Ever wonder why there’s never been a Classic Exhibits Phoenix, Charlotte, or Missouri?
Two Reasons
First, we’ve never believed our brand was more important than your brand. Customers identify with your brand because you’re their personal trade show expert, their marketing partner. Exhibit design, building, storage, and services are still largely regional with clients typically within a day’s drive of their exhibit house.
Second, your brand is an asset. It should have long-term financial value. It shouldn’t depend on the whims (or mistakes) of a manufacturer. Anyone who’s been in this business knows of someone who’s business has suffered because of the shortsighted (and selfish) actions of a supplier.
Private-Label Business Model
Admittedly, Classic Exhibits isn’t well-known outside the exhibit industry. And that’s OK. We’re committed to a private-label model and dedicated to supporting you with design and build services, purchase and rentals, and unbranded marketing support.
Finally, we’d be lying if we said we aren’t proud of the Classic Exhibits brand… we are, but we’re happier when we’re a trusted resource rather than a logo on a building in Boston.
Who We Are
For over 30 years, Classic Exhibits has been designing and building creative custom solutions for our Distributor Partners and their clients. As North America’s largest private-label exhibit manufacturer, we have the unmatched capability, capacity, and creativity to create 3D projects ranging from 10 x 10 inline displays to 60 x 80 double-deck islands.
Exhibit rentals have gotten bigger, brighter, and bolder. Which is good news for everyone. At Classic Rental Solutions (CRS), our island to inline mix is about 50/50. Many inlines combine Gravitee Modular Wall System, SuperNova lightboxes, and custom counters with locking storage.
Small is Beautiful
However, we also rent a significant number of basic 10 ft. displays w/ options. These include simple LED lightboxes, tube frames with pillowcase displays, and quite a few Symphony Portable flat and curved SEG frames. Not everyone wants to buy a trade show display.
Instead, they want a rental with the following features and benefits:
An easy-to-assemble, high-quality 10 ft. display with vibrant graphics
Choices. The freedom to create the optimal marketing experience at each show
Predictable delivery, installation, and dismantle (w/ no stress, no sweat)
No storage or turnkey charges ever!
An attractive, reliable display for a smaller trade show, event, or meeting
5 Examples
So what do we mean by basic 10 ft. exhibit rental displays w/ options? Here are 5 examples from the EDS Rental Inline Gallery:
For over 30 years, Classic Exhibits has been designing and building creative custom solutions for our Distributor Partners and their clients. As North America’s largest private-label exhibit manufacturer, we have the unmatched capability, capacity, and creativity to create 3D projects ranging from 10 x 10 inline displays to 60 x 80 double-deck islands.
When used wisely, trade show giveaways are an investment in your business. They serve as silent salespeople, promoting your company long after the trade show or sales event is over. If you are considering adding incentives to your marketing strategy, you are in luck. The incentives industry is a multi-billion-dollar business with a vast range of products that can be printed, embossed, programmed, or custom-made to enhance and bring attention to your trade show exhibit.
What are Trade Show Giveaways— and Why Do They Matter?
Whether you use the term premium incentives, promotional products, or trade show giveaways, the goal should be the same. You want to capture the attention of potential clients AND be remembered for all the right reasons.
So, what are the right reasons? Everyone loves a freebie, and giveaways are a proven method for attracting people at a show. However, “If you think of them as trade show giveaways,” according to Rama Beerfas, owner of Lev Promotions, “They will have as much value to your recipients as they do to you. If you reframe them as promotional incentives or gifts, you’ll start to realize that a target branded incentive can bring you closer to achieving your goals and providing measurable results.”
Many companies start by searching the web for incentive ideas. Which isn’t a bad way to explore what’s available. However, the choices can be overwhelming. Is that really a wise use of your time? Spending hours searching for the perfect ink pen? Don’t make that mistake! Work with a promotional incentives expert who will ask you the right questions and narrow down your choices. It’s what they do. And it won’t cost you any more.
Tradeshow Giveaways vs. Promotional Incentives: Is There a Difference?
These terms are often used interchangeably, and in fact are the same in theory if not in practice. However, trade show giveaways and promotional incentives have distinct purposes and strategies.
