When executed well, exhibitions can offer brilliant benefits to businesses such as brand awareness, business leads, and sales. Executed poorly, they can be a waste of money and resources. If you’re organising your first exhibition, it might feel overwhelming – but there’s no need to worry. With the right strategy and planning, you can ensure the exhibition is a success.
Leave Project Management to The Professionals
Most businesses do not have a specific events organiser. The task is often completed by members of the Marketing team who have little experience in the area. Since exhibitions are very specific, this leaves room for error.
To ensure a successful exhibition, leave the project management to professionals. Choose a reliable contractor with proven exhibition experience in projects similar to yours. A good Project Manager should supervise your exhibition stand design and build process to ensure the stand is flawless. They should also liaise with show organisers, send technical plans, and help answer any of your queries along the way.
Designing and executing an exhibition can feel complex, but with the right project manager, it should feel easy.
Plan The Exhibition in Good Time
Successful exhibitions require meticulous planning, and one of the biggest pitfalls is leaving things too late. Plan your exhibition as early as possible. It might feel a long way away, but the dates catch up with you!
Organising your exhibition in advance means you can ensure every last detail is organised and sorted way in advance of the event. You have time to set your goals, choose the right exhibition stand contractor, perfect your design, check the stand for quality and address any issues before the show. And, when you have chosen your contractor, planning early allows you to send resources, brand guidelines and artwork to your contractor with good time!
When you plan in advance, you also have time to solidify your event strategy. Selecting and training the right team can take a while. It’s important everybody is comfortable, confident and knows your products inside and out. Good time allows you to have all of this in order, without a last-minute, stressful rush.
Ensure The Exhibition Stand Design is Impactful
The exhibition stand design can either make or break the success of a show. Stands must command attention and effectively convey your brand’s message.
Large-format graphics, effectively convey marketing messages, branding, images and logos. Use these graphics to your advantage – some contractors will even extend them to the floor! Place the business name up high for visibility on the stand, and include the main marketing message, and a call to action.
Make the most of design features that help differentiate your stand. Features like high-level branding, backlit graphics and rotating headers ensure visibility and captivate audiences!
Pre-Build is Non-Negotiable
Exhibitors that have successful exhibitions choose contractors who pre-build their stands. Too often, the stand is built for the first time at the exhibition, creating numerous risks for the event day. Everybody turns up, just hoping for the best.
When you select a contractor who pre-builds, you can view the stand, fully built before the event. This allows you to check the stand for quality, and even use it as a dress rehearsal for the placement of products.
The exhibition contractor most well-known for their pre-build service, as well as outstanding modular exhibition stands, is Quadrant2Design. Every stand at Quadrant2Design is pre-built before every event, allowing Project Managers to check the stand for quality. Every client is encouraged to visit the pre-build to view their stand before the event. This has been so popular among clients; that it has become its own series – Today in Pre-Build!
Choose a Reliable Contractor
If you’ve handed your project to an exhibition stand design and build contractor, you should be able to trust that your project is under control. If you do not feel trusting, then you’ve likely got the wrong contractor.
Conduct thorough research and do your due diligence before choosing a contractor. Check Trustpilot reviews, Homesite reviews, and even look for video reviews to find a contractor that is reliable and trustworthy. Search for a contractor who is familiar with projects like yours, with photos for proof!
A good contractor will keep you informed throughout the process, pre-build to ensure no issues arise on event day, install with a good amount of time on the day, and allow you to check the stand for quality!
If you find yourself constantly second-guessing your contractor, it might be a sign that you need to find a more dependable partner.
The Exhibitor Markets Their Event Appearance
Even the best exhibition stand won’t achieve much if no one knows about it. Marketing your appearance before the event is crucial to driving traffic to your stand.
- Use email marketing to your advantage, send targeted emails to your clients sharing your show presence and promotional offers.
- Promote your presence across your social media channels!
- Create a dedicated landing page on your home site, telling visitors about your presence and location in the exhibition hall!
Many exhibitors have been making a buzz with an event website dedicated to marketing their event appearance. The Yourstand.at sites are used for 5 weeks pre-show and 5 weeks post-show to maximise the return on investment made in exhibiting!
View an example site – https://exhibiting.at/advancedbeautylive-retinoidaesthetics/.
Conclusion
Successful exhibition appearances all have the same traits! The organisers leave project management to professionals, plan well in advance, design a stand that makes a strong impact, pre-build the stand, trust the stand contractor, and effectively market the event appearance. By following these key strategies, businesses can ensure that their exhibitions are not only successful but also provide the desired brand awareness, business leads, and sales benefits.