10 Exhibition Stand Ideas for Trade Shows in 2024
Where do you begin when looking for exhibition stand ideas and inspiration? We always say that when you’re designing your stand to chuck everything you’ve got at us and we will advise what you can do realistically within your budget. Without further ado, let’s get into some of the unique exhibition stand ideas for trade shows!
What makes a great exhibition stand?
A good exhibition stand design puts the customer first. When planning your exhibition space you need to consider 3 main things. First, how will the customer will navigate through your space, second, how they will engage with your product and third, how they will feel about your brand when they leave. Once you understand these elements, designing your stand will become significantly easier.
Exhibition stand design ideas
In an ideal, pre-covid world, you can expect an average of about 32,000 trade shows globally per annum. To put that into a bit of perspective, that is an opportunity for about 4.5 million companies to exhibit! These figures can be daunting to anyone taking the plunge and exhibiting for the first time or even for seasoned exhibitors looking to stand out above all this noise. That’s why we have collated our best exhibition stand ideas to inspire your next event.
1. Disconnected spaces
Why not create a little space away from the noise? An enclosed part of your stand will not only offer a space to reflect separate from the event, but it’s a unique addition that may attract people in a way that other stands may not. By offering something like this, you are communicating that you care for your customer’s experience and wellbeing beyond the product you sell. You could also set this space up as a photo booth or game to entice people in.
2. Live music
Who doesn’t love live music? It’s attention grabbing and something a little different from the usual selling tactics. Not only this, but the music itself could emit a calming effect that has the same potential as the disconnected space – providing the vibe is right, of course.
3. Projection mapping
Something a little different to a traditional stand showcasing products is projection mapping. Think along the lines of the Van Gogh Live exhibition with the artwork projected onto the walls so you can really live within it. This would work well for showing how certain products can function within the home or office settings without having the physical products there. Take this a step further by allowing customers to get interactive with the projections too! A great low cost exhibition stand idea!
4. Indoor pergola or plants
Biophilic design is a concept used to connect occupants with nature within the scope of modern living. It is predominantly to satisfy our need to be at one with nature. An indoor pergola or use of plants is a great way to draw people to your stand because humans are naturally drawn to plants. Why? Plants are great destressors, and their presence helps to create a sanctuary-esque environment. Think about hanging some plants off a pergola or dotting some plants around your stand at your next event!
5. Work with the space above
We always say about considering your stand size when planning your budget but what about if you still want to pack a punch with a limited space? Take to the skies (well, the ceiling). Think about the space you have to work with above your stand. You could hang a sign above your stand, a focal inflatable or even build a second storey to your stand (this would require a huge budget). With the right stand design team and budget nearly anything is possible.
6. Insta-worthy photo ops
Certain bars, restaurants and venues have them, so why can’t you? Think about what your business has to offer and see if you can create a photo corner around that! Neon signage, a painted/graphic wall, living wall or a cool feature ceiling are just some of the ideas you could put into motion. Don’t forget to create a unique hashtag for the event so you can easily find and reshare these shots. This is called User Generated Content (UGC).
7. Sample living design
Did your mind go immediately to an Ikea showroom-esque stand? Good. That’s exactly what we mean! People love to see how products will function with an interactive exhibition stand idea. By providing a realistic office, work or home set-up (whichever your product fits best into), you are allowing your customers to map their own space onto the space in front of them and imagine how your product will work within the setting they envision. Which can often be achieved with modular exhibition stand designs.
8. Focus on branding
If you aren’t in a position to add more to your stand, why not focus all of your attention on getting your branding completely on point? Make sure your branding is fun and recognisable but, above all, feels like you. Immerse your customers in the brand experience from the get go and they won’t forget you in a hurry.
9. Get creative with lighting
Yes you can have all the different lighting options in the traditional sense – standing lights, string lights, spotlights etc. But really think about how you could get creative with your lighting. Could you have interactive light seats, an interactive light wall, neon signs or lighting shapes. When thinking about this, always keep point 7 in mind. Creating a visual spectacle will create the ‘wow’ factor and get people talking about you!
10. Phone charging and (or) wifi
It sounds simple, but a phone charging station is a genius way to attract customers to your stand and keep them there for a little while whilst they wait for their phone to charge. This will give you the opportunity to talk to them and get to know what they require from you. If this is nothing at all, then all is not lost! You will be able to generate some leads from this exchange and build your email list.