Anatomy of a Trade Show Booth, Part 1

Every year, millions of people descend upon trade shows across the globe.

Their sole purpose is to seek out the latest and greatest.

To press the flesh and ultimately decide whether to do business with a vendor that they came across.

Little do they realize how much planning and work the actual construction of an exhibition booth and trade show display actually can be.

Crunching the Numbers

Before the completion of one single invoice, you must take into account the manpower and time required.

• 10 sleepless nights- Be prepared to spend countless hours tossing and turning, worrying about whether or not your trade show booth will be a smashing success or crumble while your booth neighbors laugh at your demise.
• 100 hours of planning- Oh, the minutiae! Every detail must be mulled over, various drafts drawn up, and the decision must be made whether to use a serif or sans serif font for all of your marketing materials. If you’re looking for some ideas for marketing materials, you could consider embroidered or blank lanyards for your booth.
• 1000 lbs. of trade show materials- Do you have a plan to ensure that all of your trade show booth will arrive on time? Do you have the means to transport all of the marketing materials AND your trade show booth? Have you considered the option of using a trade show booth rental instead?
• 10,000 cups of coffee- All of the above facts will lead you to this one. Make sure you stay heavily caffeinated with some good quality Java.

The Expenses of a Trade Show Booth
At the end of the day, this is what it comes down to.

Just how much are you willing (or should you) invest in a trade show exhibition booth?

Here are a few general guidelines to get you started.

1. In-line Booths- For an in-line booth, typically, you want to spend an average of $1,000 per linear foot.
2. Island Booths- Regarding an island booth, you’re looking at an average of $135-155 per square foot.

Stick to these general guidelines and you won’t have to worry about whether you are overpaying or underpaying to maximize the amount of space of your exhibition booth.

Factors to Consider
When you are designing and planning your trade show booth, consider this.

Your goal is to attract as many potential customers as possible. What you don’t want, though, is to design a booth that is going to cause traffic jams or is uninviting.

A steady stream of people is best.

Get them in, capture the lead, get them out, and get the next batch in.

This is an integral part of the planning of an exhibition trade show, but there is so much more to it. Check out part 2 for a more in-depth look at the aesthetic planning and smart marketing strategies.