Tips & Tricks on Trade Show Convention Etiquette

When hosting a booth at any trade show convention, there are many tips and tricks you can keep up your sleeve for an extra-successful day.

We picked out the most useful to share with you.

Your Trade Show Convention Checklist:

Before the Show

1. Best Dressed:

In order to look sharp and professional, unify your booth staff in the same color and style of clothing. Keep in mind, it is best to have this theme match that of your trade show display (which hopefully reflects the theme of your company as well). There is a way to meet style and comfort  so your team can get the best of both worlds while looking clean-cut in their matching attire. For the ultimate appeal, order customized apparel with your company’s name and logo stitched on.

2. Dialogue Ready:

Think of the trade show convention as a legitimate stage show. Split up the needed dialogue between team members to minimize memorization ad help each member thoroughly discuss the details of your company and what it offers to booth visitors. This will prevent visitors from hearing the same information twice. All booth staff should be readily knowledgable about the company and have a handy resource for any questions they are not able to answer. Finally, there should be an authoritative figure managing the booth who is available to assist with his/her expertise at all times.

3. Plan for Clocking In and Out:

Calculate the time your staff will need to arrive ahead of time to the trade show convention in order to properly set up. If your display or staff is new, tack on an extra 15 minutes in case any setup mishaps occur. This also gives your team a few minutes to mentally prepare before the trade show guests arrive.

Be sure to staff your booth generously for the predicted convention attendance. It is better to have one or two staff too many than a shortage during the busy hours of the day. Remember that staff members are going to need to take shifts for breaks, as well.

Make an agreement with your team to take any needed breaks before or after the busiest predicted hours of the day (usually 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.). Make sure you ALWAYS have at least one person running the trade show booth, no matter how slow the traffic is, until the trade show convention is over. Final note, it looks tacky to start packing up before the last minute of the clock has run out, so be patient and keep smiling until the very end (you’ve made it this far).

4. Keeping the Trade Show Exhibit Looking Spiffy:

As normally requested by trade show convention management, keep your trade show exhibit area as clean as you kept your cubby in preschool. Your space, although yours for the day, is on public display and it is best for your company to keep the overall appearance of the show tidy and clean.

To avoid an eyesore, hide all boxes and setup materials under fully-skited tables behind the display or preferably in a location outside the trade show convention viewing area (in a storage closet or in the back of the company van).

Finally, it is an obvious don’t to have trash left anywhere on the premises of your booth area. Nor should your staff eat or drink anything besides water within the exhibit perimeters (which should be immediately concealed in a hiding spot after sipping).

 

Follow this few tips and your trade show convention will be smooth going.