Is your Expo stand killing our souls?

It’s time to think outside of the trade fair, expo, conference centre box…or booth I should say.

Most people fall into the same old, same old visual traps when designing a stand. Heck, most people don’t even design them — they cobble together a few dull graphic pull-up banners, splatter their logo willy-nilly and fan out some brochures over a table covered in a generic table cloth.

It’s so soul-destroying.

But it’s OK because you know your company/product/service is better than the competition, so that will speak for itself. Surely. People can see it’s superior. Can’t they?

In short, no they can’t.

People can’t SEE from a booth that you are better than the competition. They just see what you present them and what you present makes them FEEL a certain way. Studies show that people make decisions with their emotions, no matter how many graphs you create, or how many times you repeat your logo, or the fancy brochures you print.

How do you make people FEEL when they see your booth at an expo? Inspired, excited, intrigued…delighted to be there?

Or are they a little bit dead on the inside?

But human nature is attracted to new, shiny objects. If we see something out of place, we’re more likely to pay attention. And once you have someone’s attention, you can run with it. See where it takes you and them.

Which is why you should try to be different. Not better.

I learnt this from Mike Michalowicz, marketeer and author of Profit First and The Pumpkin Plan.

Don’t be the best in your market. Don’t try and beat everyone by being the best in your industry. Just try and separate yourself from the crowd, by being different. Mike makes a really good point; we are so used to seeing certain things, done in a certain way, presented in a certain way and if we see something different that our brains are not expecting — then we pay attention!

If you’re in a really saturated market space, if there are lots of other people doing exactly what you do in your business, don’t try and be better — because your client isn’t going to know that you’re better.

You might think that you’re better. You may actually be better! But when your client, or your potential client, is looking at you from the outside and deciding who to work with, out of all these people in a saturated market, ‘Better’ is probably not something they’re thinking about.

Rather the client will choose the business that resonates with them and stands out. A business who differentiates themselves from everybody else AND because they resonate with the potential client specifically.

How can I help with this? Having a custom designed backdrop or stand display can help you stand out from the crowd in a saturated marketplace.

Don’t waste another dollar on an expo, conference or trade fair with a dull, step-repeat logo, common graphic designed stand…speak to me, and I will open your mind to a whole new world of attracting your ideal clients and raving fans.

I promise!

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