Reflections on Trade Shows and Events
Are trade shows are relevant? Is there a future for industry trade shows? Are companies willing to spend their valuable marketing dollars building a temporary structure just to attract new customers or meet with existing ones?
A Trade Show Exhibitor Walks into a Bar
A Trade Show Exhibitor walks into a bar and says to the bartender, “I’ve never been in a bar before, but a friend suggested I try the 20 x 20 Booth Space.” “That’s a very popular drink,” says the bartender, “especially with my regular customers.
Where’s Waldo at the Trade Show!
Where’s Waldo at the Trade Show? @Pink Unicorn Comics? Nope. @Petting Zoo? Nope. @Zombie Killing Workshop? Perhaps.
Buying a Trade Show Exhibit? 10 “Must Ask” Questions
It’s common to express remorse after a big ticket purchase. Typically when the purchase is infrequent, such as a home, car, or expensive equipment. Buying a trade show exhibit is that type of purchase, especially an inline or island exhibit for a large trade show. .
An Honest Conversation about Trade Show Rentals
Recently, what I thought would be a simple, straight-forward conversation left me scratching my head. I was meeting with exhibit industry colleagues, and the topic turned to rentals. Admittedly, rentals shouldn’t be puzzling. Rentals have exploded at a rate 3 to 4 times faster than exhibit purchases. What surprised me was the perception and the language used to define the exhibit rental landscape.
What’s Your Trade Show Kryptonite?
We shouldn’t but we do. We hope hope hope that the next attendee who walks in our booth is Superman. Not Superman Superman, but the sales equivalent of Superman. Faster to sign a contract than a speeding bullet. More powerful than the VP of Purchasing.
How To Make Your Trade Show Backdrop Stand Out!
Many exhibitors assume a backdrop is a simple two-dimensional graphic along the backwall of an exhibit. But it can be so much more. A backdrop in a 10 x 10 or 10 x 20 booth space doesn’t have to be basic. Modern inline displays come in various shapes, heights, and configurations.
Is Your Trade Show Display an Oreo or a Fig Newton?
As an adult I can rate just about everything on a cookie scale. For brevity, I’ll limit this article to Oreos, Fig Newtons, and Nilla Wafers, but be assured that the “science” behind my methodology includes Frosted Animal Cookies, Pepperidge Farms (as a collective group), Girl Scout Thin Mints, and Chips Ahoy.
Does Your Trade Show Exhibit Have To Be Clever?
That’s not to say your trade show exhibit shouldn’t be attractive. It should, but I would encourage you to focus on more practical matters the next time you design or rebrand your display. What do you need in the booth space to conduct business? Make it less about showmanship and more about conversations and information.
What Cats Can Teach Us About Trade Shows
We are a nation devoted to pets, whether they’re on the farm or in a purse. They learn from us, but we learn from them as well. The other day while watching Animal Planet with a cat in my lap, one on the sofa, and another puking upstairs ( it sounded like the world’s worst ventriloquist), I realized that we could learn a thing or two about trade show marketing from our feline companions.
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Who is Our Biggest Trade Show Competitor?
Recently, I’ve been on the road, visiting Classic Distributors in the Midwest and South. We chat about industry trends, new products, and challenges in their market. Occasionally, they will ask me about competitors. That’s a topic, to be honest, that makes me uncomfortable.
3 Essential Trade Show Marketing Questions
These are questions every designer should ask their client before designing the ideal trade show display. If the client walks in just thinking about the nuts and bolts of the project, they may miss an informed conversation on why they are exhibiting in the first place and that can fundamentally affect the design of a booth. The Why can greatly impact the How in Exhibit Design.
What You Should Know about Exhibit Marketing
Exhibit marketing is all about marketing your products or services to buyers at expositions, conferences, and trade shows. A successful exhibit marketing program will be rewarded with increased revenues, referrals, and industry networking. The goal is to understand how exhibit marketing differs from the other types of marketing.
Managing Your Trade Show Budget
Trade shows are expensive, and some costs are often puzzling to exhibition newbies, but there are multiple ways to manage those expenses with a little planning and some assistance from an experienced trade show professional. Don’t be afraid to tap into that expertise.
Why Are Trade Shows Important for Business Growth and Branding
With the rise of online meetings and ecommerce, business experts have predicted the death of trade shows and live events for 40 years. Yet, the benefits of trade shows and events have never been more important for businesses. There were over 13,000 separate events in North America in 2025 alone.
Best & Biggest Convention Centers in the US for Trade Shows
What are the biggest and best convention centers in the United States? And does overall size and location matter when it comes to a convention center? Unless you’re a trade show nerd (like me), you’ve probably never wondered if the Las Vegas Convention Center is bigger than McCormick Place in Chicago. Or if the Orange County Convention Center is in FL or CA?
Trade Show Exhibits — Outsource vs In-House Production
At Classic Exhibits, we’ve learned a few things over the past 30 years. For one, everyone wants to be in control. In our business that means the design, project management, construction, staging, and delivery of their client’s display.
People’s Almanac of Trade Show Knowledge
We all love working with an informed client about trade shows and trade show marketing. They ask our advice. We give it. Sometimes we state facts. Sometimes we offer opinions. And sometimes, we should send them to an expert.
Westeros and Trade Shows: Meet Your Game of Thrones Characters as Exhibitors
Trade show exhibitors and Game of Throne characters have a lot in common. See which character you resemble as an exhibitor in this entertaining blog post. So, sit back and contemplate who you are, or rather, who you want to be and see if this makes sense — unlike the ending to GoT.
10 Questions about Trade Show Labor
On May 21, 2024, Jim Wurm from the Exhibitor Appointed Contractor Association (EACA) presented a webinar on the State of the Labor Industry particularly as it relates to the production of trade shows and events. Jim was joined by Bill Muller from Nth Degree.
Share, Rent, or Buy — Your Next Trade Show Display
As a parent, you teach your children to share — share their toys, their candy, their whatever.
At Classic, we’ve seen this rental trend since 2008. At first, it was driven by necessity. Exhibitors were committed to a show and/or committed to trade show marketing and their budgets were slashed. Now, however, that trend has less to do with slashed budgets and more to do with personalization, capacity, ownership, storage, and design.
Rental Exhibits Q&A: 12 Questions about Renting a Trade Show Display
Rental exhibits have become as popular as leasing a car. It’s no longer just an economic consideration. It’s also about design flexibility and convenience, such as no storage.
Life as a Traveling Sales Representative
Snake Oil Salesman or Snake Charmer. The traveling salesman has always had slightly negative, slightly shady reputation. If you’ve ever seen The Music Man, particularly the opening scene on train, you’ll know what I mean. I would like to think business has changed from the days of the “snake oil salesman” to what we now refer to as a “manufacturer’s rep.
29 Ways to Cut Your Trade Show Costs
Many exhibitors are guilty of two self-inflicted mistakes when it comes to trade shows. They don’t have a comprehensive sales and marketing strategy, and they don’t manage their trade show costs before, during, and after the event. Let’s change that.