Many companies decide to participate in one or more trade shows each year as a way to connect with others in their field as well as new clients. Exhibit booth design is the central marketing opportunity with which visitors are drawn in to discuss the product or service being displayed. Because of this, it is of the utmost importance that trade show booth designs are given as much thought and attention as any other advertising campaign.
Trade Show Booth Designs from Different Perspectives
The typical trade show visitor spends more than nine hours viewing exhibits. With so many companies competing for visitor?s attention, it is absolutely necessary to stand out from the crowd with a custom exhibit design. The first thing companies must consider when constructing their exhibit design is the size of the fonts and graphics that will be used.
Sans-serif fonts are typically recommended for easy readability. However, if the company logo and marketing materials utilize a different font consistency is more important for branding purposes. Regardless of which font is chosen, it is important not to use more than three different fonts in any one display. The size of the fonts should vary based on where the readers will be viewing the text. Generally, every foot away from the text the font size should be increased by about an inch.
The varying size rule also applies to any graphics which will be used. It is important to ensure graphics are easily visible from various distances. The largest graphics should be placed as high as the governing rules will allow so they are easily visible from as far away as possible. Medium range graphics go just above eye level at about eight feet from the floor. Graphics intended to be viewed in the trade show booth designs by visitors to the booth should be just below six feet from the floor.
Interactive Exhibit Design
Another way to gain maximum attention from visitors is to focus on unique custom designs that encourage people to interact in some way with the booth or the people working the table. There are several ways to do this, depending on the overall message and focus of the company. A company that has a product they are trying to promote can easily accomplish this by facilitating demonstrations and opportunities to test the new product. If this is the tactic that is chosen, it is important to have enough products to allow multiple people to try them out at a time. Having to wait in a long line to try something that might be fun will frustrate many visitors and may leave an unfavorable long-term impression.
What about companies that sell services? There is no reason to feel restricted in terms of interaction with visitors. Create a game around the theme of the business and encourage people to play. Any interactive component that allows those working at the table to spend more time talking to the visitors walking by provides an exponential increase in the viability of a trade booth as a promotional opportunity.
The purpose of custom trade show booth designs is to ensure visitors notice and remember your booth. It needs to be attractive, interactive, and unusual enough to keep people talking about it long after they have moved on to the next booth. By putting as much time and effort into custom exhibits as any other advertising campaign, it is possible to maximize the positive effect of the experience.
