When attendees are walking past your booth, your trade show graphics have to do so much more than look pretty. They have to attract attendees, share who you are and what services you provide, and provide a professional environment to engage attendees. There are several elements that work together to enhance your attendee’s experience and move your graphics from beyond just art.
Color: There are several factors that affect color choices, including flooring and furniture. Not only should you keep your brand color in mind, you also want to think about your brand personality. Do you want to look clean and modern, or highlight a lot of experience, or have a fun and engaging booth? There is no hard and fast rule, so keep color in mind as you think beyond just your brand color palette and add colors that enhance the overall look of your booth.
Light: When looking at lighting, you want to not only consider how you light your graphics, but also how you use lighter colors within your graphics. Also be sure to use white space to bring in the appearance of light and open space within your graphics. Too much dark can make your graphics look dated and can make them hard to read.
Motion: Yes, your graphics can have elements that create movement. This can be both with graphic elements as well as how the copy is laid out to help draw the eye through the graphic. Keep in mind how graphics work together in your booth as well so they can create a journey within the booth and tie the graphics together.
Communication: Communication within your graphics does not have to be limited to copy. You can communicate with the right images and use graphic elements to help break up copy into manageable sections. Bulleted lists with concise copy are a great way to share important details, and bullets can be colorized and stylized. But do not feel you have to explain everything in the graphics in your booth. Provide enough information to pique interest in your product and services, and then give attendees a way to explore further (whether with a website URL or product flyer or sales sheet).
Use the short amount of time that you can catch an attendee’s attention to use your graphics to educate, entice, and engage. Graphics are a key component to your trade show booth, and need to be move beyond art to enhance your show engagement.