How to Prepare for the Return of Live Events: Part 2

We hope Part 1 of this piece (check it out if you haven’t already) energized you and made you feel optimistic for the future. We believe in-person trade shows will return—but what will they look like when they do?

Very much on brand with the rest of 2020, we are not exactly sure. But we do have some solid predictions. The differences we anticipate fall under the categories of exhibitors’ individual booth spaces, show-level practices and policies, and human interaction. We have also provided some tips and action items from our team here at EDE to help you better prepare.

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Why In-Person Trade Shows Will Return & How to Prepare: Part 1

Human interaction at in-person trade show

The big question we keep hearing is “will in-person trade shows make a comeback post-pandemic?” If you ask our team of experiential marketing experts, our answer is 100% yes; in-person trade shows will return.

We may not know when live events will return, and we don’t necessarily know what they will look like when they do. But we do know that the value of face-to-face marketing can’t be replaced. This two-part piece will focus first on the benefits of in-person trade shows that can’t be replicated virtually. In Part 2, we’ll explore some of the ways live events may look different in the future—and what you can do to be prepared.

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EDE Team Grows with Addition of VP of Sales & Engagement and Digital Marketing Manager

We are excited to announce the addition of two new team members! We would like to welcome Max Maxwell as VP of Sales & Engagement and Stephanie Coupland as Digital Marketing Manager. 

Maxwell comes to EDE with over 25 years of industry experience and a passion for bringing his clients’ visions to life. His background in visual communication and psychology enables him to communicate with clients on an artistic and spatial level. Maxwell’s work has been featured in various publications, and he has been a member of the Midwest Experiential Designers and Producers Association (EDPA) board for four years.

Coupland joins the team with three years of experience in live event marketing, with a focus on content creation and digital strategy. She has a deep understanding of creating memorable customer journeys and provides a fresh millennial perspective. Coupland’s role will support us in providing relevant and educational content to trade show managers and event marketers seeking valuable industry resources.

We can’t wait to see you both succeed and are happy to have you as part of the EDE family!

Virtual Trade Shows: 5 Key Elements to Keep in Mind When Planning

Static format of virtual trade show with informational hotspots

Due to COVID-19, event marketers have pivoted their 2020 marketing strategies and begun incorporating virtual trade shows. There is no doubt that we all miss the face-to-face interaction that trade shows offered us. But as we’ve seen virtual experiences take flight, we’ve learned that they can be just as impactful as an in-person show.

We know that the shift to virtual can be daunting. That’s why we’ve compiled what we think are some of the most crucial elements of planning a virtual trade show.

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Events and Coronavirus – EDE’s Guide to Re-Opening

Events and Coronavirus

During this period of uncertainty, we at EDE Corporation feel it is our role to help trade show managers and marketers keep up-to-date with the progress of the Events and Coronavirus. We chose five major cities we felt would be the bellwethers for guiding the reopening nationwide.  The following are reports and governmental links as to where each city currently sits, as well as the plan to open for larger gatherings. 

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Use Data-driven Design to Improve Trade Show Booth Performance

Trade Show Audience
Old World Industries Exhibit at AAPEX 2019

Are you struggling to connect with your audience at trade shows?

Your trade show booth might be innovative and attractive, but that won’t matter if your audience doesn’t like nor connects with it. Below we give you some tips on how to create a trade show booth that connects with your audience by incorporating a data-driven design methodology for your next big exhibit.

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Improve your Exhibit Staff Performance

  • Exhibit Show Staff

While some exhibit staff enjoy representing their brand at trade shows, others might be averse to spending their time at these events. Whether it’s the massive time commitment (especially for out-of-town employees), employers who do not show appreciation, or the challenge of speaking to guests is simply a daunting task, you can make your exhibit staff feel comfortable and reward their efforts your marketing program will prosper.

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7 Benefits of Trade Show Marketing

Crowd of people surrounding a trade show exhibit for Hyster.

Trade Show marketing is without a doubt a big investment, but the high costs can lead to even higher returns. In fact, 99% of exhibitors had more success marketing at trade shows than other mediums. 51% of them valued the face-to-face meetings, something that is difficult to materialize in a primarily digital world (Source: CEIR: The Changing Environment of Exhibitions). This type of interaction presents more conversations, leads, and sales. 

