The importance of how to display products at a tradeshow is as imperative as ever. The US tradeshow market has surpassed pre-pandemic earnings with $15.78 billion in 2024, and it’s expected to keep growing.
Tradeshows are key to launching products, networking, making deals, hosting media briefings, and more for your business. As such, you want a tradeshow booth to be an eye-catching, engaging, and informative space to showcase your products and services.
In this post, we’ll share tips and best practices on how to display products at a tradeshow.
Key Takeaways
- Booth Type Matters for Product Display. Different booth layouts (inline, corner, peninsula, and island) significantly affect how you can display your products.
- Leverage Vertical Space. Shelving, pedestals, and tall signage maximize your booth’s footprint without cluttering the floor and makes products more visible at eye level.
- Interactive Displays Enhance Engagement. Using digital screens for demos, offering product samples, and creating engaging games or activities can draw in more visitors and create lasting impressions.
- Lighting Can Make or Break a Display. Focused task lighting, illuminated displays, and backlit graphics can all help draw attention to your booth, making it stand out on the crowded tradeshow floor.
- Use Practical Tools Like Acrylic Risers and Organizers. To make the most of your booth space, use tools like acrylic risers and shelves to display products effectively.
Best Practices for Displaying Products at a Tradeshow
Consider Overall Booth Space
There are different types of booths at tradeshows, and what you choose can impact how you display products:
- Inline booth – Usually 10 x 10 ft in size, inline booths are also called linear booths since they’re in line with others in an expo space’s aisle. One side is open to attendees, however multiple inline booths can be grouped side by side to expand space. Front-facing design allows for direct communication through clear messaging, think backlit displays, backdrops, and table covers.
- Corner booth – With two sides open, this design provides more accessibility for visitors—and more visibility for your brand, since the booth faces two aisles of expo traffic. This allows for a more natural flow through the booth and more elaborate displays.
- Peninsula booth – Double the width of a corner booth, it spans across the ends of two aisles and faces two corners, offering even more visibility and display space. This design allows for use of taller displays and hanging signs.
- Island booth – This large footprint is open on all four sides. This creates separation from the other booths in the show to really set yourself apart from other exhibitors. Its large area allows for space for product demos, meetings, and immersive experiences.
Leverage Vertical Space
Inline booths especially benefit from utilizing vertical space. Shelving and other vertical displays help maximize a smaller footprint without taking up precious floor space. Items should be placed at eye level or higher for maximum visibility. Vertical displays, such as shelving and pedestals, draw the eye upwards and creates the illusion of a larger space. And don’t forget about signage. Vertical space can be used to promote your brand, logo, product images, and featured show specials. Consider custom backdrops, banners, and signage.
5 Quick Tips for Displaying Products
Attendees at tradeshows cover a lot of ground while looking for great deals and unique finds. Here are 5 tips for displaying your products to attract sales.
Use Banners to Attract Booth Traffic
High-quality graphics help your booth be seen—up close and from far away. For example, large backdrops that can be viewed and read from a distance help your company stand out on the crowded expo floor. Floor standing flags and fabric displays with frame on the perimeter of your booth can describe your products and services. Custom table covers and table runners can also be customized to broadcast your brand to attendees.
Use Acrylic Risers and Shelves to Maximize Space
Booth space is limited in a tradeshow. Tabletop space is valuable real estate, but you can extend it and make it work with displays such as acrylic risers and shelves. Flat-packed display shelving is easy to transport and assemble to create even more space in your booth.
Use Organizers to Create Neat and Tidy Displays
Displays that do double duty as organizers can help keep a booth clean and uncluttered. Keep business cards, brochures, and other marketing material handy by placing in literature holders on a table. Speaking of tables, a custom printed table cover will hide extra products and personal items stashed under a table.
Use LED Lights to Draw Customers to Your Booth
Lighting is another useful strategy for showing off your products. Focused task lighting puts featured products in the spotlight. Illuminated displays, such as lighted display cases and lighted pedestals, also highlight merchandise. For the booth itself, backlit displays bring the drama, but even a set of string lights can add warmth to a cold convention hall environment.
Use Interactive Displays to Engage Attendees
Directly engaging with your customers is a main reason for participating in a tradeshow. There are many ways you can interact with customers: prop a tablet on a tablet stand or utilize a mobile digital screen to play videos showing product demos or company history; create a pop-up charging station for attendees and visitors to the booth; provide a product sample that people can try out, or offer product demos at regular intervals during the show. Even a game counts to engage people (prizes can be branded swag, such as water bottles, reusable bags, etc).
Tradeshow Displays with shopPOPdisplays
From simple stock to entirely tailored touches, shopPOPdisplays can provide everything you need for tradeshow displays.
Looking for more on how to display products at a tradeshow? Browse our acrylic risers and display banners at shopPOPdisplays. Our experts can help you find the right products to maximize your booth. Contact us today to learn more.