Display design is first and foremost the determining word of whether a product or service stands out on the show floor. Most people consider design a surface thing or an after-the-fact cosmetic makeover thing; but design is right at the heart and soul of business of a great exhibit. That in turn leads to the importance of color on the exhibit floor.

What does your exhibit’s color palette say about your company and its products and services? Are your color combinations and placements driving traffic to key points in your exhibit? Do your colors shrewdly highlight key products and messages? Is you color palette outdated?

Color is a key element of design; one that speaks volumes about your company, one that drives or limits sales, and one for which exhibit managers bear ultimate responsibility and control. It is time to step up your color consciousness (or at least take your color wheel out for a spin) to re-examine the important role color plays in exhibit design and success as well as the basic implication and emotional reactions associated with specific colors. Color is an attention-getting tool. It is often the first thing the eye sees when it looks at an object. When it comes to non-verbal communication, color is the most immediate way to communicate messages and meanings.

People have no choice but to pay attention to color. Humans respond to color, which is so engrained in the human mind that we react to color without even knowing we’ve had a reaction. In the world of exhibits, color is not only the first thing attendees can’t help but see in your booth, but when paired with effective design, color is the magnet that draws attendees into your exhibit and out of the glut of exhibits that surrounds them. Once inside your space, color serves multiple purposes: as a non-verbal tool leading attendees through your exhibit and key areas of interest, and a spotlight drawing attention to key products in low-traffic areas. Next time, think to yourself, what is the message sent by my color palettes?