The Only Trade Show Checklist You Will Ever Need

64% of trade show attendees will tell at least 6 other people about the trade show afterwards, while 76% will ask for quotes ,and 26% sign purchase orders at the show  (CEIR). With these stats like, there is no denying that trade shows are rocket fuel for business. They give you an opportunity to introduce your brand to thousands of industry professionals in the space of a day. You can work your conversational magic to convert leads into sales.

To really make the most of your exhibiting and conversational marketing efforts, you have to get them right. That’s where our trade show checklist comes in.

Over the years, we’ve fine-tuned our trade show checklist to cover everything you need to think about before, during ,and after your trade show appearances to guarantee you make a success of it.

1. Your Exhibition Stand Design

Our stand design checklist is about inspiring ideas. These are some of the things you might want to consider when designing your exhibition stand to maximise usability and visual impact at trade shows. 

Exhibiting Location

Design your display with your exhibiting space location in mind. Whereabouts are you located in the venue? How can you design your display to reach more eyes? In which direction will foot traffic be flowing? 

Storage

Bags and belongings do not look good strewn around your exhibition stand space. Factor in storage to improve first impressions, declutter your area, and open up space for meaningful conversations. We usually stow our belongings inside our T3 counters  and T3 back wall storage areas. T3 storage cupboards are an option too.   

Showcasing Units 

If you’re promoting a product, how do you plan to showcase your offering? Cabinets? Inbuilt or floating Shelves? Glass cases? Pick a showcasing solution that’s right for you. 

Lighting

Stand illumination will automatically increase the visibility of your exhibition stand and set the mood. There are so many different lighting options to choose from: underlit flooring, light box walls, led counters; aerial lights, floodlights, spotlights, and custom lighting. 

Private or Semi-Private Meeting Areas

 Meaningful one-on-one interactions with your brand ambassadors will heighten the likelihood of converting leads to customers. The leads are already warmed up – they’ve chosen to approach your stand after all – now you just need to set the scene to push them towards a sale. 

Screens

Having screens is one thing; knowing how to take full advantage of them is something else. AV screens can be a great marketing tool, but you need to make sure your content is tailored to your audience and your show objectives.
You could use your screens to give intimate presentations, show promo videos; use them for interactive gaming or social walls. You can flush mount or surface mount screens with T3 – even when using fabric graphics. Think about strategic positioning to reach more eyes and face oncoming foot traffic. 

iPads & Touchscreens

Integrating interactive tech into your exhibition stands is a great way to promote your brand message digitally and engage passing visitors. iPads, touch screens, and tablets can be displayed on your stand any way you like. They can be built into your counters or information stands. 

Does the Design Match Your Brand

Ensure your stand design portrays the brand image you want people to see and always question your design. Should your display have soft lines, be curvy, or incorporate dynamic angles? Does it reflect the brand? Does it help support your show objectives such as launching a service, and showcasing products? Does the stand design enable you to have the conversations you need to have? These are the questions you should be asking yourself.   

Shelving

Forward-set shelving, floating shelves, and in-set shelving are some of the options for displaying your products. You can integrate shelves into your walls, hide behind doors, and feature custom lighting to really highlight them. 

Platforms & Podiums

Platforms and podiums are another effective way to showcase your offering. They’re perfect for larger products. Some of our partners have used podiums to showcase aircraft propellers and state-of-the-art  drones.

Graphics

Print graphics that make sense for your stand. Materials range from tension fabric to Foamex and semi-rigid PVC. If you opt for a tension fabric, you can suspend lighting behind it to create a lightbox effect. Your graphic artwork should incorporate your logo, brand colours, and a standout brand message. Think about how to future-proof your graphics so that you can use them multiple times. 

Counters

Counters are a trade show staple. They can double up as greeting desks, storage, and information points. You can integrate screens into the surface for an interactive countertop. Beer taps and mini-fridges are a nice feature to be integrated too. Your counters can be wrapped in graphics so they’ll work to reinforce the branding used on the rest of your display!

Gantries 

T3 gantries  are bridge-like structures that attach one section of your display to another. You can clad them with brand messaging for better brand reach whilst framing the action going on underneath. They provide a great solution for lighting and, when there is no platform floor, for carrying electrics around your stand. 

Collateral Racks

Are you bringing along leaflets or brochures? Or you may bring product catalogues or business cards.

You will need to think strategically about where and how these will be displayed or stored on your stand. don’t leave it as an after-thought.

Ask yourself, do you want them available to be easily picked up? Or do you want to control how and when you give them out? 

Read more on things to consider when designing your exhibition stand.

2. Before You Exhibit

Reserve Your Exhibiting Space Early

Trade show spaces can book up quickly. The spaces positioned best for visibility, reach and foot traffic flow will be the first to go. So, book yours in as early as possible to snatch up an exhibiting area primed for a more successful exhibiting experience.   

Establish Goals

Think about why you’re attending the show to exhibit. Is it to increase brand awareness? Generate new leads? Promote a new product? Establishing clear goals will help to direct your targets.   

Find Out the Trade Show Demographics

Equally important: find out more about the trade show demographic. Understand who will be attending the show. What is their job function? Are they executive decision-makers? You may need to know the age and gender of your demographic if it is important to your brand objectives.  Knowing the demographic of the show is an important part of deciding to exhibit. Taking demographics into consideration can help you steer your exhibiting strategy. 