Promotional incentives is a broader term that encompasses any offering designed to motivate a specific action or behavior from a target audience. While trade show giveaways are a type of promotional incentive, promotional incentives can be used in many other marketing contexts beyond tradeshows.
The Primary Goals of Trade Show Giveaways:
Increase Booth Traffic: Giveaways act as a magnet, drawing attendees to a booth amidst a crowded exhibition floor. People are often more likely to approach a booth if they see the possibility of receiving something free.
Boost Brand Awareness and Recall: When attendees leave with an item featuring a company’s logo and contact information, it serves as a tangible reminder of the brand long after the event. This helps keep the company top-of-mind.
Generate Leads: Giveaways can be used to incentivize attendees to provide contact information (e.g., scanning a QR code, signing up for a newsletter, or participating in a game) which can then be nurtured into potential sales leads.
Spark Engagement and Interaction: Handing out promotional items provides an easy icebreaker for booth staff to initiate conversations with potential customers.
The Primary Goals of Promotional Incentives:
Drive Sales and Revenue: By offering discounts, free gifts, or other perks, businesses can encourage immediate purchases.
Improve Customer Loyalty and Retention: Loyalty programs, rewards, and exclusive offers make customers feel valued, strengthening their bond with the brand and encouraging repeat business.
Customer Acquisition: Incentives can attract new customers to a business, expanding the client base.
Generate Demand: Creating interest in products or services to stimulate purchases.
Increase Brand Engagement: Encouraging customers to interact more deeply with the brand.
Collect Customer Data: Offering incentives in exchange for data like email addresses, preferences, or feedback.
While trade show giveaways are a tactical tool for immediate engagement and brand presence at events, promotional incentives represent a broader strategic approach to influence behavior across various marketing and business objectives.
Perishables (candy, mints, food and beverage, etc.)
Identifying Your Trade Show Giveaway Strategy
With thousands of possible options, choosing the right one(s) is less about a Top 10 list and more about achieving your marketing goals and sales results. Start by identifying your:
Target Audience
Budget
Quantity (it’s not about having something for everyone)
Theme (and/or the theme of the show)
Branding
Strategy
If you’re looking to do what’s hot/trendy/cool/new, then you’re probably going to be one of many on the show floor handing out the same item. Incentives trends are a moving target, and suppliers are nimble at finding and promoting the latest gadget. It may be a charging pad this season and earbuds the next season.
How to Choose the Best Trade Show Giveaways: The 4 “Make It” Rules
Make It Non-breakable. There’s nothing worse than getting a cool incentive only to have it break within days.
Make It Lightweight. You don’t want them to abandon it mid-day just to lighten the load.
Make It Compact. It can’t be bulky since it often has to pack in checked luggage.
Make It TSA Friendly. Nothing is worse than seeing your promotional products in the trash can just outside the airport security checkpoint.
What Makes Good Marketing Merchandise?
You want items that appeal to your specific target market and that are tied into your overall marketing message. Your target market may be active adults. However, if your marketing focus is summer wear, a fall or winter incentive like beanies won’t make sense… even if you would REALLY LOVE to have a branded beanie.
The perfect marketing merchandise for one company (or even one campaign) may be completely inappropriate for another.
Tier Your Giveaway Marketing Strategy with BEST / BETTER / GOOD
BEST is for your top prospects and best clients
BETTER is for your good prospects, good existing clients and maybe even staff
GOOD is for attendees who are qualified, but not really a hot prospect.
So how do you make the incentive feel like a gift rather than a giveaway? Store the nicer or higher value items out of sight, like in a counter, kiosk, or pedestal. Once you’ve qualified the prospect, then present them with a special gift, one they know not everyone else is getting. Perception matters!
10 Trade Show Giveaway Ideas to Inspire You
1.3M Post-It productsdesigned for outdoor or wet settings. Great for the construction and manufacturing industries.
2. Custom or packaged gifts that can be handed out or shipped to recipients.
3. Create a custom gift kit with a bit more flair, start with the packaging.
9. Travel Items to make your trip easier, more comfortable, and safer.
10. Your pre-show mailers will be more memorable if you make them “bulky”.
Trade Show Giveaways That People Actually Keep
Keep or toss? Have you ever asked yourself that question when packing your bag after a trade show? Trade show attendees are more likely to keep giveaways that are practical, useful, and memorable. Items like water bottles, tote bags, pens, and notebooks are popular choices because they have everyday applications. In addition, consider high-quality items which are more likely to be kept.
