WHAT ARE TRADE SHOW BOOTHS
Trade show booths or displays are these large installments, compartments, or boxlike units mainly used for grand events such as trade shows or gaming conventions. They are graphic display devices that are also used as a sales and marketing tool. Usually, trade show booths are composed of a designed display for a wall surface, which can either be a large graphic/image or a velcro compatible fabric, on which a wide variety of graphics printed on substrates can be attached to. These substrates are layers or substances that control or adhere to the second substance it is applied to/on and may range in various forms, from acrylic to plastic, rigid to semi-rigid. Trade show booths can vary significantly in size (still large enough to walk around in), complexity, and cost, but are all created to visually portray a certain interest of the company – by interest, more specifically the current produce that company may be selling. For example, a video game company would want their booth design covered entirely with their newest video game releasing soon. Normally, companies/exhibitors at trade shows are given a ten by ten feet space for their booth which faces an aisle and has an eight foot tall back wall made up of 4 fabric panels that are threaded onto a telescoping aluminum pole. This pre-defined area allows the exhibitor to present their company, organization, or, even more specifically, their video game to all attending the trade show event.
GREAT FOR MARKETING PURPOSES
Out of the many services we provide here as WAYPOINT, a video game creative agency in Los Angeles, trade show booth design and production would definitely fall under our specialties. It’s an absolute impressive tool for experiential marketing. The goal of trade show booths and displays is to draw viewers or potential clients in. They are an effective and can be a wild type of branding experience that should give a positive impact on the person walking down or by the booth aisle(s), of course, depending on how well the display design or booth is executed. Once a viewer is drawn into the booth, the space must be set up in a way that adds on to a compelling experience for her or him. Overall, the experience should strengthen relationships and aid sales. For example, the chosen type of elegant trade show flooring, ranging from hardwood to carpet, will definitely make a difference to the entire look and feel of the trade show booth. In attempt to attract more viewers to a booth or exhibit space, the trade show booth or displays should use bold images or catchy phrases, giving the potential opportunity for sales representatives to give their sales pitch, hand out brochures, business cards, handouts, SWAG items, etc.
In addition to these principles, here are two really help sources on how to achieve a successful trade show booth:
https://www.brandwatch.com/blog/top-tips-trade-show-booth/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/james-c-gibson/19-trade-show-booth-succe_b_10066960.html
TYPES OF TRADE SHOW BOOTHS
According to Classic Exhibits, “There are four types of booth configurations: Standard/Linear, Perimeter Wall, Peninsula, and Island. The following booth display rules are typical for U.S. Trade Shows and Convention Halls. However, regulations vary by convention center and even within show halls.” Each one of these booth configurations have a maximum dimensions it must not exceed. Now let’s get a little more in depth with these booth types:
Standard/Linear/Inline Booth
This type of trade show booth is an exhibit that consists of one or more standard units in one straight line, that being said, they are also known as “Inline Booths.” In most cases, these booths are series laid out in a the form of a line and only have one side exposed to an aisle. As previously mentioned, these trade show booths have a certain height restriction to avoid tampering with the visibility of a neighbor set up next to/near by. So it is best to design the trade show booth with all these regulations in mind so no adjustments will have to be made on site. Corner booths fall under this booth category, only difference is that it’s exposed to an aisle on two sides, however all the other linear guidelines still apply. Hanging signs are not allowed over Standard/Linear Booths.
Example:
Perimeter Wall Booths are basically standard booths found on the outer perimeter aisle of the exhibit floor. The maximum height of this wall is taller than the Standard/Linear Booth, but with the same depth size. It is highly advised to take full advantage of the 12 foot back wall since it does allow more space for graphics, which helps with visibility, simultaneously attracting more buyers/attendees to the booth. In other words, increased height means increased exposure. For the PerimeterBooth, it is permitted to hang signage along the back wall part of the booth, which will definitely appear higher in comparison to near by booths.
Example:
Any exhibit that takes up both corners at the very end of a row of standard booths and has three sides facing an aisle is considered a Peninsula Booth. It also must have the minimum dimensions of 20 feet by 20 feet, therefore it can definitely be larger than that as well. These types of trade show booths grants much more publicity since viewers can walk in and out from the any of the three aisle openings: front and the two sides. Going into further detail, there are actually two different types of Peninsula Booths. As stated in Focus Displays, the two types are as follows:
One which backs up to linear booths (a Peninsula Booth that backs up to inline booths has certain restrictions designed so the booths behind are not blocked)
One which backs up to another peninsula, also referred to as a “Split Island Booth”
Although Peninsula Booths are more visible and open to more traffic coming from all three sides, they are restricted to containing any booth identification, logos, or advertisements on the exterior back wall. Lastly, these type of trade show booths are much more flexible in regards to the height dimensions, booth design and layout.
Example:
An Island Booth is open to and surrounded by aisles on all four sides of it, which, of course, maximizes traffic exposure as well. This exhibit, just like the Peninsula Booth, can be 20 feet by 20 feet or larger. The great part about this type of trade show booth is that it captures more viewers’ eyes from the four aisles, allowing more branding opportunities as well as design space. In addition to that factor, it is crucial to make every exhibit element (such as all sides of the walls) of the Island Booth engaging and pleasing to look at – never leave a section of the exhibit unfinished.
Example:
One of our most recent trade show booth projects was for the game Tiger Knight by Oasis Games and was set up at PAX (originally known as Penny Arcade Expo) which is a series of gaming festivals held in Boston, MA.
