Although exhibit design is an important and crucial element of ensuring success at your next trade show, it is important to keep in mind that your exhibit stand will likely only be as successful as your staff. That’s because, even if you have a mind-boggling beautiful and intriguing display, once attendees actually end up there, they will need to be engaged by your staff. Their performance, therefore, is crucial in determining how well your brand is represented and in how successful you are at your next trade show.
If you want more out of the next trade show then, the obvious prerequisite would be to put more time and effort into making sure that your trade show staff is ready to go and expert in their jobs. But, the first decision that you will run into when attempting this is whether to staff your exhibit stand with your own employees, hire professionals or do some combination of both.
While hiring professionals can be effective because they are often much more adept at engaging attendees and performing in that critical capacity, it can be more difficult to find people who are as familiar with (and passionate about) your company, your brand and your products and services.
So, in addition to focusing on exhibit design, if you want an amazing trade show exhibit, you may want to staff your exhibit stand with employees (or at least a mixture of both hired hands and regular employees). If you’re going to do this, it’s best to provide your employees with some level of training and support in order to ensure that they are comfortable and set up to be succesful in their new capacity.
For most of your employees this will be a new adventure and a task that they are not particularly used to. That’s why it is crucial to give them the support and training they need. First of all, they should be comfortably situated before even setting up on the trade show floor or worrying about your exhibit stand. Make sure staff are staying in a comfortable hotel, getting a good meal in them before the day of the show and aren’t too stressed. This will improve their general well-being and equate to better performance on the floor.
Then, it’s a good idea to hire a trainer (a professional who has significant trade show exhibit staffing experience) in order to give them some tips on what to do and how to engage attendees. Some role playing will probably be in order and a bit of studying up on your company’s newest products and services.
Don’t neglect your staff and you will see that together with effective staffing and exhibit design, your trade show appearance will be a home run.