Bespoke stand builds: How to design an exhibition stand that gets noticed

It’s the eternal marketing conundrum – how do you gain an edge over your competitors in a saturated market full of messaging duplication and AI generated content? No live environment brings this quandary to life quite as successfully as a corporate exhibition.

Picture hundreds (sometimes thousands) of brands clustered into a grey exhibition hall, brand representatives from all corners of industry are lit up with their brightest sales smiles each with just seconds to attract the attention of passers-by - wielding a freebie branded travel flask in one hand and a bamboo pen in the other. Foamex boards with QR codes, spin to win wheels, and pull-up banners are littered as far as the eye can see, and we’re all left wondering what we could have done to make the whole experience more worthwhile.

Fear not! In this short post we’ll be diving into the logic behind designing a bespoke stand build tailored for your brand strategy, and letting you in on some of our top tips to make your next stand the most successful one yet.

XSEM bespoke stand build design for Gen M

Why build a bespoke stand?

If you’re currently exploring exhibiting at trade shows, the likelihood is that you already have an established proposition, whether that’s a product you’d like to showcase, a new launch to announce, a service to explain, or a piece of technology to demo. Take a second to picture your businesses unique proposition… and then have a think about whether a 2x4m grey-walled space with a trestle table and an A-frame poster does it justice… If you’ve come to the conclusion that it will, I shall bid you farewell and wish you the best of luck in giving away your sustainable water bottles. But I’m hoping the vast majority of you will have come to the realisation that your fantastic business propositions deserve much better!

Brand marketing has become a constant tug of war for our customer’s attention. Even in getting you here to read this blog we’ve jumped through SEO hoops, sat in countless strategy meetings, executed a multi-channel digital plan, and a partridge in a pear tree. Turning your customer’s head in a live exhibition environment is no different. Your presence alone is no longer enough, and the most successful brands are the ones going above and beyond to create spaces that immerse delegates in the product, service, or strategy they are trying to explain. Make it stand out, make it memorable, and tie it to your wider business strategy.

Stands that make a difference

This video takes you on a whistle-stop tour through our creative and operational approach to stand build design, and brings to life a couple of examples of clients who have elevated their exhibition presence with a bespoke stand build.

Video describing 3D stand build design through to live event

Tips for your next stand build

This isn’t our first rodeo. We know that many of you lovely folks will have (hopefully) enjoyed reading our insights and will carry on with your lives without us ever crossing paths. But if we had to leave you with 5 top tips before you hastily book your next grey 2x4m brand coffin (too much?!)… it would be these.

1.     Think long-term strategy. Your stand doesn’t have to be a one and done. There are countless clever building techniques that will allow you to use your creation over and over again and maximize your ROI. The planet will also thank you, as this consideration will bolster your businesses sustainability creds. Win win!

2.     Create that warm fuzzy feeling. Your stand might be the first touchpoint a customer has with your business, so what do you want them to feel? How do you want them to follow-up? What lasting impression do you want to make? All of these questions should be front of mind when thinking about the energy of your stand.

3.     Accessibility is no longer optional. Everything from colour contrasts to font sizes, table heights to how delegates flow around the space, think about how you can best show up for your customers, regardless of their accessibility requirements.

4.     Probably the most important consideration, how are you capturing leads and measuring ROI? Have you still got customers putting pen to paper and you're trying to decipher the spelling of their email addresses post-event? Are you measuring the ROI of your deals through a bespoke digital exhibition portal (we design those wink wink). Whatever the case, just make it easy for your customers to interact and transact with you – they’ve had a long day lugging their tote bag around.

If any of the above has you wondering how to move forward with building a WOW exhibition stand, it just so happens that we offer a bespoke exhibition stand build service (bet you didn’t see that one coming!).

We’d love to discuss your upcoming projects and see how we can help your brand show up and stand out – get in touch with our expert team here.