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Exhibit Display Booth Scheduling and Preparation |
At www.OceanExhibits.com view our: |
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(aka: What do you need to have in place and how long will it take?) |
Trade Show and Display Checklist |
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Reserving the Display Booth Space
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The rule is "first-come, first served". Of course, the best spaces go first.
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What are the best spaces? |
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Some like to be close to the refreshment area.
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Others want to be close to the convention hall's main entrance.
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Corners - the intersection of two aisles -- are almost always preferable to being in the middle of an aisle.
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Sometimes, a side wall position facing an aisle is effective because people are looking toward your exhibit booth
as they walk down that aisle.
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Whatever you chose, the best time to reserve a good position is at the end of the trade show or convention ... for the following year. "First timers": Reserve as soon as you decide to attend!
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Shopping for an Exhibit Display System
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Allow plenty of time to make your decision to purchase. Ideally, start shopping several months before the exhibit event.
It can take up to 4 weeks to build a new exhibit display. Expedited orders are possible, but they also cost extra. Before you buy, you might consider exhibit rentals. Sometimes the rental fee can be applied towards the purchase. Rent different types of display systems, and choose the one you like the best. Attend a trade show or convention and see a variety of systems. Ask questions. Browse the internet. Look for used trade show booths of the type you like. Display booths have a substantial cost, and there are several types of display systems from which to choose. |
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Purchasing an Exhibit Display System
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Many purchases require 21 business days or more because exhibit systems are generally built to order. By calling around, you may find a dealer who has what you want in their showroom. However, to be able to specify color and other details, try to first obtain all the permissions and authorizations for purchasing necessary for your company, and circumvent any holiday or seasonal interruptions. Generally you should allow 4 weeks plus a week for shipping***.
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Creating Your Trade Show Display Graphics
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There are too many variables in the production of display graphics to specify a time frame. You want to allow time to look at proofs, make revisions, talk to the involved persons, and get it right. Any production shop can have a backlog schedule that varies during the year. Delivery time has a lot to do with how many other jobs are ahead of yours. Of course, bigger projects need more time. There are some quick solutions for producing graphics for a display: |
- One is to use a relevant sell sheet or brochure. All the graphics and images are already created. The sell sheet or brochure cover can be printed poster size, laminated and shipped in a tube.
- Another quick solution is to use a giant print of your logo.
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Anything you have already paid a graphic designer to produce probably exists in digital form. Most of these can be printed in
a larger format by us or by many other creative exhibit studios. With all this to consider, a good rule of thumb for graphic production time is to allow 4 weeks ... the same time you allow for a new exhibit display system. |
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Designing Your Brochures, Sell Sheets, Price lists etc. |
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Ocean Color is a design studio and we have taken a project from conceptual discussion to delivery in as little as 3 days, but it
is not a good idea to count on that. Viewing proofs, making revisions, and informing all who need to be included generally takes much more time. Figure your time backwards from when you need the brochure (or other type of collateral). Shipping is the last step of the process, and you want to avoid the extra cost of shipping by overnight, so set your printing deadline at least one week before you need it. Allow two weeks for printing. Three weeks would be better, so that you have time for checking proofs and making the corrections and revisions, when needed. The time allowed for design depends upon its complexity and the designer's schedule. It also depends on whether you know exactly what you want and can communicate that effectively. Now to step one
in the process: figuring out the message of the brochure. That may be obvious or it may take months. Knowing what to say and deciding how to say it is the most important part of the process. Generously allow yourself "months", 2 or more... if it only takes a week everyone will have something to celebrate! |
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Price schedules, and information sheets can often be generated on your own computer and run off on a copy machine at the last minute ... even at the trade show. However, the best format to hand out to prospects at your display booth -- other than your business card -- is a well designed sell sheet or brochure that has a lot of thought put into the careful and concise presentation of what you offer. Creating one of these can take weeks. (See above.) Full-color printing is almost a given in today's business world. With a few exceptions, most companies want to look professional ... to have a "corporate" image. You may not need color to show your product or service, but you need color to be noticed in the organized chaos of a convention or trade show. A few years ago, color printing required four to six weeks. That time has been seriously reduced in recent years by technology and competition. It is now possible to get full-color printing in a day ... but you pay extra in more ways than one. Allow two weeks for the printing, and extra time for shipping, if necessary.
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Making the Hotel and Travel Reservations
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This is not our area of expertise. However, we do know it makes sense to start your research and reservation process as soon as you know what event you will be exhibiting at and how many people from your company will be going. The best time to make your hotel reservations is the same time you reserve your booth space ... at the end of the show for the following year.
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Basic Shipping Information
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The show organizer will provide you with the shipping information... dates, and exact address including display booth number. This tends to be a complex address because it usually involves a company that holds the items in storage
for a day or two then puts them in your booth space.
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There is a specified window of just a few days in which the items must arrive. You must always plan for the items to arrive on the first day of that window.... simply because shipping time, especially ground shipping time, varies, snags, has glitches, etc., etc.
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Call or go online for cost. Package dimensions, weights, and start and end zip codes will be needed.
- Remember, the quicker you need delivery, the more the shipping will cost.
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Shipping time depends on whether you choose:
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ground service or air (i.e UPS or Fedex)
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to take the display system with you (i.e. extra baggage on flight or in your vehicle)
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to have the exhibit first shipped to you, then you ship it to the show
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to have the exhibit shipped directly to the show
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Note: When shipping a newly purchased display system, the exhibit dealer should be able to either ship the display system to
the exhibit show or to you.
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| At www.OceanExhibits.com view our excellent information about: |
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© 2005 Ocean Color LLC
850 Aquidneck Avenue, Middletown, R.I., 02842
(800) 219-8700 • (401) 847-2020 • FAX (401) 847-0393
graphics@oceancolor.com |
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