10 Novel Trade Show Booth Design Ideas to Attract an Audience

Everything from the doorbell outside your house to the staircase that takes you up in the first place is a result of the influence of design. Whether or not we are mindful of it, great design solves practical problems in ways that seem almost too obvious to be genius. And that is exactly what a good exhibit design does for your brand when your company decides to participate in a trade show. Above all else, it solves problems.

And even though a lot of attendees may not knowingly appreciate it, they will still be able to sense whether or not your booth design is working in your favor. They will be able to ascertain this by the amount of white space inside your booth, by the ease of navigation through the expanse, by the lighting that illuminates their face a little too harshly while completely missing your products and messaging, by the video playing on the touchscreen wall whose sound is drowned out by the chaos of the show floor, and most importantly, by the way the display moves (or doesn’t move) them to take some sort of action.

In other words, there are a thousand ways for an attendee to be able to differentiate a good booth design from a bad one, and it is their ability to make this judgment in a span of four seconds that makes it incredibly crucial for you to ensure that you fall in the first category. After all, you will be surrounded by thousands of your competitors, who will all be vying for the undivided attention of the same group of people. This is perhaps your only chance to stand out and make a memorable impression.

So, without further preamble, here are 10 creative trade show booth design ideas to attract visitors at the time of trade show:

Photo and Selfie Booths Are In

Like it or hate it, social media has deeply embedded itself into our lives. Every person loves sharing whatever they are up to, and your business can use this to its advantage. Photo and selfies booths will always entice attendees, and it helps if the booth design takes it a notch upward. For instance, a car engine manufacturing company can set up a model sports car in which people can sit and click selfies. To make it more engaging, you can add digital scenarios as a backdrop. Imagine a speeding car chase where rogue cars are chasing you or imagine zooming in on a NASCAR race track; the more interactive it is to take selfies, the more engagement your booth will receive.

Let People Sit

Most trade show centers are enormous. Attendees have to stay on their feet forever and ever to get from one end to the other. It is tiring, not to mention annoying. And this is where your booth design can provide a solution – seats. Simple yet so effective. We are talking about cozy cushion chairs and inviting bean bags. A welcoming smile with an offer to sit down will assuredly bring a rush of relief to attendees. If you’re a beverage company, or someone who manufacturers juicers and mixers, this is your golden moment. Offer them a sample and pitch your product – you are more than likely to get their names down on your lead forms.

Let People Charge

Yes, one of the best ways to not only attract attendees but make them stay is to add smartphone charging stands to your booth design. People cannot live without their smartphones and offering them a space to re-juice them in the middle of a long and tiring day is a pretty cool gambit. They will feel thankful immediately and be more receptive to your services or products. Imagine a mobile chip manufacturer offering free charging points and pitching their chip, saying they run for a long time without heating – that’s a goldmine for lead generation.

Use Your Space Smartly

At trade shows, space is limited. And every business in order to attract more eyeballs has to come up with creative booth design ideas. While people focus on the exteriors, how about using a closed environment in the smartest way possible? Say you’re a business that sells seed fertilizers. A little nursery in a small closed-capsule-like design will generate curiosity among onlookers. The same goes for a furniture company; create a mini theater lounge and literally show people how comfortable it is to watch their favorite films and TV shows on your chairs and sofas. Sometimes, enclosed spaces make the most noise.

Use VR to Your Advantage

Today, anyone can see themselves sitting in a whole other country without so much as moving a muscle, thanks to virtual reality headsets. It’s an innovative piece of technology that is fun to use and can prove a big hit at tradeshows. If your product is something that facilitates movement, why not use it? A bike manufacturer, for instance, can allow people to mount their latest model and witness themselves driving across the Pacific Coast Highway or on a MotoGP racetrack. The thrill of the ride alone will lure more visitors to your display. Further evidence that smart use of technology always helps.

Let Your Product Do the Work

No matter how flawless your booth design, brand representatives, and overall marketing strategy are, it is your product or service that ultimately has to live up to visitors’ expectations. Therefore, it is best to let your product do most of the talking. An activity that involves attendees doing something exciting while using your product can prove to be interesting enough to spread the word about your presence like wildfire. For instance, if you’re showcasing a fitness tracker, it might be a good idea to install an indoor rock-climbing set and encourage visitors to climb whilst wearing the smartwatch. Not only will they get to see the product live in action, but they will also be fully engaged and have fun in the process.

Take Advantage of Height

Trade show venues host a number of different exhibits at the same time, and the typical maneuvering pattern of attendees is to walk around looking left, right, and center at this massive, maze-like spread before their eyes. This is because there is seldom anything of interest calling their attention from the top. And this is exactly where you can swoop in and stand out. By installing overhead hangings that say the right thing about your business, you can bring more people into your booth while also keeping your space from appearing too cluttered.

Nostalgia Works

When it comes to shopping for products, emotions are powerful tools. And when brands use the influence of nostalgia to market themselves, the potency can be a force to be reckoned with. A booth design that evokes the right emotions is sure to work wonders for your trade show stint. This could be in the form of anything, from thoughtful use of colors to a sensible sprinkling of scents that transport an attendee to a world of your choosing. Every element in your booth should serve the purpose of making visitors feel something.

Touch is a Strong Force

Technology invokes curiosity and inspires engagement among people. It makes sense, therefore, to involve touchscreens in your display. No matter what your product or service, attendees will stop and tinker with the screen. And there are a million ways to sell your offerings via touch. Reimagine your brochure as a newspaper with proper headlines and images, so that attendees can flip through it with a touch – an innovative approach that can garner possible leads.

Make Giveaways Great Again

For ages, companies at trade shows have doled out free items to attendees with the intent of creating goodwill and improving brand recall. Let’s face it, though – a majority of these items are absolutely useless and, more than anything, cliché. Pens and laser pointers just don’t cut it anymore. There is an urgent need to get more creative in this specific endeavor. How about setting up an ATM as a part of the booth design, perhaps near the exit, which dispenses attractive vouchers and gift cards to valuable items? It is an incredibly cool way to garner attention while giving people something they will actually use.

The significance of design, not only in our lives but also trade show booths, does not need to be hammered in any further. As a regular exhibitor on the tradeshow circuit, you probably already know this. However, with all these ideas in your back pocket, it will be much easier for you to put this knowledge to good use and make the most of your exhibit.

The best part about an intuitive and intelligent booth design is not that it piques the interest of attendees, sets the right tone for your brand, or gets people talking about your brand. It is that after accomplishing all of this, it leads to an increased return on investment – which is ultimately the biggest goal of every organization. So, pick your booth design carefully. And if it feels like another formidable responsibility on top of the millions of things you need to do to ensure a successful event, you can just enlist the services of a professional trade show booth design company and let them handle everything for you.