Does your trade show exhibit function as it should?

To determine if your booth is designed with more than just pretty graphics and a ‘wow’ factor to draw in the show attendees, your designer should ask a lot of relevant and applicable questions about the function of your booth.

Typical functions you might need include product display areas, AV equipment, internet access, a serving bar, storage, private and semi-private meeting areas, refrigerated coolers or refrigerators, areas for interaction with games or software, and demonstration areas.

Function is getting down to the bottom line. If you need to sit down with clients or prospects and go over a product line or discuss aspects of business, you’ll need a place to do that. That will likely mean a small table that 3 or 4 people can sit down and chat at least a few feet away from the main traffic of the show or a private meeting room – or even an auditorium feature.

If your business needs to let prospective customers get their hands on a computer mouse and play with the software to see how it applies to their business, you’ll need to make sure there’s room (and power) for the computer. Do you need individual kiosks? Or an area with room for several people to be playing with your products at once – where everyone talks to each other, creating a lively atmosphere. Or perhaps your booth needs room for a demo that can accommodate a dozen or more people. That space and accommodations need to be worked into the design.

All of these areas are important considerations and no matter whether you rent or purchase an exhibit – if it does not have the right elements, the greatest look can still be a failure. If there is a vital element missing that impairs your overall function, the time to discover that is not on the show floor!

Go over your show objectives with your designer. A great designer will lead you down a path to a purposeful exhibit that incorporates all the essential functions that your exhibit will need to serve. And with a collaborative effort between your tradeshow team and your booth design team you will make certain that all of the exhibit’s function needs have been met.

Jan Koren - jkoren@AbsoluteExhibits.com