First time managing an exhibit as the event planner, marketing director, or business owner?

Hello fellow exhibitors, I’m Chantal with Authentic Exhibits. I hope these helpful tips will secure your success.

Here is the step-by-step process of successfully exhibiting at a trade show:

1. First, you want at least 2 months to plan - I know some people might not have that option as decisions are sometimes made at the last minute, however, its good to keep this in mind as anything last minute in this industry can get very expensive - for example graphics, we all know you will incur rush fees to get these to the front of the line at the print shop and shipped within 48 hours - these are essential to the booths completion in time for the show.

2. Register with the show early - You want to check in with the show to see when it's time to register yourself as an exhibitor - the best way to know this is to sign up for their newsletter and announcements - You will then receive periodic updates leading up to the open registration date along with additional instructions, important deadline dates and other pressing action items.

3. Take advantage of Sponsorship and speaking opportunities. Once registered - you now have the option to learn about sponsorship and/or speaking opportunities - this is a huge chance to be directly in front of attendees to pre-market your brand, goods or services. Its now time to select your spot on the show floor and see which spots are available and what they cost.
When looking at the floor-plan there are some things to consider like knowing where the entrance ways are, where the main aisles are, the direction of high foot traffic and where your competitors might be located.

Just a side note - competitors are important - see what you can find out online about them - check LinkedIN or other social platforms to see if they did a booth, what it looked like, how big etc - maybe you can learn what to do different or better.

4. Stick to your budget - this industry can get expensive quickly - we all have budgets that we need to stick to - don't go booking a booth space thats really big then realize you don't have any money for your booth setup - please be aware that labor, graphics printing, shipping, and convention show service costs are the four most expensive areas that make up the cost of a booth. Depending on the size of your booth - on average the standard price per square foot is about $75 dollars - if you are considering having something custom created then your probably looking more at $100 per square foot.

5. Select the right booth and/or booth builder - you have a couple of options depending on your budget - you can either purchase a booth you will reuse or rent one - most people rent because they don't like the commitment of owning, shipping and doing the set up themselves and storage.

If you're looking to rent please make sure to get a minimum of two price quotes, make sure the business has a verified listing on Google & read the reviews - when reading reviews make sure they look like they were written by actual customers and know what is included in the total cost.

6. Calculate show service costs into your budget - What are these? I will share additional information on this topic in another video but these essentially are the costs associated with the convention center and the general contractor - Sands Expo, Mandalay Bay, Freeman & GES too name a few - these contractors charge you for things like material handling, rigging, electricity, and any other labor jobs. Please note the show will issue periodic emails and alerts to you about important dates - one of these dates to always look for is the discount deadline date - you definitely want to take advantage of this as you will be able to save on some of the services they provide - like electrical outlets.

7. Plan ahead and make reasonable decisions - As I mentioned earlier, you want at least two months or more to plan as things can get delayed and minds can change - the entire process requires time. If your not looking to get too technical with your booth and only need some basic requirements like a back drop, AV components, simple furniture, flooring and labor check out my fixed-price booths rentals - these save time and can be booked at the last minute!

Thanks for watching - hit the sub-scribe button if you haven't already or find me on my website at authenticexhibits.com on the contact us page.