Set Measurable Targets

With your goals established, it’s time to think about targets. They need to be measurable. For example, your target might be : 

• Capture 100 valuable leads 
• Network with 10 industry influencers 
• Conduct 30 market research surveys   
  

Decide On Your Message

Your message needs to be short and snappy.  Catch the attention of passers-by with something captivating that grabs their attention. Decide what you want to get across into a twenty-odd second elevator-style pitch.

Establish A Budget & Set Your ROI Target

Track the event performance for 9 – 12 months, subject to your sales cycle, to truly understand the business impact of exhibiting. 

Scout Out Your Competitors

Find out more about who you’ll be competing with at your expo venue. Try and identify hot trends and bring something to your stand that will give you a competitive edge over other exhibitors.   

Setup Your Exhibitor Profile

If you’re set to exhibit, complete your exhibitor profile so attendees can familiarise themselves with your brand and get to know what you’re about beforehand.   

Pre-Show Promotion Strategy

A pre-show promotion strategy is a must. Create landing pages or digital signup forms. Spread the word that you're exhibiting across your social media platforms. Maybe do a social media countdown. Use content to stir interest and raise awareness before you attend.   

Come Up With Some Contests

Nothing like a contest to maximise engagement and generate buzz on your stand.  Better yet, incorporate your product into the contest or raise the stakes of your contest with a prize. We did this on our  Marketing Week Live 2019  stand, and it instantly got people interested.   

Get Your Graphics Done In Time

If you outsource your graphics, make sure you know your vendor’s lead times for print and delivery.  Also, find out about the substrate you plan on using and understand how your graphics will be produced to be sure your graphics reflect the quality of your brand. 

Sort Out Logistics

Decide whether you want to take your team to take your display to the show or an install team. How will your stand make it to the location? 

Install & Dismantle

Who will do the installation and dismantle, a professional team or your staff? If your team is doing the installation, do they have their step-by-step build plans ready to guide them? 

Travel Documents

Passports, boarding passes, visas: all important documents to have sorted if your trade show is overseas.  When on home ground, make sure your team has the right travel and accommodation information, passes, permits, and venue details. 

Choose Your Exhibiting Team

Who do you want on the stand? Pick a team that you think will work best to achieve the goals you’ve set.  And train them – tell them why you’re exhibiting, and share objectives and key messages so that they can deliver. Don’t forget an on-stand briefing each morning to reinforce the task at hand. 

Uniforms

Is your team going to be wearing their standard work uniform? Or are you tailoring team outfits depending on the event? If you want to promote your brand message or a new product, incorporate it onto the backs of t-shirts. Make sure you order them in time! 

Photography

If you don’t have a photography enthusiast or a decent camera, invest in a professional photographer to get quality action shots of the day. The photos will make for a great landing page and social media content. 

Book Appointments Beforehand

75% of trade show attendees will have already decided on the booths they want to visit before attending the show (CEIR). With that in mind, try and reach out to people before the show and get them booked into appointments. 

4. During The Show

Body Language

Everything from eye contact duration, to hand gestures and body posture can impact the success rate of your sales effort. Constantly be aware of how you are coming across to visitors on the stand. Use open body language and open palms. And remember: visitors are already judging you from 20 feet away. 

Product Knowledge

According to HubSpot, 61% of buyers view providing relevant information as the most important factor for a positive sales experience. Create a question and answer cheat sheets for FAQs. Read up and learn so you're prepared to offer up answers visitors want to hear. 

Schedule Follow-Ups

Once you’ve warmed up your leads at your expo, schedule follow-ups. Maybe they’d like to schedule in a product demonstration or a meeting to discuss the next step. Follow-ups will nurture your leads and will increase the likelihood of a conversion ten-fold. 

Stagger Breaks – And Make Sure Your Team Takes Them!

Your team needs to be happy. Yes, you want to cram in as many conversations as possible, but they’re there to act as brand ambassadors. If your staff are tired out, they’re less likely to perform as well. Take advantage of breaks to recharge and refresh so that everyone is on top of their game.

5. After The Show

Follow-Up

You can start the follow-up while the show is still going on, as well as immediately afterwards, and use tailored responses based on the conversation that took place. You could also mention the next steps promised.  You should consider sending an email out to leads thanking them for attending the show and reminding them of who you are, and what they saw from you at the show, and reinforcing your brand in their mind. 

Evaluate Performance

What worked? Or what didn't? Did your team think about their performance? What did attendees have to say about their experience on your stand?

Get feedback from everyone from your team involved with the show. If possible, you could conduct a visitor survey asking for feedback.

Use the results of your review to inform your future exhibiting approaches.

Nurture Your Leads

Make sure all of your leads are added to your CRM database and keep track of them. Plan email and phone follow-ups to nurture them and get them to buy your product or service.

Trade shows can be hard to navigate, and with so much to think about it’s easy to forget something that could end up being vital to the success of your trade show appearances.

Use this trade show checklist when you next exhibit, and you’ll be well on your way to getting those valuable leads and generating fantastic ROI.