If your brand could use the boost of a trade show, but the cost, time, or commitment of buying a custom exhibit feels prohibitive, don’t abandon your idea. You’re right to take advantage of the visibility and connection opportunities of a trade show, and an exhibit rental provides a professional-looking display at a fraction of the cost of buying an exhibit. And you can customize it to exactly your specifications. Read on to discover the type of rental display that shows your brand off to perfection.
Know the Basics – Sizing
In the U.S., trade show exhibits are sized in 10-foot increments. Common footprint sizes are expressed as follows:
- 10×20
- 10×30
- 20×20
In addition to regulations on footprint size, trade show booths are limited by height. Height requirements are based on the type of exhibit you have and where it’s located within the exhibit space. If you’re planning an exhibit that makes use of vertical space, be sure to consider exhibit height when choosing what to rent.
Linear Exhibits
Fast Facts About Linear Exhibits
Known also as in-line booths, linear displays are the most common and most affordable rental option. They are partially or fully enclosed on three sides and face the aisle on the fourth side. Linear booths are often arranged in lines along the perimeter of an event space, or in double-sided rows in the interior. Most linear exhibits are 10×10 or 10×20 feet in size, with some at 10×30 feet or larger.
Who Should Rent a Linear Exhibit?
This small-to-medium booth is the preferred option for:
- Small-to-medium businesses
- Divisions of larger companies
- To accompany a separate larger exhibit
First-time exhibitors often prefer linear displays due to their simplicity and smaller staffing requirements.
Some exhibitors worry that a linear exhibit tucked away in a corner won’t attract visitors. While the size of your rental trade show exhibit and its location on the floor are important, they’re not everything. Many attendees browse the whole event, visiting whatever booths catch their eye. Capturing that traffic is a matter of making sure you stand out from your neighbors, which means taking advantage of rental-booth customization. A small brand that builds a reputation for inventive linear exhibits or creative promotions can rival the islands and peninsulas in popularity.
Peninsulas
Fast Facts About Peninsula Exhibits
A peninsula exhibit is placed with three sides exposed to an aisle and the fourth side backed up against another peninsular exhibit. With this arrangement, two peninsulas together form one whole aisle. Each booth is at least 20×20 feet, and the largest may be up to 4 times the size of a standard linear booth.
A modified version of the peninsula is called the end-cap. Generally 10×20 feet in size, instead of backing onto another end-cap, it backs up against the rear side of a linear booth. This provides the advantage of having three exposed sides, but in a smaller footprint that makes the end-cap a more affordable version of the peninsular.
Who Should Rent a Peninsula Exhibit?
The common arrangement of peninsula booths on the trade show floor garners them a high level of exposure and plenty of traffic, which fits the needs of every exhibitor!
Both options for this arrangement are ideal for mid-sized or larger companies that desire an elevated trade show presence without having to make the larger financial outlay for an island display.
Island Exhibits
Fast Facts About Island Exhibits
Island exhibits are among the largest and showiest trade show displays. They’re often occupied by well-known corporate brands and are at least 20×20 or larger. Some of the biggest island exhibits can top 70×90 feet in size! Islands are free-standing booths that don’t share walls with other booths or with the event space itself. They often have access points on all four sides.
With a good marketing team in play, a rented island exhibit has the potential to become a highly popular, even must-see booth. The largest brand-name booths at any show are almost always busy.
Who Should Rent an Island Exhibit?
The sky is the limit when it comes to customizing rented islands. With plenty of space and four open walls, there’s very little you can’t do with one of these behemoths. One of the most significant benefits is that, with all that space, you can create one or two private rooms in which your sales reps can confer with prospective clients undisturbed, or where your trade show team can hold morning meetings.
In some cases, components of these booths can be reconfigured into smaller items, such as a linear exhibit or an end-cap. This gives you the potential to occupy multiple sites if you choose to rent the extra exhibition space.
If you rent additional components to use your space more effectively, you can even opt for a new configuration at each show you attend. You and your team can determine what helps you work most efficiently and appeals most to your customers.
Double-Decker Designs
Fast Facts About Double-Decker Exhibits
A double-decker exhibit has two floors, with a second level above the ground floor. Not all types of exhibits can accommodate a second floor, but island exhibits and peninsulas can be configured this way.
Who Should Rent a Double-Decker Design?
A double-decker is a great option if you want more exhibit room but prefer not to rent more floor space. The vertical height also helps the display stand out from the competition with a highly visible presence.
The design provides extra space that’s ideal for:
- Conference and meeting rooms
- VIP product-demonstration rooms
- Other functions where privacy is preferred
- An informal meeting or hang-out area for staff or visitors
If you’re lucky, it may even become the unofficial “place to be” for the entire show!
Mobile Exhibits
Fast Facts About Mobile Exhibits
For most booth designs, staying within the required footprint of a specific trade show is an important limiting factor. A rented mobile exhibit frees you from that concern. If you want your product to go mobile, it’s all about weight and convenience. These trade show displays must be portable and easy to transport. The most prominent design features are lightweight components that are easy to reconfigure. This makes the setup, dismantling, and moving of these exhibits much faster and easier.
Who Should Rent a Mobile Exhibit?
A mobile exhibit is perfect for a first-time exhibitor, a company with a customer base spread across a wide area, or a company whose customers aren’t likely to gather at a trade show. It’s also perfect if you prefer to do the work of setup and dismantling yourself.
The emphasis on portability means most mobile exhibits are feature-light compared to their more permanent counterparts. Since not every exhibitor needs components like kiosks and digital displays, mobile exhibits serve an important purpose.
Mobile exhibits can also be used inside of a trade show to create a unique exhibit which also saves money by doing double-duty. Pulling one into a trade show saves on installation and dismantle expenses.
Customizing Your Rented Exhibit Space
Renting a trade show display is ideal in many circumstances, and it absolutely does not mean sacrificing design or branding.
Customize the Physical Space
The rental exhibits described here differ from one another by how enclosed they are, meaning how many sides of the space allow public access. This simple detail can change how a space feels to visitors. Enclosed spaces feel more intimate and can offer privacy when it’s needed. A site that’s open on two or more sides can feel airy and spacious, or sleek and modern, with the appropriate design and marketing materials.
Customize According to Your Brand
Brand consistency is paramount at trade shows, as many of your visitors will be encountering your brand for the first time. Options for customizing a rental trade show exhibit according to your brand include:
- Custom floors, branded or otherwise, to upgrade the standard venue floor covering
- LED skins, customized to fit selected furniture modules – These are effective on spaces like kiosks, shelves, and tables, where visitors spend time reading or looking at and handling products.
- Custom lighting to enhance your décor or brand colors
Once you’ve decided to rent an exhibit, there are several considerations to make:
- The amount of space you need
- The type of information you offer to visitors
- The methods you plan to use to provide that information
Ask and answer those questions before you choose which type of rental exhibit is best for your company.
