| “The true art of memory is the art of attention” |
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Samuel Johnson |
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| Graphic Budgeting 101 |
Lead time?
No one ever believes it until it happens to them - plan ahead and you can save big … wait until the last minute and "rush charge" will be your middle name.
Simplify your images - intricate images with special effects, metallic finishes, etcetera can be more difficult to create and therefore more expensive to produce.
Flexible or rigid graphics. Flexible graphics are generally more expensive to produce - however they usually weigh less than rigid graphics and are easier to containerize and ship.
Back-lighted graphics create incredible floor impact however, they cost 20-30 percent more than reflective graphics.
Follow your vendor's graphics specification sheet. This is where the real money savings/spending happens. Submitting artwork in the wrong format or the incorrect resolution means clean-up costs and lead time lost.
Quality - what does it mean? We all want the highest quality, however, if you are viewing a graphic from 8-10 feet away - or better yet, something that is floating above the viewers' heads - consider lesser processing procedures for more cost savings.
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Cataloging Graphics A growing graphics inventory can easily jump out of control. There is a simple method to re-order your graphics chaos. Using a digital camera, photograph each of your graphics and create a master file online with the dimensions recorded for each picture. Also include the storage site for each graphic. This will save you an incredible amount of time and money - you may not even need to create new graphics once you can really see what you have. Additionally, you can print all of the photos and create an album - but in today's world online seems the way to go.
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| Protecting Your Investment |
As we have already discussed graphics are a major investment and a considerable money-share of your tradeshow dollars. Other than the few days a year that graphics sit on your exhibit - where do you keep them and how do you protect them?
Consider investing in one of the many roto-molded cases specifically designed for graphics - after all, your exhibit can be a spectacular piece of architecture, but without your graphics no one knows who you are or what you do. Contemplate something more than a cardboard box or tube for the longest life-cycle of your graphics.
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You have three to seven seconds to catch the eye of a tradeshow attendee. How do you get your exhibit booth to communicate who you are, what you do, and what your product or service is in that amount of time? Sounds unachievable, but it really is not. Consider your tradeshow floor as streets and highways that bisect at every corner and the attendees as all of the cars that fly by as fast as they can go. On the highway you see billboards - how do they grab your attention? They have to tell you who the company is and what it's selling as you zoom past. Some work and some do not. Let's talk about why this happens.
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Good graphics communicate a mass of impressions at a single glance. They must be quick and to the point. A well-done billboard accomplishes the same thing - a large image, a few words, and the appetite is whetted. The best news at a tradeshow is that you can accomplish this and lead the attendees right into your web. There are a few hard and fast rules that will make you stand out on the tradeshow floor. The hardest thing to do is self-edit. We suggest that after you commit to your graphic communication, you gather 2-3 unbiased, non-connected friends or family members to review your message - and tell them not to hold back.
The focal point of your billboard should be the benefit that your company provides. Remember there might be 20 companies at your show that sell what you sell - why is yours the best?
People do not read. If your message contains more than seven words you are in trouble! Got Milk?
Integrate your name into the design so that your company comes to mind easily. On the other hand do not make your company name the most prominent part of your message … unless you are Coca Cola, Ford, or Kleenex.
Think large, oversized visuals - if you sell hammers - one 8 foot tall, larger than life hammer sets the tone and gets you noticed - rather than your complete catalogue of hammers in 8"x10" photos all over your backwall.
Think big, make a statement, get attention.
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The latest innovation to sweep the exhibit world coincides with all that we are discussing within Show Time. Lightweight, full color graphic presentations printed on fabric are creating a stir on tradeshow floors. Pictured here are two of the pioneering designs for maximum tradeshow impact. Billboard-in-a-bag is our 90 second set-up , one piece wrinkle resistant banner that stays on its frame in a transport bag. Tension fabric walls, as shown below, are lightweight aluminum tube frames, covered with a high-quality fabric graphic and come with a multiude of optional accessories. And, coming next month, we can "re-skin" your existing pop-up frame with a full fabric graphic.
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