Creating an exhibit for a trade show is expensive and time consuming. If your company does not attend more than four shows a year it may be more cost effective to rent your exhibit. There are six things you should consider when looking into an exhibit rental company.
Experience is an obvious area of concern. Be sure to inquire about the experience of each person, from each department that will be handing the creation of your exhibit; especially if you are using their graphics department. Check out client reviews and don’t be afraid to ask for three referrals with contact information.
Exhibition halls each have their own set of rules for exhibits, as do the individual shows. You will want a rental company that can offer a wide variety of package options. Chose a company that can provide different styles, sizes and setups to accommodate any show you might choose to attend. Be specific with your questions and be clear about what you need,
Be prepared for the unexpected and double check their support policies. Each package will have it’s own level of support and you need to make sure the support you need is included with the package you choose.
Along with their variety, do they offer flexibility? If your show has a requirement that isn’t spelled out in one of their packages are they able to work out a custom solution? Flexibility is a much appreciated characteristic of a great Exhibit Rental Company.
Since we are a society that loves visual stimulation you will want to pay close attention to the expertise of their graphics department. Ask for photographs of work completed by the current in-house team. You will want high-impact, easy to read designs of the highest quality. Get details on the process of design, the time constraints, and how the company handles the creative collaboration with you.
The final concern is that of logistics. Will the rental company transport the exhibit to and from the hall for you (for a fee)? Will they install it as well? If not, then is the exhibit something you, and your staff, can assemble with ease?
You want a company offering quality and value and it may take time to find the right match for your needs. The time spent now will save you much grief in the future.

Everything in our lives is being delivered at ever faster speeds – consumer goods, personal communications, pizza and anything else you may think of. In the business environment, speed is essential, however it is a double-edged sword: on the one hand the ability to deliver information, customer orders and products is a boon, but on the other, if you are moving in the wrong direction to begin with, having speed simply means you are digging yourself into a deeper hole that much faster.

The challenge is to manage and implement the new technology which is delivering such business agility, speed and mobility effectively.

The technology which allows for workers to be mobile and to carry their desktop tools and communications around with them wherever they may be has come a long, long way over the last 25 years. In the 1980’s, email was unheard of and when it was widely introduced in the 1990’s the business reaction was to ban or restrict it. Today, email is mission critical for almost any business you can think of – today, Instant Messaging is going through the same process of widespread adoption, but there is the clue – email may be fast, but Instant Messaging is simply now.

The technology has gotten faster yet again.

But there is even more to come: we now have a mobile ability which is based upon two recent, major developments: the development of a fast Internet backbone for the mobile Internet and the development of handheld devices which are truly mobile, for instance your smart phone or tablet PC.

You can walk on any trade show floor in the country and see a variety of handheld mobile devices at work, but it is not simply the technology we can see which counts but how companies actually manage mobile resources which determines their success.

For most companies (and I include most of the Fortune 500 in this) they are simply not capable of managing the mobile environment effectively – this falls outside the area of their core competencies and strengths. Fortunately, there are solutions available, notably based on the SaaS model (Software as a Service) who provide mobile management solutions which allow you to focus on how to use the technology effectively to deliver business objectives, rather than worrying about what the technology is.

Mobile management SaaS solutions also provide a high degree of customization for how you do business. Every company is different, with differing trade show processes for collecting prospect information, generating quotes and estimates as well as taking a sales order – this becomes ever more important when you are performing these customer facing tasks with the customer facing you at the event itself! You need robust systems which can be delivered in real-time when you need them and wherever you are, and you also need a partner who understands your business and how to best manage mobile resources for maximum business impact.

Trade Shows Require Pre-Planning

Many companies are forgoing trade shows and other marketing efforts in light of a bad economy that seems to get worse. Trade shows can be costly to attend – you have to think about the cost of your booth, your promotional materials, staffing your booth, travel, hotel, and incidentals. However, a trade show can be a great way to generate leads, increase sales, and gain exposure in your industry. If you do plan to exhibit at a trade show, there are some things to think about several months in advance. Here is a handy guide to planning for your trade show participation.

In the three to six months before the trade show, make sure you have a clear goal in mind. If you want to make sales on the floor, make sure you are equipped to do so by coming up with a way to accept credit cards, equipping your booth with your product, or having an easy way to sell your service. Making a sale is the honey pot in the trade show world, so if it is your goal to do so, make sure you are prepared.

In that same time period, set a goal for how many contacts you want to make – whether they are sales leads, investors, good industry contacts, or potential employees. It is not good to go into a trade show with no clear goals in mind. Having a plan and executing that plan result in a higher ROI. If you set goals and achieve them, you feel that you’ve accomplished something real, rather than waiting until the end and trying to figure out what you may have accomplished.

Also several months prior to the trade show, schedule some meetings. Schedule lunches with industry leaders, vendor presentations that are pre-set with invitations issued, and meetings with potential customers. Scheduled events and meetings take the guesswork out of who you will impact with your trade show message.

Speaking of the trade show message, make sure you know what your primary message should be. This is what your booth and all your marketing materials will reflect, so to make sure your materials and setup send the right message, figure out what that message is.

Once you’ve done all that, it’s time to get your booth, design your handouts and promotional materials, and plan your trade show exhibit. Book plane tickets and hotel rooms far enough in advance to take advantage of any promotional prices, and make sure you have your staff sorted out so that all your preparation will pay off.