The Truth About Booths

My first marketing job was in event management (University of Manitoba Career Fair!) and so was my first break into tech (interning for Netscape supporting their European Developers Conference). So, trade shows run deep for me … and there’s one thing I’ve learned that you can do to make your booth a winner, and it doesn’t cost a penny.

As I talked about last week, booking meetings ahead of time, supporting your booth with a guerilla program, having a relevant and compelling giveaway, and paying for supplemental visibility (speaking slots, etc) are all important tactics. Each is a vital part of your event strategy, but they’re not free. 

So, what is it? Well, it starts when you are signing up for your booth. If you’re early in the event planning process, you likely have your choice of any booth. But repeat exhibitors at the event are going to get first pick. If you’re not in that category, then you’ll be looking at a map of a partially filled floor. 

Now, as you’re casting your eyes across the map, look for two key points: Where’s the entrance and what’s the destination?

Start with the entrance. That’s where your audience is entering into the exhibit area after registration, meals, or breaks in sessions. And if it’s not on the same floor or same general area as the rest of the conference, I’d seriously consider whether it’s the right event for you to exhibit at.

Sure, you generally want to be as close as possible to the entrance because 100% of the people entering the exhibit area will encounter your booth. The problem is that repeat vendors and the high dollar exhibitors have likely already picked these spots. So, what is an enterprising exhibitor to do?

The key is to look at the destination. 

Be on the Path: In an exhibit hall, common destinations are food and beverage carts, sessions, and meeting areas. Consider how a visitor will be flowing through the room on the way to the destination. They’re likely going to be heading toward that destination. So, for visibility, being on that path is optimal. 

Big Ben, Parliament: Remember the natural flow of a crowd. In North America, my take is that you’re likely to walk into a room and, if you’re not going straight, turn right. So, bias your choice to the right. 

Take in the Vista: Many venues have long straight paths that booths are placed along. As a visitor is walking along these paths, they’re having to pivot between each booth. But at the end of the corridor is a single booth. That one point of focus at the end of the tunnel means eyeballs are likely on your booth for the entire walk of the corridor. And if you designed your booth for high visibility and readability, then you are a genuine destination. 

Get in a Jam: Often striking up a good conversation comes down to getting a prospect to slow down and assess your message. So, look for booth spots that force a natural slowing of traffic. That might be in a corner or near some other pinch point that causes people to bunch up. You can more easily engage people in conversation, and there’s a natural advantage of making your booth look more popular. 

At the last conference SetSail was at, OpsStars, we selected a booth at the end of a corridor. In the video here you can see just how much it increased visibility for those coming down the hall. 

With these tips in mind, you can get more traffic, more visibility, and ultimately more conversations with your prospects – all without spending an extra dollar of your budget – just by selecting the right booth number.