check them out. Use promo code FEB2016T during check out if you decide one of these displays is right for you.

Retractable banner stands are incredibly popular as free-standing displays. They're quick and easy to set up, and come in a huge variety of widths, heights and base styles, so it's possible to find a model for almost any trade show space or display need. It was only a matter of time until people started seeing greater potential for these displays by using them together to form banner walls and backdrops.

Portable banner stands have always been popular for making banner walls because they have no base with a mechanism to retract the banner. This allows the banner to be full width of the display so that when multiple banners are placed side-by-side, there's no gap between them. They are still the best option for making a straight banner wall that's virtually seamless, but since they don't retract, the banners must be removed and manually rolled up between uses. This takes time and allows more opportunity for the banners to get damaged, both during the set up and take down, as well as while they are stored. Retractable banner stands don't have this problem, but the bases are wider than the banners themselves, so there would always be a gap between the banners when making a retractable wall.

That's where the Space Link banner stand is unique. It was designed specifically to allow multiple stands to be placed together to form a banner wall, and it has a special design that eliminates the gap between the banners. By having the banner exit the bottom of the base, rather than the top, and angling the shape of the base, the Space Link allows the banner to be the full width of the front of the base. Because of that, when stands are placed together, there is no gap between the banners, making the only virtually seamless retractable banner wall on the market. Because of the slight wedge shape to the base, the Space Link is not a good solution for a straight banner wall, as there would be a larger gap between the banners than with a traditional banner stand. But for a curved banner wall, the angle between the stands is ideal to eliminate the gaps between banners.
The Space Link has some additional features that make it ideal for creating banner walls and backdrops. There are magnetic connectors in the top rails that link the stands together to ensure there are no gaps, and the banner almost completely hides the front of the base and top rail so only the graphic is visible. Other features include a push button release for the lid, a removable roller with both a snap rail and panel strip mounting option, and a deluxe travel bag for each stand. All these features add up to make the Space Link Retractable Banner Stand the perfect model for creating curved banner walls, as well as being an excellent stand for individual use.

We've made the Space Link Banner Walls our special this month to increase the awareness of this unique product. To take advantage of this offer, use the coupon code JAN2016T during checkout to save $100 when either size banner wall is ordered with banners.

As a reminder, we announce our monthly specials first on our social media sites in order to encourage customers to follow us on Facebook, Google+ or Twitter. Be sure to follow us on one of these sites for advance notification of these specials.

Use this link to see our entire collection of Banner Walls and contact us if you have a display in mind that isn't shown on our site.

The Carrera retractable banner stand is one of our newest models, and we're offering a $20 discount during the month of July to encourage our customers to try this new model. This cassette style retractable banner stand has an inexpensive graphic cassette that holds the banner, which makes it extremely easy to change out the banner in this display. You simply turn the base upside down to access the cassette from the bottom, pivot the retaining clips to release the cassette, remove it and replace it with a new cassette, pivot the retaining clips into place and you're done. There's no other retractable banner stand on the market with faster or easier banner changes.

Retractable banner stands are the most popular style of banner stand because they are so easy to set up and take down. They are easily portable and allow a banner display to be set up almost instantly in any location. Multiple stands can be used together to form a larger display, and single displays can be used in small spaces to take advantage of otherwise wasted booth space. They can be used as a primary display at a trade show, or as a supplemental display to complement other trade show displays in the space.

What makes the Carrera unique is the low cost of the replacement cassettes. At only $40, it's the least expensive graphic cassette available, and it finally makes the idea of ordering a replacement graphic installed on a new cassette affordable. Other cassette style retractable banner stands have been on the market for years, but the replacement cassettes were so expensive that you could literally purchase an entire banner stand for less than one of these cassettes. This made them impractical for most customers, so they were never best sellers.

What makes the inexpensive cassette on the Carrera possible is the extremely sturdy construction of the base. It's a single piece of extruded aluminum, which is also unique among retractable banner stands. This design offers excellent protection for the cassette, so it doesn't need to be heavy duty, since it's protected inside it's slot in the base.

Aside from the replacement cassette, the Carrera has some other great features. It has a telescopic support pole that allows the banner height to be adjusted from 61" to 89" tall. It also has adjustable feet in all four corners of the base to allow it to be leveled on uneven floors. Most stands have two adjustable feet in the front corners of the base, if they have feet at all, so having four feet makes it possible to keep the stand level on floors that would give other stands trouble.

We've made the Carrera our special this month because we think that once our customer's try it, it will become a favorite. To take advantage of this offer, use the coupon code JULY2015T during checkout. Like all our banner stands, the Carrera is available with or without a printed banner. If ordered with a printed banner, there are several options of banner material to choose from that range from inexpensive to high end banners to suit the particular needs of each customer. There are descriptions of each material on the site, and we also have printed samples available on request. Of course, we're always available during business hours by phone or live chat to offer help and advice as well.

As a reminder, we announce our monthly specials first on our social media sites in order to encourage customers to follow us on Facebook, Google+ or Twitter. Be sure to follow us on one of these sites for advance notification of these specials.

Our site is dedicated to bringing quality, affordable trade show displays and graphics to the widest possible audience. We've been doing that for over 25 years, but this website is a new way to make our products and services available to even more people.

Trade shows are important in most industries, and for some, trade show success is critical to their business. This puts a tremendous amount of stress and pressure on the people responsible for making sure their business's trade show goes smoothly. We understand this, and it's why we take every order and every deadline seriously, to help relieve some of that stress. Whether it's a small or large job, when customers put their trust in us by placing an order, we do everything in our power to make sure that order is completed correctly and on time. By doing our job correctly, we take the strain off our customers so they can focus on making their trade show successful.

That seems like common sense. After all, that's what we're being paid to do. When shopping online, and the order shows up on time as expected, most of us take that for granted because it's what we paid for. Unfortunately, many companies today don't seem to understand this basic responsibility. New customers often feel they have to constantly follow up to make sure their order is going to be done on time, which makes us realize that they've been trained to do that by the poor performance of our competitors. We've found that a positive side effect of taking pride in our work and actually caring how each job turns out is that it makes for repeat customers who refer their friends and colleagues to us. Simple things like answering the phone, responding quickly to e-mails, helping resolve problems as fast as possible, and providing timely answers to questions are things we do because it's how we believe a professional business should behave, but these are other examples of things that differentiate us in the industry.

Since trade show displays are almost always purchased with a deadline looming, another way we help alleviate stress for our customers is by offering fast standard turn around times and even faster rush options. During checkout, we show the expected delivery date of every order based on what is being purchased and the shipping method selected. We also offer the option of entering a specific due date so our system can select the least expensive shipping method, and if necessary, rush services, that will meet that due date. This is another of the things that makes us different from the competition, and the fact that no one else offers this capability is an indication of the technical difficulty involved. While it doesn't sound ground breaking, with the wide range of products and services we offer, it was a very time consuming and expensive feature to add. But, it's just another example of our commitment to making purchasing trade show displays and graphics from us a stress free experience.

We're happy you've found our site and hope you'll give us a try. We'd love to be your favorite supplier of trade show displays and graphics and promise to work hard earn your business.