How To Design Great Trade Show Display Graphics
Walk around your next trade show and you’ll see a lot of great designs. They look good, attract your attention, engage and tell a story.
You’ll also see a lot of bad designs! Too many pictures, confusing messages and, what does that say? It’s so small and there is so much text, I can’t even read it!
When it’s time to design your trade show display graphics, consider a few important points:
– Who you are: Obviously you want to be easily found in the show hall. An effective way to accomplish this goal is by not only placing your logo & branding at the maximum height, but also repeating it in several different locations throughout the design.
– What you do: Great, your prospect has found your booth. Now, can they quickly understand what your company does? A tagline or short sentence should be near your logo, so that the attendee can relate who you are to what you do.
– How you can help them: Now that we understand you’re the “Acme Anvil Company” and you make “The most durable, USA-made and reconfigurable anvils” in the world, it’s time to explain why this is important and how it will add to their bottom line. For example “Our anvils will increase your productivity by 37% and cut down-time by 1/3rd.” Short bullet-points are another effective way to share this message, but don’t get too carried away.
In addition, consider the following items in your design:
– Photos: Not too many. Make sure the resolution is good. Should they show your product in action? Does a photo help relate your service to a solution? Think about these questions as you start your design. Do you need photos at all? Maybe an illustration instead?
– Text: Think billboards. Keep editing. Less text = more readable, quickly.
– Lighting: How will lighting affect your graphics? Exhibiting in Vegas? Did you know halogens are banned at a few locations? Should you use spot lights to accent? Or, maybe backlighting? Just like in your living room, lighting will set the tone & mood for your trade show booth. How about some specialty lighting?
– Technology & interactivity: An easy way to gain more attention is to add motion and technology is very cost effective these days for making that happen. Add some monitors, loop a video or pictures and you’ve easily attracted more people. Now, make those monitors or iPads part of your lead qualifying process by turning them into an interactive game and you’ve hit a home run. Don’t forget about social media too; Tweet some pictures, upload a video to YouTube and share on Facebook.
What are your best tips for designing great trade show graphics? Share a tip by commenting on this post!
By: Michael Flavin – May 16, 2013
