Designing a Trade Show Exhibit: A Guide for Entrepreneurs

When designing a trade show exhibit, many elements must be considered, and it can be challenging to know where to begin. Whether you are figuring out where to start or looking to take your trade show experience to the next level, it can be helpful to consider all fundamental design elements. This guide shares our insights and tips for designing a new and unique trade show exhibit. 

Preparations for Designing a Trade Show Exhibit

Lay out your budget, objectives, and SMART goals to set a strong foundation. Articulate your vision by establishing a theme, concept, and style that best exemplifies your goals and objectives. Once the logistical and conceptual guidelines are clear, develop the remaining elements, including lighting, furniture, displays, digital events, graphics, interactive features, and more. 

• Lighting - Use lighting to create a mood and tone, guide visitors through the space, and showcase your offerings. 
• Furniture - Exhibit furniture like counters, displays, tables, and seating can be functional and purposeful. Use these elements to showcase your assets, convey how your brand wants to be perceived, and inform visitors how to move through the space. 
• Digital Technology - Digital elements range from digital screens, touch pads, and apps to technology integrations like alternate reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR). These tools can attract an audience, tell your brand story, and capture leads.
• Graphics - These visual elements communicate your brand's message on multiple levels. Graphics should be eye-catching and informative, drawing in an audience and facilitating positive and memorable experiences. 
• Interactive Features - Gamification, presentations, demonstrations, and other creative hands-on activities bring your content to life. 

How to Design a Trade Show Exhibit that Draws Crowds

First and foremost, to design a successful and attractive trade show, staying true to your brand is crucial. Thoughtfully and strategically craft your message and then exemplify that message in every design element. 

To draw crowds, find ways to stand out from the industry noise. Leverage the uniqueness of your brand alongside experiential and interactive elements. Eye-catching displays that intrigue visitors from a distance make it easy for attendees to notice and find your exhibit. Offer a dynamic experience to garner positive word-of-mouth marketing that will spread throughout the trade show, keeping your exhibit packed with curious visitors. Strategize the architectural elements, furniture, and floor plan to suit your goals for customer engagement.

Tips for Designing a Trade Show Exhibit

Here are three tips to help design an attractive and effective trade show exhibit. 

1. Take a Layered Approach

A layered approach to the design helps your brand connect with visitors personally and capture as many quality leads as possible. Provide multiple opportunities and levels for engagement allowing more people to attain a valuable experience. For example, develop the design in the graphics with long, midrange, and short distances in mind. 

The graphics visible from a long distance must reach a great height and appear striking from far away. Graphics visible at the midrange distance draw people in when passing by the exhibit, and short-distance details serve as treasures for visitors who step into the space.

If you are going for luxury, more is more. However, if luxury is not a quality you aim for or in the budget, purposefully strategize your empty space. Negative space plays a powerful role in visual graphics, and visitors need space to comfortably engage with your brand experience. 

3. Be a Choreographer 

When thinking about the audience experience, consider and plan how visitors will move through the space. What journey do you want to orchestrate? Think about the steps in the experience and the transitions between engagements. Create opportunities to capture leads and extend the engagement time to make a positive, lasting impression. 

Partner with an Expert 

There are many elements to consider and execute when designing trade show exhibits. Plus, it is about optimizing every detail and creating a robust and cohesive experience for each visitor. Many companies benefit from partnering with an expert; we are here to help. 

Hamilton is a full-service event marketing agency with a 75-year legacy creating immersive brand experiences for companies throughout North America and worldwide. We design, produce, and execute integrated experiences that drive meaningful connections between your brand and audience. Our full range of solutions includes exhibits, proprietary events and conferences, mobile tours, corporate environments, outdoor events, and digital experiences. 

To design a compelling trade show exhibit, contact Hamilton today!