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Green Exhibits Made Easy

Trade shows are notoriously wasteful, with components sometimes thrown away just to avoid shipping costs back to the warehouse. However, each November the Greenbuild show comes around, and with it come pushes for more green exhibits.

green exhibits

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Boost your Trade Show Booth Traffic with Social Media

trade show social media
Photo by ROBIN WORRALL on Unsplash

After months of planning, organizing, designing marketing collateral, and mountain-size piles of promotional giveaways, the day has finally come. You arrive hours early to your trade show booth to set-up and organize.  With minutes to spare the attendees begin to trickle in. Minutes turn into hours and before you know it, the trade show is almost over and traffic to your booth was only subpar. Sound familiar? The reason might be your online presence. Most attendees have an idea of the booths and industry professionals they want to visit ahead of time and meet prior to check-in. That is why it is important to keep them informed days and weeks before shows. Utilizing social media platforms can be an efficient way to do just that – plus it’s free!

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Exhibit Design in 2019

Exhibit Design Trends

At the beginning of each year, our design team is tasked with putting together our annual list of trends for the upcoming year.  We use our experience in addition to design trends in architecture, graphic design and fashion to create this report. Check out what will influence exhibit design in 2019.

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Is it Finally Time to Invest in Advanced Lead Retrieval?

Trade show lead retrievals have come a long way in the past five years, but the process is still one of the more tedious aspects of tradeshows.  Which of your thirty salespeople in attendance scanned the badge?  What product was the lead interested in?  How do I upload files to my CRM?  How does my trade show program get credit for starting the sales process?

lead retrieval app

A lot of those questions can be answered with a lead retrieval system app. The problem, however, is how many lead retrieval apps you’ll have to wade through to find the right fit. Ask yourself the following questions to help sort through and find the right app for your program.

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EDE Makes Event Marketer’s Fab 50 2018

EDE Corporation is thrilled to announce our presence on Event Marketer’s Fab 50 list of 2018. For six years, Event Marketer has been curating their Fab 50 to list the top fabricators of the event industry, including EDE. We’re thrilled to be a part of this list and would like to congratulate all the other exhibit houses included as well.

Many thanks to Event Marketer for the recognition. We look forward to showing off what more we have coming in the rest of 2018.

Finishing the Job: Effective Exhibit Dismantle

With the stress of pre-show marketing efforts, getting your exhibit ready, and organizing show goals, it’s incredibly easy to think you’re done once the show is over. What many exhibitors fail to remember is the importance of dismantling properly – and how a teardown really can affect the ability of using your exhibit components for your next show and saving damages.  Here are some of our best practices to keep everything running smoothly and within your budget.

Dismantle Exhibit Crate

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Common Qualities of Top Trade Show Exhibits

Hyster---Promat-Web

Your trade show program should flourish under the idea that your trade show booth is the only first impression you’ll get.  Although every trade show booth is unique to its specific brand, the most successful exhibits share a few common qualities. Here is a look at what we think the top trade show exhibits have in common. Continue reading →

Technology Trends in Trade Shows

Latest Trends in Trade Show Exhibits

Technology can be one of the most important factors in determining the effectiveness and success of your trade show. In everyday life, the technology we use is personal, interactive, and fulfills a need. The technology in an exhibit must follow suit.  You need to take advantage of the interactive nature that technology has to offer. Technology gives depth to an exhibit design and helps to create a memorable experience. We are digging into a few of the latest technology trends in trade shows we think are restructuring the exhibition and event scene.

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Trade Show Staffing Essentials

Trade Show Staffing Essentials

It doesn’t matter how innovative your exhibit design is if your staff isn’t properly conveying the message of the booth. 85% of an exhibitor’s success hinges on the performance of its booth staff. Despite its importance, only 26 percent of exhibitors conduct trade show staff training for all or most of their events, according to a Center for Exhibition Industry Research study. We put together several trade show staffing essentials you can’t miss if you want your trade show program to perform.  Continue reading →

4 Ways to Keep Your Exhibit Fresh on a Budget

For a number of reasons it may not be the best time for a new trade show exhibit build. You may feel your existing properties are looking worn or additional parts and pieces may have clouded your message over the years. This is a problem many companies face and they wonder how they can reinvent their trade show exhibits. We put together a list of cost effective ways to keep your exhibit fresh with your annual budget in mind. Continue reading →