When it comes to trade shows, its all about getting noticed in a sea of contenders, often purely through the design and ingenuity of your display. That is why its very important to check out a variety of trade show booth ideas, exhibit house companies, and exhibit design firms before you settle on the final design that could dictate some serious business ideas at some of these shows.
No matter if you design your exhibit yourself or hire a third party for a custom exhibit design, it is always important to remember basic design principles, proven to enhance presentation and catch wandering eyes. Here are a few of the most essential rules of design to keep in mind:
1. Color
The accepted rule of thumb is a maximum of 3 colors — remember that your focus should be in getting a message across in the least amount of time, not in creating an image that is too “busy” or overwhelming. Make sure the colors are complementary and suit your product and brand requirements.
2. Font
Font is actually incredibly important when it comes to the overall presentation of your exhibit. Consider that sans-serif fonts like Helvectia are generally considered the most easily read. Makes sure that your font choice is dictated in some part by your brand’s style guide, but don’t use more than 2 or 3 different fonts at the same time.
For font size, it’s a good rule of thumb to add an inch of height to the font for every foot away that viewers will stand. This insures that your custom exhibit booths with be as user friendly and accessible as possible.
3. Images
Except for your corporate logo, be careful not to include too many photographs in your exhibit design. Image a billboard and consider how they tend to have only a few images which are used to “hit hard” and make an impact on viewers in only a couple of seconds.
The truth of the matter is that the typical U.S. trade show visitor spends about 9.5 hours viewing exhibits, and it is important that your booth stands out among the dozens, or sometimes even hundreds of others — and it will, with your custom exhibit design.