1. Insulated Water Bottles: Think stainless steel, double-walled bottles from reputable brands (like Hydro Flask, Yeti, Aladdin). These are used daily, whether at the office, gym, or on the go.
2. Reusable Tote Bags: Not just for carrying other swag at the show, but a durable, stylish tote bag made from canvas or recycled materials will be used for groceries, errands, or even as a daily bag. Insulated tote bags, while more expensive, are a must have for many shoppers.
3. Quality Pens: Ditch the 49 cent pens with a half-life of two weeks. Quality pens have a comfortable grip, balanced weight, and a smooth, consistent ink flow. Attendees will keep gel pens, rollerball pens, and an upscale ballpoint pen.
5. Custom Apparel: Instead of large, billboard-style logos, consider subtle branding on quality t-shirts, hoodies, or caps from popular brands. People are more likely to wear them if they look good.
By offering practical, useful, and memorable giveaways, you can increase the chances that attendees will keep and use your promotional items, which can help to increase brand awareness and generate positive buzz for your company.
5 Business Promotional Items to Avoid
#1 Anything in questionable taste: (e.g., a knife in many Asian cultures signifies cutting ties).
#2 Anything against the law or that shows a lack of understanding of social customs: (e.g., chewing gum in Singapore).
#3 See the “4 Make It” Rules previously mentioned.
#4 Anything of poor quality or has a poor/incorrect imprint on it. The quality of the item will reflect on your brand.
#5 Anything demonstrating a poor understanding of your target market: (e.g., a $1.50 tape measure given to contractors).
How to Make Your Trade show Giveaway Part of the Experience
Many exhibitors view trade show giveaways as a “grab and go” incentive and don’t take the time to integrate into their overall marketing experience. One way of turning a trade show giveaway into a memorable incentive is to make it contingent on an interaction, education, or simply something fun. Here are a few ideas:
Games and Contests: Consider games like Spin the Wheel, Trivia Challenges, Product-related Puzzles, or Digital Games.
Photo Booths or Virtual Reality Experiences: Photo booths are always a draw on the trade show floor and both photo booths and VR experiences are ideal as social media shares.
Tiered Giveaways: Offer attendees tiered giveaways based on their level of engagement. A grab and go attendee gets a basic inkpen but a potential client who books a meeting receives a tech gadget.
Personalize the Giveaway: Customize a hat, shirt, or even a pen onsite with an engraving machine.
Limited Edition or VIP Giveaways: Announce that a limited number of high-quality giveaways will be available each day. Or reserve your best incentives for high-priority leads or existing clients.
Remember, your trade show giveaway should have a “connection” to your brand, product, or your theme. In addition, it should have a purpose, a clear objective, whether that’s lead generation, branding, or increased engagement. Finally, higher quality giveaways are more likely to be kept and used. Lower quality products are often left in the hotel room or are trade show treats for someone’s kids.
Your Partner for Trade Show Giveaways
Premium incentives can be an effective trade show or event marketing tool when connected to your company, product, or campaign. There are thousands of choices in incentive items, and the choices change all the time.
Your consultant can guide you through the process of selecting appropriate incentives. In some cases, it is as simple as a pen or pad. In other cases, you may want multiple items linked to your overall marketing message. Incentives can be fun, effective, and expensive.
A special thanks to Rama Beerfas at Lev Promotions for sharing her invaluable advice about promotional incentives.
For over 30 years, Classic Exhibits has been designing and building creative custom solutions for our Distributor Partners and their clients. As North America’s largest private-label exhibit manufacturer, we have the unmatched capability, capacity, and creativity to create 3D projects ranging from 10 x 10 inline displays to 60 x 80 double-deck islands.
A
close friend of mine recently had her first child – a healthy baby boy. When I
hear that a friend’s new baby is about to be born, I head to CVS or a newsstand
and purchase as many newspapers and magazines as I can find with that day’s date. The papers can be major
ones (Wall Street Journal, Washington
Post, New York Times, etc.) as well as more regional papers. For magazines,
I grab Time, Newsweek, Sports Illustrated
and my fave… TV Guide.
