Many businesses put off attending and exhibiting at trade shows because of the cost. Yes, creating a quality trade show exhibit booth design, traveling to the event, and training employees to promote your brand at the show is not a cheap process; however, good strategic planning and an excellent Custom Exhibit Design can prove to be very profitable for your company.

In fact, trade show events are cited as the second largest area of growth in media spending among businesses just behind digital marketing. Right now, the average company reserves 31.6% of its total marketing budget for events and exhibiting. This includes hiring professionals to create trade show booth designs and exhibit rentals.

Why You Should Invest in Trade Show Exhibiting

1. Learning opportunity: Trade shows are a perfect opportunity to learn about the current trends in your industry. Simply observing other business’s booths will tell you a lot about the current market. Discover for yourself what your competitors are doing to attract consumers and generate leads. Here are a few tips:
   • See which booths are attracting the most visitors and take note of what they are doing
   • Compare your prices to the prices offered by your competitors
   • Pose as a customer to learn more about other businesses
2. Strengthen your brand: When you exhibit at a trade show, you are establishing your place in the industry. Even if you are a small startup, you can market yourself next to big-name companies in order to show potential consumers that you are serious and highly motivated.
3. Generate leads: Every trade show is an opportunity to expand your customer base. Trade show visitors are more worthwhile leads than those reached by cold call or mail as they may have traveled far to be at the show and are clearly interested in doing business. Half of the largest 200 trade shows in the United States take place in just three cities: Las Vegas, Orlando, and Chicago. Trade show visitors have made an effort to be there and they want to learn about your product.

With the right training, support, planning, and custom exhibit design, you can’t go wrong by showing off your brand at a trade show.