ClickCease Setting up your trade show exhibit | Godfrey Group

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Whether you’re exhibiting at a trade show for the first time or you’re an old pro, preparation plays a major role in your success. Introducing trade shows into your marketing efforts involves a lot of work such as mapping out your strategy, narrowing in on your target audience, and fine-tuning your messaging. But bringing your exhibit to life at the trade show takes some preparation. So when it comes to setting up your trade show exhibit, we’re going to run through everything to help you achieve your goals and receive a good return on your investment.

Setting up your trade show exhibit: tips, tricks & advice.

Arrive early. Whether you’re setting up yourself or you’re working with a team of professionals for the installation, you’ll want to arrive early. Get a sense of the space and give yourself enough time to thoughtfully and carefully assemble your display. You don’t want to accidentally damage your exhibit by rushing through the setup.

Survey your exhibiting space. You’ll want to lay eyes on the exhibit space and determine if it’s properly prepared with the under carpet amenities like electrical wiring, internet cables and electrical outlets. If you happen to notice that any of these are missing, by arriving early and surveying the space, you’re able to have these issues corrected without delaying your booth installation.

Know your display type. The most common trade show booth size is 10x10. And most 10x10 trade show displays are portable, which means the exhibitor can carry or wheel the display into the show on their own and handle the set up on their own.

Many 10x10 displays can be set up by just one person, and some like the ShowFlex displays can actually be set up in just a matter of minutes. Banner stand backwalls also set up rather quickly and are easily handled by one person.

Something to note is that almost any display that is listed as a fabric display tends to be fairly quick and easy to set up.

When you’re working with a hybrid modular display and/or a shelving display, we’d advise that you have at least two people handle the setup. These tend to be a little more involved and can take about an hour or so to complete, especially if it’s your first time out.

If you have a custom display, understand that the time necessary to set up will vary depending on its complexity. Generally speaking, if you have a 20x20 booth, you’ll need to hire additional help or professional labor like Godfrey Group to handle the installation and dismantle. 

Properly staff your set up. As we mentioned above, it’s important to know your display type to ensure you can properly staff your set up. With most portable 10x10 displays, you can get by with having one or two of your staffers handle the setup.

Hire additional or professional help. Once you get into a 20x20 booth space, it’s likely that you’ll need to hire either additional help or reach out to professionals like Godfrey Group to install and dismantle your exhibit. Godfrey Group is always happy to assist you with your labor needs and offer advice or answer any questions in regards to your installation.

Avoid a chaotic & dysfunctional installation and dismantle with these tips:

  • Communicate with the proper trade show representatives to ensure you have the proper installation information in terms of what time to arrive, a map of the showroom floor, and any specifics about your particular booth space.
  • Before installation, ensure that the flooring is properly installed and that your booth space is clear of all crates and other show materials in order to avoid any slowdowns and assembly delays.
  • Print, email and make copies of all 3D renderings and any staging photos of your exhibit. Place copies of these items in your exhibit crates so that whoever is assisting in the setup, whether it’s additional staffers or an installation and dismantling company like Godfrey Group, has the information at their fingertips.