There is nothing more important than to be present at certain industry events. However, what is equally, if not more important is to attract the attention and interest of your targeted audience at the events you participate in.
This is imperative for creating a strong and lasting impression at an exhibition through your stand design. As you know, the first impression is a lasting impression, this holds true when it comes to attracting exhibition stand traffic at a trade show.
I’ve crafted some strategies that I guide my clients with for designing a great and eye-catching exhibition stand that attract customers and deliver great results for their businesses.
1. Set objectives for your ideal exhibition stand design
The first step is to clearly define why you want to participate at this exhibition. Do you want to sell more products or services at the trade show? Or do you want to generate more leads? Maybe you’re about to launch a new product. Whatever your purpose is, your exhibition stand design should reflect your goals.
Be sure to clearly define the reason you are participating at the exhibition and the message you want to convey to your audience with your stand design. Keep these two goals in mind throughout the design process for your booth. It’s also important to include your brand’s image into the overall design.
2. Compile a clear and precise brief
When you begin engaging with an exhibition stand company, it’s important for them to know your products, your objectives and the requirements from the start.
Be sure to include things such as your logo, brand guidelines, brand values, product or service information. Any new feature of the service or product which needs to be displayed on the stand should also be shared.
3. Do some of your own research
It is essential for you to do your own research. Use image search sites like Pinterest or Google, to help you find inspiration and ideas, visit other trade shows and make note of what works, what resonates most and what draws traffic to a stand.
4. Make sure your target audience is front of mind
The sole and entire reason for exhibiting is to attract your target audience. Make sure you clearly define your target audience, it may even help to provide your exhibition design company with your personas, this way the stand design will tick all their boxes and pain points.
When designing your exhibition stand, it’s crucial that you always keep in mind your target audience so that you can focus your concept on their requirements. It’s easy to get caught up and design a stand based on what you or your company thinks is best.
5. Take advantage of your booth space
When you design your exhibition stand you always need to make sure you take full advantage of the booth size you selected.
Once you purchase your booth space, the show organisers will send you a pack which will include the booth dimensions. These should be submitted to your exhibition stand designer. Your stand designer will be able to mockup a few different concepts that will make the best use of the space.
Depending on where your exhibition stand will be placed, you might benefit from a two-storey design. It’s not all about the dimensions on the floor, height is a fundamental part of the design. A two-storey design will allow your brand to be higher and more noticeable from your competition. Other things you can do with height on your exhibition stand is bulkheads, high arches or tall towers.
6. Get the right message across
When it comes to designing your brand message, remember less is more. Be sure to use a message that is as succinct as possible and will catch the eye of your target audience.
A few words have a much larger impact than sentences and spark the interest of visitors. Another aspect to consider here is fonts. They need to be large and clear enough so that your message can be read by visitors from afar and also walking around.
Also, make sure that your key messaging is placed on the top half of your exhibition stand design because it needs to be visible throughout the halls.
7. The graphics need to be worth a thousand words
As the saying goes, great images on your stand will be far more impactful than just using words. A brilliant image can help convey attracting messages and ideas quickly and effectively without the need for any more text.
Be creative and think of the message you will be able to attract your target audience with. On exhibition stands images can be life-sized which has been proven to be highly efficient amongst visitors.
It’s important to think about the optimal placement for your graphics and make sure it can be seen from a distance and understood by your audience instantly.
8. The right lighting makes all the difference
First of all, having lights on your exhibition stand will help you enhance messaging and graphics.
Lighting allows visitors to clearly read your messages and better see your products and services.
Lighting can also highlight the most important areas of the exhibition stand, which is great to spotlight new products and or a specific service you want to bring attention to.
A few popular ideas are incorporating lightboxes for product showcases or strip lighting near booth entrances to attract visitors.
9. Technology will take your booth to the next level
These days without some sort of technology on your booth, you might as well not exhibit at all.
You can implement digital signage at the front of your exhibition stand or maybe have some interactive touch screens with which people can engage in a fun way, while also learning new and interesting information about your product or service.
You can even take it to the next level with interactive technology, Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality or Holograms, if you really want to impress your target audience and draw a crowd to your stand. Visitors will be attracted to something they haven’t seen before, why not take a step up from the competition.
10. Create interaction opportunities for your audience
A bespoke exhibition stand design will open up many doors for your company. A brilliant booth design attracts crowds, which creates endless interaction opportunities with customers.
These interaction opportunities will give you a chance to showcase your products and services to your audience, or even demonstrate your products, where you may not get the same opportunity normally.
The booth design should speak for your company and pitch your offering for you. A great design will make it very easy for your sales team to start interaction with customers and not have to speed through a pitch in 30 seconds to keep the customer on the booth, the interaction would be more qualified.
By incorporating these tips into your design, you should be well on track to creating a successful, eye-catching exhibition stand that will deliver ROI.
The design of your exhibition stand sets the stage for whether you will have a successful exhibition or not. However, that is if you follow the correct measures to have a great booth design.
It’s important to spend the time and engage experienced exhibition stand designers and task them with a well written brief. Make your next exhibition stand design bespoke, Expocentric can help you with creating a beautifully designed booth. Get in contact with us today for a complimentary consultation.