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Helpful Tips for Your Booth Planning Efforts
Dress the Part and Stay Alert
- Wear comfortable clothes and shoes during set-up – air conditioning and heating are not typically turned on during move-in.
- Be aware of your surroundings. A pre-show expo floor is essentially an active construction zone with potential hazards for the uninitiated. Eyes up – forklift ahead!
Check Out Your Space
- Make sure all exhibit materials and shipments have arrived.
- Confirm all work orders have been completed (or are in process) including electrical/power, furniture rental, flooring/carpet installation, audio visual, and any other arrangements to outfit your booth.
TIP: Bring all order confirmations and freight tracking numbers to show site. Questions? Visit the onsite Exhibitor Service Center for answers.
Mind your Empties
- Remove everything you’ll need (and anything valuable!) from your boxes and crates – containers won’t be accessible during the show.
- Once the containers are emptied, label each with “empty” stickers. These labels alert the material handling team which items are ready to be moved to off-site storage.
TIP: Empty stickers are available at the Exhibitor Service Center and from your onsite Floor Manger team. You’ll need at least one for each container you plan to store until the show closes. Label each with your company name and booth number.
Labor Ways
- If you ordered labor to set up your booth, check in at the labor desk.
- While you’re there, confirm move-out labor so you won’t be scrambling at the end of the show.
TIP: Order labor in advance to ensure discounted pricing. Reduce additional labor costs by:
- Diagramming your set-up and numbering crates accordingly.
- Including electrical needs and repacking instructions.
- Pre-wiring equipment and organizing/color-coding all technical needs.
- Providing a mobile contact number for any questions that arise during set-up.
Keeping track of these move-in essentials will help you manage the process like a pro.
Basic Booth Etiquette for Staff:
Provide Adequate Staffing
- Booth staff are usually responsible for booth set-up or at least putting the final touches on a larger, and they should arrive early enough to make sure that all materials are property displayed and ready for show attendees as soon as the exhibits open.
- The booth should be staffed adequately to permit attendees easy access to staff and to consider needs for lunch and other breaks without overwhelming the booth space with company employees.
- It is critical that booth staff remains in the booth through the completion of the scheduled hours each day. Leaving early and leaving an unattended booth before the end of the show could result in missed opportunities to interact with prospects and customers and give off an unprofessional image.
Adhere to Staff Dress Code
- Your staff’s booth attire is an extension of your company’s brand. Professional and uniform attire helps to reinforce trade show booth themes, and should also be perceived as respectful of the organizers and attendees of the show itself.
Greetings and Open Body Language
- After being initially drawn in by your booth or brand itself, your staff is the reason attendees will stay or go. These basic body language tips offer an approachable and professional atmosphere that will encourage prospects to visit – and stay in - your booth:
- Stand up and greet attendees when they approach the booth
- If seating is needed, tall stools can create contact at standing eye level
- Smile and make eye contact with attendees from all directions
- Speak with trade show attendees, not colleagues
- Sit down only if your are with a client who also wants to sit
- Do not cross arms or legs, keep hands out of pockets
- Avoid fidgeting and leaning against booth walls and furniture
- Be mindful of other people in the booth and near your space
- Do not enter the space of another exhibitor
- Be enthusiastic, confident, and polite
- Thank attendees for spending time at your booth when they arrive and leave
Staff Roles and Sales Script
- Booth staff should be assigned a specific area of the exhibit to cover and should have the expertise to convey important company information to attendees.
- Some companies even provide staff with a customizable greeting and sales script, so each member of the team is prepared to deliver a consistent, polished, and effective message to attendees.
- Beyond the ‘elevator pitch’, company reps should be prepared to answer basic questions or know where to obtain more information.
- The booth should also always be managed by at least one person who has that expertise or authority, and that person should be accessible to supporting staff and attendees at all times.
Attendee Engagement
- Attendees are at the ATD Show for a reason, so it’s important for booth staff to quickly introduce themselves and ask attendees questions quickly to find out if they can help them in any way. This is where the greeting or introduction script can come in handy
- The attendees visiting your booth have some relevant reason to learn more about your products and services, so make sure that your staff offers them a brief overview of the script and continues to engage the prospect from that point.
- Staff should be prepared to ask open-ended questions to build a rapport with attendees and determine needs.
- The number one complaint from show attendees is that some exhibitors unwisely use aggressive tactics such as stalking or chasing attendees beyond the booth space. If you come away with only one memorable tip, this would be the one!
No Staff Food or Beverages
- One of the most common booth etiquette violations occurs when food and drink are kept in the booth for the staff’s personal consumption. Expo hours are long, and certainly your staff should have access to food and water. But those snacks and drinks should not be consumed in the booth or left visible to show attendees.
- It may sound elementary, but remind booth staff to avoid eating, drinking, and chewing gum within the booth can be the difference between looking professional or appearing like slobs.
Booth Maintenance
- Store boxes and supplies out of sight.
- It’s important that the booth space appears well maintained at all times (including the floor) and trash should not be anywhere within view. Show etiquette calls for booth staff to be mindful of this rule throughout the entire day.
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