Exhibitions don’t come cheap, and if businesses are choosing to appear at a show or event they need to be sure that they’re able to achieve a decent ROI – and before that, that they’re able to get adequate buy-in internally to have an exhibition budget signed off.
Once you’ve chosen a show at which to exhibit, it’s time to begin planning your stand. The DCE Agency team manage stand development from concept through to completion, no matter your budget: but if things are looking tight, we always recommend the following approaches to ensure you stand out for all the right reasons… without breaking the bank.
1. Choose Your Feature
When it comes to successful exhibition stands, one thing they all have in common is a solid single focus. To maximise brand impact, it’s important that the goal of the stand’s presence is in the spotlight, without crowding it. Exhibitors should be clear on what they’re looking to achieve with their stand and centre that goal. Whether you’re looking to launch a new product, build brand awareness or create a space where your team can network with attendees, this focus should be central to the design. Don’t waste money on items that don’t contribute to your overall exhibition goal, and instead divulge that budget to targeted features.
2. Play With Space
Exhibitions are busy places, and it’s important for brands to stand out. With most exhibitors choosing a simple walls-and-floor-with-furniture combo for their stand spaces, going for something a little more unusual can really give an advantage and create a more memorable event presence. If the venue allows, you could build upwards above your stand with signs, logos or plants, and if your allocated booth space is central, a no-walls approach can create an inviting opportunity for attendees to walk straight in.
3. Do Different
We’ve all been to shows where 90% of the brands have the same set-up – a big logo-ed banner, a table and stools, some product brochures and a coffee machine. While this may seem a reliable formula, challenging the status quo is more likely to make your brand stand out amongst the rest. If everyone else is serving coffee, serve cocktails or bubble tea. If your competitors are giving away freebies, talk about the sustainability benefit of not doing so. If other stands are doing business-card-in-the-jar prize draws, gamify an interaction to be more interesting. There’s plenty that can be done and there’s no reason why you should just fit in with everyone else!
4. Recycle and Reuse
Businesses who regularly exhibit at shows and events know that a great way to save budget is to recycle and reuse as many elements of your stand as possible. DCE Agency always aim to create as sustainable a stand design as possible, with many parts suitable for reuse. This means that custom-designed portions of your stand can be set up, used for the show and then packaged up and shipped elsewhere for other events. Our client Kraken reuse their sweet cart in their own office, and use their tentacle set-up all over the world.
5. Balance Stand With Space
When it comes to booking space at events, it can be tempting to splurge on a large space and be the biggest brand at the show. However, space comes at a premium and can be extremely costly – which in turn eats into your overall events budget. It’s not uncommon for those in the biggest spaces to find they’re short on budget with which to then actually decorate the stand; leaving lots of empty space and a minimalist look that doesn’t necessarily work as intended. Instead it makes sense to understand what your budget can achieve for the space you have so even if it’s smaller, the opportunity is present to create something that showcases the brand perfectly and fosters the right environment for promotion and memorable marketing.
No matter your budget, the DCE Agency team can take on the challenge. You may be surprised how much we can achieve! Contact John (john@dceagency.com) on +447595 895836 or Amy (amy@dceagency.com) on +447801 448072 to find out more on what we can do for you.
