Your graphics are the backdrop for your trade show message. Try this trick next time you are at a trade show. Walk down one aisle and see how many exhibits you remember, what they sold, and how many were memorable. If you remember the robot that called your name but not the exhibit he came from – well you get the picture. There are five basic areas you must cover in your exhibit – visual, headline, description, company name and logo and website.
Simple, bold and clear images are the most effective in creating a memorable canvas for your selling story. Example – if you sell hammers – do not have you main image of twenty men swinging hammers – keep it simple, a large hand with one hammer – tells exactly what you do.
Choose your headline words carefully, and keep the headline for your trade show display simple, clear and short! The shorter your headline the larger it can appear on your trade show displays. The larger it is on your trade show display the further your display can reach into the trade show traffic. Back to the hammer – Hit the Nail on the Head … Every time! Choose a simple and easy to read typeface.
A graphic with your description should have bullet points with short messages, not technical and remember less is more! Have an outsider read your copy and see if they glean your message.
Make the company name prominent. This sounds like a simple thought, however, if your name is not prominent and there are three hammer makers on your aisle the attendee might get confused and look up the wrong name in the show guide. Why do we all remember Caterpillar – because it is green. Or how about Home Depot – you see orange and assume it is them. You pay a lot of money to exhibit. Take a little extra effort and make certain your company’s name is easy for all to see. Then repeat your name and logo all over your exhibit and your brochures and even your clothes – no mistaking who you are!!
Probably the single most important message in your whole trade show display is your website address. This is because if the show attendee saw something at your booth that interests them, they can copy your website address, even at a distance, and visit it at their leisure. Try to select a website name that is both meaningful to your business and one that is easy to remember. If www.Hammer.com is gone, try www.Hammer.net. If everything hammer is gone try www.NailIt.com or www.SwingHigh.com, or www.SwingLow.com. Just make someone think about your hammers!