I place each newspaper and magazine in thick clear plastic bags (specially purchased for this purpose) to keep them airtight and clean. Then I put my cool little Time Capsule in a box and send it off. The baby might not appreciate it now, but he/she will when they grow up.
Unfortunately, I often don’t learn of the baby’s birth until a day or two later which totally thwarts my Time Capsule concept. When that happens, I buy a baby Levi jean jacket and have it embroidered on the back with something like Zampella & Son, Since 2025 (see image below). It’s a goofy but fun keepsake that will make Mom and Dad (and eventually the baby) smile for years to come.
What does all this baby talk have to do with me? Absolutely nothing. But ever since my friends Jackie and Gina recently had their healthy baby, I’ve had baby brain. So, without further ado, I present you with my new glossary of trade show terms about “pregnancy and childbirth”!
Enjoy! Please add your terms in the comments section.
Glossary A-C
Breech – When your graphics are printed backwards or upside down
C-Section – The third
level of Classic’s Gravitee display
Conception – When that
brilliant booth design first sparks
Contraction – Going from
a 30×30 to a 10×20
Cravings – Show hours are from 9:00 am – 4:00 pm and you’re starving
Crowning – Winning “Best of Show”
Glossary D-F
Dilation – What
happens to aisles during I&D
Embryo – Your client’s very first 10×10
Epidural
–
When you find time to get a foot massage from
the booth next door
False Labor – When show labor has to wait for your crates to clear material handling
Fertility – Your client gets their new budget and is ready to spend it
First Trimester – Your booth’s first of three back-to-back shows
Fontanelles – Conference Room walls using SEG fabrics
Full Term – You tell your Client you need artwork no later than 4:00 pm and you get it at 3:59 pm
Glossary F-N
Gestation
–
The time it takes your Designer to create the next award winner
Home Birth – Trade show exhibitors building their first booth in-house
Induced
–
Slipping labor a $50
In Vitro – A booth design that uses pillowcase graphics (tubes… get it??)
Labor – Sometimes late, usually painful, and never the same
Midwife – Your work wife who continually reminds you to
save your receipts
Morning Sickness – When your rookie booth staffer stays out way too late the night before the show
Natural
Birth –
When you suggest designing with Classic’s ecoSmart Sustainable Exhibits
Newborn – A new booth at its very first show
Nursery – The warehouse or dock where crates are stored during the show
Glossary P-Z
Pelvic Floor Exercises – How you prepare for being on your feet for 12 hours
Postpartum – Having to do a week’s worth of laundry after returning from a trade show
Premature – That one exhibitor who begins to dismantle their booth – 2 hours early!
Presenting – When the edge of your booth creeps into the aisleway
Stretch
Marks
– SEG graphics that have seen one too many shows
Ultrasound – The booth
next to yours that has their presenters mic set too loud
Umbilical
Cord –
That one extension cord that magically connects ALL your electronics
Water
Birth –
That $12 bottle of Aquafina water (so refreshing but so painful)
Water Breaking – Spilling that full $12 bottle of Aquafina water
Harold and Baby Shy
Who We Are
For over 30 years, Classic Exhibits has been designing and building creative custom solutions for our Distributor Partners and their clients. As North America’s largest private-label exhibit manufacturer, we have the unmatched capability, capacity, and creativity to create 3D projects ranging from 10 x 10 inline displays to 60 x 80 double-deck islands.
Several months ago, we added (3) BannerBug USA banner stands to Exhibit Design Search. They’re now on sale to Classic Distributor Partners at 10% less through June.
BannerBug stands are manufactured in the USAand covered by an Unconditional Lifetime Warranty on the hardware. If the product fails, regardless of the reason, BannerBug USA will repair or replace it for free, for life.
Order your BannerBug stands directly from the manufacturer (not Classic). Let them know you’re a Classic Distributor to receive this exclusive discount.
(3) BannerBug products are in the EDS Lightboxes and Banner Stands gallery:
For more information, including wholesale prices, contact David Holladay, (205) 793-9600, david@bannerbugusa.com.
Who We Are
For over 30 years, Classic Exhibits has been designing and building creative custom solutions for our Distributor Partners and their clients. As North America’s largest private-label exhibit manufacturer, we have the unmatched capability, capacity, and creativity to create 3D projects ranging from 10 x 10 inline displays to 60 x 80 double-deck islands.
