r/tradeshows

Got hit with a $45 per box handling fee by the on-site business center in Orlando last week because our collateral arrived three days before setup day.

Trying to bypass the crazy drayage rates at the convention hall by shipping to the host hotel backfired completely. They charged $180 just to move four small cartons from their loading dock to a closet behind the desk.

For smaller 10x10 setups I just check the pop-up banner in my luggage, route the product sheets through Mimeo so they land at the desk right on Tuesday morning, and grab badge clips at a local target after landing.

Do you guys just eat these rogue intake charges or push back on the master folio at checkout?

We’re an electronics contract manufacturer specializing in custom cable assemblies, wire harnesses, box builds, and electromechanical assemblies for OEMs across a variety of industries.

We’re looking for ideas for a trade show giveaway that people would actually want to keep, preferably something that could sit on their desk. We’re trying to stay away from the typical pens, stress balls, and other promotional items that end up in a drawer.

Ideally, it would be something useful, interesting, or unique that fits an engineering, electronics, or manufacturing audience. It doesn’t necessarily have to be directly related to our industry.

For those who attend a lot of trade shows, what’s the best giveaway you’ve ever received? Or what’s something you would actually be excited to take home and put on your desk?

Looking for creative ideas.

Full disclaimer: I work for a company that helps businesses book hotels for international trade shows.

We have been in the industry for more than 16 years, but things have shifted quite a bit in the last 2 years. People used to book their accommodation well in advance of the event, but these days we get a lot of requests for available rooms even up to a week before the event. We also attend trade shows, but it's different for us because we don't have to outsource our bookings.

Is this a new trend, or are people just unsure due to the economic situation worldwide? Very curious to hear from other exhibitors/attendees.

My company is using BeMatrix for our booth designs. planning on adding some more to our stock, but before I go ahead and invest some big bucks on brand new panels, i figured I’d ask here first:

Anyone got any ideas where to find used BeMatrix Inventory? Looking to buy within the US, preferably Florida - but shipping from any other of the continental states wouldn’t be a problem either…

PS Auctions and the like have some every couple of months or so, but i didn’t find any sources where something would be available within the next weeks…

edit: forgot the flair, sorry :(

What's the most unexpected trade show giveaway or tactic you've seen that's actually worked? (Full disclosure that I work at VistaPrint, where we do a lot of customer surveys on general promo items, etc. The answer is always either pens or T-shirts, ha) But I'm wondering if you've seen anything counterintuitive that has been really popular?

I'm thinking... dunk tanks at a corporate event... or giant bags of candy from dentists? Tarot cards at a financial conference? Would love to know if there are any random trends out there!

I've exhibited at our local science museum "discoverfest" since 2019.

I demonstrate woodturning to the people as young as 10 (more height dependent than any thing). they'll actually go hands on with a chisel and low speed lathe. in my 6 years of doing this I've never had an accident.

this year they are requiring all vendors who have hands on activities to carry a $1M liability policy for a 1 day event.

is this normal? participants have to sign a waiver to even partipate. can anybody suggest where to get a policy like this? I've tried Canopy, but they won't cover it.

We built a tool called Tradeshow Champ for marketing and event teams that manage trade shows. It brings the strategy, execution, content, meetings, and ROI side of trade shows together in one place, with AI built in where it can save time.

We're looking for a few trade show marketers to try it and give us honest feedback on what's useful, what's missing, and what could be better.

We're giving free access to the first 25 users.

If you're interested in trying it, comment or message me and I'll send you the details. Thanks!

Running a regional summit across 3 cities over the next couple months and last year we used two different print vendors for the backdrops. Looked totally fine in person at both events. Then the recap video came back and the two banners that were SUPPOSED to be the same navy blue looked like two different colors on camera. Nobody caught it until we were in the edit review meeting and it was too late to fix anything.

Now I'm back to sourcing for this year's tour, comparing places like Signs and 48HourPrint, and trying not to relive that meeting. Couple questions for anyone who's dealt with this:

• For a dark navy backdrop with white logo, is tension fabric actually better on camera than vinyl, or is that just marketing? I've seen people say vinyl glares under lights and fabric doesn't, but wondering if that's real-world noticeable or overblown.
• If you're ordering banners weeks apart instead of all at once (different cities, different timing), how do you actually keep the color consistent? Is a Pantone number enough or does it still drift between print runs?
• Anyone gotten burned using two different printers (or even the same one, different runs) for the same event and had it actually show up on camera like this?

Not trying to overthink a banner but I really don't want to be back in that same meeting this year.

Hello! I've set up 2 years in a row at a local festival, where everyone was in an open mall area, and I basically had as much room as I wanted. I have all my table cloths, decor, etc already.

This December, I'm attending my first juried event, where I also had to purchase my booth space (indoor, in an event center). I have a standard 10x10, taped out on the floor, and they provide a 6' table. There is no additional storage on location, so all my product needs to be on or under the tables.

I'm thinking of adding another 6' table and placing the tables along the sides, with a 4' table at the rear for my check out. Is 4' a wide enough space inside for people to move around? I haven't actually attended many of these events, so I don't have a good 'feel' for inside the space. Is that super cramped, or fairly standard?

Thanks all!