Economics 101: Trade Shows & Exhibition Displays
So you have a product or service that you would like to showcase in your exhibition displaysat a tradeshow. That’s great, but have you taken into consideration the costs involved with participating in a tradeshow?
If you’re new to the scene, you may be clueless as to what is involved, and how much it will cost to participate in a tradeshow. The first thing that you should do is create a budget worksheet. It is unlikely that you will stay within that budget, but at least you will have a format to follow. What you don’t want to do is to wing it, meaning go along with no plan or budget. As in most complicated processes, failing to plan is the same as planning to fail.
Some things to consider when planning to participate in a trade show are as follows:
1) Booth space. You need to know in advance how many square feet you will need for your exhibition displays, trade show banners, products, and other trade show supplies. Keep in mind that renting booth space at a tradeshow is usually quite expensive. Be sure that you have a large enough space so the contents in the booth are not cramped. The booth space should be large enough for the show attendees to walk around with ease. It is good for the energy to flow freely in and around the booth space without hindrances.
Translation…create a clutter free area. If you research well in advance, you will have better choices for the location of your booth inside the show – look for high traffic locations, to have the best opportunity to attract new prospects.
2) Booth content. The tradeshow display, banner stand(s), signage, carpeting, trade show furniture, and other needed trade show supplies and accessories. Again, make a plan in advance. You can rent or purchase your exhibition displays, pull up banners, and other accessories – if you are just starting out, renting may be a good option at first, until you learn more about your specific requirements, how many shows you will be attending annually, what your display needs to look like, etc.
3) Your marketing kit. This should include promotional materials, display materials and optional press kits. Keep in mind that these items will need to be printed. Make sure to budget for the cost of design and printing – and get the designs and printing done in advance – making the providers rush and ship overnight just adds extra fees and room for error.
4) Shipping costs and drayage charges. In most cases, exhibition displays are too large to travel as luggage on the airplane with you, and need to be shipped direct to the tradeshow venue. You want to make sure that your display stands arrive on schedule. Once your display and other trade show supplies arrive, you will need to pay show personnel to move your trade show supplies from the dock at the show to your booth space. This is what is referred to asdrayage. Note that drayage charges are in addition to shipping charges.
5) Labor costs for set up and tear down. In most cases you will need to hire union labor for the set up and tear down of your exhibition displays, and union labor hourly rates are not cheap. Check rates in advance, and look for competitive quotes – there are independent crews that provide competitive bids on install and dismantle services.
6) Electricity. Unless you are planning to have a dark, drab looking booth and trade show display, which is not recommended, you will incur charges for the use of electricity for lighting, computer usage, and any other electrical equipment that you may need to use.
7) Wi-Fi access. In a lot of cases, you will only be able to use the Wi-Fi service provided through the tradeshow venue. You may want to check on this prior to attending the show so that there aren’t any surprises. If your equipment has specific requirements, make sure you have arranged for them in advance.
8) Personal expenses. Air travel, lodging, food, and local transportation costs, such as taxis. Unless you hire local staff, you will incur these costs for the staff that is traveling with you as well. If you want to keep these cost down, you may be able to hire properly trained local staff through the venue to man your booth. As always, plan in advance – planning to buy airfare and book hotel rooms at the last minute isn’t a great plan.
Now that you are familiar with the basics of what is involved in participating in a tradeshow, wouldn’t it be wise to have a budget planned out? Overspending in any one area could be detrimental to your bottom line. Make arrangements to rent/buy and pay for the exhibition displays, graphics, and other trade show supplies a few months in advance of the show. Do the same with some of the other expenses. If you wait until the end of the show to pay for everything, you can end up finding out that your credit card is maxed out, over limit, while you’re standing in the line to check out of the hotel, with no good way to pay for your stay!
For more, check out our article on how to buy a new exhibit or how to improve in the offseason.