The Hawthorne Effect

Cookies?  Coffee?  Free lunch?  How to keep your booth staff in the booth and effective is an age old question.

Companies today still follow lessons learned from a study done some 80 years ago dubbed the "Hawthorne effect".  The experiment found that performance improves when people perceive they are receiving special consideration.

Turn consideration of your booth staff into productivity with treats and perhaps modest but special "thank-you" awards of $10 or $20 gift cards.  And be sure to let them know you recognize their toil by thanking them for their hard work and support.  It works!

How much space do people need?

Most of us are uncomfortable in narrow aisles - especially when there isn't enough space to pass someone without brushing them. We don't like being squeezed tight when perusing a booth.  When designing your booth, leave enough room between display elements so visitors can maneuver in your booth space untouched.  And instruct your staff to avoid blocking the narrow spots.

Find more tips at www.espexhibits.com

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I have to start this blog with an observation – life changes in seconds – an earthquake in Haiti, a hurricane in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, or an act of terrorism in New York, and Washington DC and Pennsylvania  – the list goes on forever both with natural and less than natural calamities.  Putting perspective into our lives is very difficult – unless the disaster hits home.  Here’s why I mention all of this today – a client’s needs are very important, especially to them.  However we all need a little perspective – the world will not come to an end if your potential design does not get there by noon or your extra barstools are not on the show floor the night before opening and arrive the next morning before the show opens.  We need to keep  calm – we pledge to do that at our end and we ask that all of you do that at your end.

I am not a yoga high priestess – just someone that has been on the show floor for way too many years and realizes most everyone pre-show is a hysterical mess and 24 hours later is in a new zone of selling and glad-handing.  Perspective tells us most of our lives are pretty good and we won’t live any longer by venting and spewing – so let’s all vow to calm down and help others do the same.

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