A record number of attendees decided to RETHINK with the The Expo Group this year in our uniquely-designed community space at IAEE Expo!Expo!, the annual “trade show for trade show people” event. Backed by a strong marketing campaign, we engaged with several show organizers looking for more responsive service, more creative designs and, overall, a company that can help them be successful in the future.
Our 20 x 20 exhibit was designed by Meaghan Girouard to be a true community space that resembles a roof top lounge, setting the stage for conversations about how we create spaces at trade shows to drive business between attendees and exhibitors. The goal was an edgy-elegant space that would attract people right away and let us tell stories about what The Expo Group does for our clients.
The 16-foot-high beMatrix frame design with gator board cutouts resembling a metal scaffolding provided the perfect structure to suspend almost one hundred patio lights and showcase our cutout logo so it could be seen across the exhibit floor. A secondary banner with the word RETHINK on the front and THE EXPO GROUP on the back displayed our marketing message and company name for everyone who came into our booth. The RETHINK concept continues to resonate with clients willing to take a hard look at the status quo and open to making changes.
Inside our community space, we kept the branding subtle with custom gold pillows featuring our logo and tone-on-tone white branding wrapping the planters and cabinets.
Our practice of saving money, looking great and being authentic came into focus on our flooring as we used actual rooftop decking contributed by an employee.
Good partners helped too: Cort Furniture provided white couches and the outside was brought in with real boxwood plants and ivy from our friends at Convention Plant Creations. Glowing white orbs added to the rooftop ambiance.
Activities in the booth ranged from a custom ViewMaster (remember those?) featuring the attendee journey at USGIF’s GEOINT 2015 Symposium to a real telescope focused on a sign showing our differentiators over a 100 yards away.
We also served champagne, but the biggest draw throughout both days of the show was the realistic-looking fire pit.
Using water vapor and bright orange lights, the “fire” brought in curious guest after guest and garnered tons of pics and plenty of questions.
Our clients were happy to have such a relaxing space to hang out in, escaping other vendors at the show, and prospects seemed eager to learn more about what The Expo Group can do for them.
Our community space at IAEE Expo!Expo! provided an opportunity to RETHINK the status quo and get a new perspective. Applying these Smart Creative principles to our own exhibits and events is just one way we can show how The Expo Group can help you make a memorable impact on your attendees, members and stakeholders.