While some basic principles apply to every event booth, how successful your stand is really depends on how well-suited it is to your industry. What works well in one sector may have the opposite effect in another, so a one-size-fits-all approach simply won’t work – you instead need to think about your specific audience and design your stand around it. This way, you can create an experience that effectively draws in attendees, holds their interest, and converts them into paying customers.
At Extreme Group, we’ve designed, built, and managed stands for businesses in almost every industry imaginable. In this guide, we’ll explore what types of stands work best for some of the most common trade show sectors.
1. Leisure, hobby, and entertainment
According to Statistica, the entertainment sector has the most trade shows out of any industry. You’re up against a lot of competition, so you better bring your A-game!
The entertainment industry is about one thing: fun. Your stand should lean into this, with eye-popping colours, slick imagery, and plenty of interactive features – for example, a ball pit or oversized props related to your business.
When we designed a branded environment for luxury yacht company Princess, for example, we knew photos and videos wouldn’t have the same wow factor as the real thing. We instead brought in a fleet of their yachts for people to see and even tour. This hands-on experience left a far stronger impression than a non-interactive stand would’ve done, and was successful enough for Princess to use our services many times more in the future.
2. Food and beverages
The food and beverage sector is all about tantalising the senses. It’s hard to get a full picture of what you’re offering with photos alone, so use both visual and aromatic displays to showcase your products. For example, a mocktail bar for alcoholic brands, or samples of food you supply.
Emphasise the quality of your offerings while reflecting their unique nature. A rustic, market stall style stand can work well for a more artisan vibe, while a sleek, futuristic stand may be better suited for more experimental dishes.
3. Agriculture
The agriculture industry is focused on the outside world, so it can be hard to reflect that when exhibiting indoors. However, by using real plants, greenery, and natural materials like wood for your display, you can give it an organic feel and better connect your brand to nature.
Sustainability is important for all industries, but especially so for agriculture. Use your presence at the trade show as a platform to highlight your efforts in making agriculture more sustainable, including any sustainable farming practices or environmental initiatives you’ve implemented.
It’s also a good idea to showcase images of the actual farmers you work with at your booth. This puts a human face on your supply chain and reminds attendees that real people are involved in growing the products you sell.
4. Fashion and beauty
Glitz, glamour, and eye-catching visuals – that’s what gets fashion brands noticed. Use bold, on-trend designs and lighting to emulate the catwalk and draw eyes, and always make sure your brand is presented in an aspirational, lifestyle context.
One way to do this is to have your staff stylishly made up in clothes from your fashion line. Another is to have interactive mirrors, product testing stations, and runway displays to bring your products to life. This will help connect visitors emotionally to your brand and envision themselves in that aspirational lifestyle.
When creating a stand for sportswear brand HOKA, we put their latest shoes on display for visitors to try on. We also placed three ScanMate 3D machines at the centre of the stand. When someone stepped on one, they would receive a personalised 3D shoe recommendation that would match them with their ideal HOKA shoe. This interactivity kept visitors engaged with the stand while non-intrusively encouraging them to buy HOKA’s products.
5. Technology
Technology event stands should use a clean, contemporary, and innovative design to align with the cutting-edge products on display. White spaces highlighted with pops of colour and accent lighting create a modern, high-tech aesthetic, while having interactive product demos nearby helps bring your innovations to life, allowing attendees to experience first-hand how user-friendly and solution-focused your offerings are. You should also make sure to have experts stationed at your booth to educate visitors on the technology and its applications.
The stand we created for technology company HTC, for example, had a sleek white colour scheme with blue accenting for an ultra-modern look. We also had their VR headsets and phones on display for people to try out, so they could get an idea of how their products worked with their own two hands.
Talk to the leading specialists in event stand design
With close to 30 years’ experience, the team at Extreme Group know more about creating visually stunning, fully bespoke exhibition stands than anyone else.
When designing a stand for your business, we’ll factor in the sensory experience you want to create, how you want attendees to interact with your products and services, and the overall impression you want the space to convey. We’ll then create a stand that embodies all of these goals, while also managing its build and logistics to take the hassle off your shoulders.
Whatever your business and whatever its industry, you can rely on our team to create the perfect stand for your next trade show. If you’re ready to get started, book a consultation online or call us on 01202 620550 today!
