What’s the most amazing thing you can do to represent your business effectively and get better brand visibility to position your brand correctly in the market?
Exhibiting at the trade shows!
But where there’s a crowd, there needs to be good management in place. There are many things that you need to look after while exhibiting at a trade show, like
In this guide, we have put together nine effective ways to help you tactfully manage overly crowded trade shows where hundreds of visitors pass through the aisles of one booth to another.
By implementing these ways, you will not only be able to manage a crowd but can leave a lasting impression on the attendees’ minds.
If you are ready to nail your crowd management game at your next exhibition, leverage these carefully curated nine tips to help provide a smooth and seamless experience to your booth visitors!
The first and foremost way to effectively manage crowds at trade shows is by having an effective booth design that supports you in executing your strategies.
An impactful booth design with elements like clear entry and exit signs, designated pathways to guide the attendees, and a queue management system can help you manage the crowd smoothly.
For example, if you are expecting high footfall, you can opt for an exhibit booth that has an open layout with distinct zones for different activities or product/service showcases.
Plus, you can utilize large, eye-catching signage in the booth that clearly communicates a clear message and directs attendees to their key areas of interest.
In our recent trade show booth design for Beer Stone, we tried implementing all the strategies like ample space, enough comfortable seating areas, and big paths for attendees to roam around the booth and explore the brand!
You can watch the video for more reference! 👇
Another way to manage crowds at trade show booths includes training your staff to handle people during peak hours and high footfall traffic.
Having a knowledgeable and prepared staff can not only manage the crowd but also enhance attendee engagement and satisfaction, improving your brand image.
You can equip your staff by providing training in multiple aspects, such as product/service knowledge, customer service techniques, crowd management strategies, and ways to handle inquiries or objections.
To make the training even more perfect, you should conduct role-playing exercises to simulate real-world scenarios and ensure your staff is equipped to handle different situations confidently.
For instance, if you are dealing with B2B IT clients, you can train your staff with industry-specific terminologies and general queries attendees may have regarding security, regulatory compliance, or technical specifications.
By empowering your team with specialized knowledge and effective communication skills, you can instill confidence in potential clients while having insightful conversations with the attendees roaming in the trade show.
Going further, leveraging engagement techniques is the next way to manage crowds and interactions at the trade show.
You can utilize engagement techniques like interactive demonstrations, live presentations, and hands-on workshops to showcase the value proposition of your solutions or services.
Moreover, leverage the latest technology, such as virtual reality (VR) or augmented reality (AR), to offer immersive experiences that captivate attendees and facilitate a deeper understanding of your offerings.
When you manage a crowd in an engaging way, you can drive meaningful conversations while leaving memorable impressions on potential clients.
For example, if you see that there are a lot of people outside or around your booth, you can ask them to experience your AR/VR headset, interactive demonstrations, and Live presentations while they wait to talk with a representative.
Besides all the above-mentioned techniques for managing crowds at a trade show, implementing a queue management system is also a great idea. This technique helps you minimize wait times, enhance visitor experience, and streamline the flow of attendees.
There are three steps to execute this strategy, including -
Plus, you can also have an app or web-based solution that allows attendees to book their slot with the team before they arrive at the trade show to eliminate the queue and wait time altogether.
For example, let’s say you are participating in a B2B exhibition. In that case, you can implement a token system where attendees receive a numbered token upon registration, allowing them to explore other areas of the trade show while waiting for their turn to receive a personalized demo at the booth.
When an attendee is waiting at a booth to see the Live demonstration or talk with an expert, it’s the best idea to take advantage of that time and entertain them with fun techniques. With this approach, you can get to know your attendees better while helping them avoid boredom.
You can entertain your attendees in multiple ways with quizzes, gamification, asking personalized questions, and providing customized recommendations.
Here’s a quick brief about each method of entertaining your audience:
Incorporate interactive quizzes related to your industry or product offerings. For example, if you are a B2B healthcare company, you can offer quizzes on wellness or medical advancements.
Plus, you can also develop some fun games related to your industry that keep your attendees engaged while making them aware of your offerings.
You can ask your sales team to leverage attendees’ waiting time to gather valuable insights about them. The sales team can ask them about their specific needs, challenges, and interests.
Based on the information you have gathered through personalized questions, you can offer them personalized recommendations, helping you provide better experiences to the attendees while they wait.
Moving next, another amazing way to manage crowds at trade shows includes offering scheduled demonstrations. This approach allows you and your team to have more structured time while avoiding long queues of people waiting.
Some benefits of offering scheduled demonstrations include,
You can encourage attendees to book slots in advance through a web or app-based system to effectively execute the strategy of offering scheduled demonstrations. To have such systems, it’s recommended to build an in-house solution or look for online alternatives that will help you further in your planning.
Have you ever been mesmerized by the appealingness of large and interactive display walls? We are sure you have! So why not provide the same experience to your attendees?
By showing real-time data with interactive social media walls at crowded trade shows, you can keep your audience engaged and interested in your brand throughout. Additionally, interactive social media walls become a way for you to show User Generated Content (UGC) to create a sense of community among your target audience.
You can incorporate real-time social media walls by utilizing social media aggregation tools or software within the booth. It’s also recommended to encourage attendees to use event-specific hashtags and tags in their feeds to get featured on the wall.
PRO TIP: If you don’t have a huge following or engagement on social media, you can showcase the images/videos of your past event or gathering, representing the credibility of your organization.
Going forward, another way of managing the crowd at trade shows is by providing comfortable seating areas to the attendees who are waiting in the queue to learn more about your brand.
To create a designated seating area within the booth, you can have comfortable chairs, sofas, or benches along with quick refreshments such as water, coffee, or snacks to further enhance the comfort of attendees while they wait.
For example, when attendees come to your booth after walking through the whole trade show and find comfortable seating, they get some time to relax - giving you a window to start a conversation and get to know them.
Lastly, you can provide self-service options at trade shows to manage crowds effectively. This method helps you streamline the information-gathering processes, reduce wait times, and enhance overall attendee experiences.
You can facilitate self-service options by setting up kiosks or stations within the booth where attendees can access basic information about your business, products, or services.
Plus, provide interactive touchscreens or tablets loaded with multimedia content such as videos, brochures, or presentations to enhance the attendee experience.
Lastly, ensure the interface is user-friendly and intuitive, allowing attendees to navigate the information easily.
For example, if you decide to install self-service kiosks, you can feature demos of your software products, case studies, successful implementation, and FAQs to address common inquiries.
With self-service options, you can effectively manage crowds while providing valuable information to attendees conveniently.
One of the most important things you can do after managing crowds at the trade shows is to do post-event analysis, as it helps you gain valuable insights into attendee behavior, traffic patterns, and peak engagement times.
To do the post-event analysis, you can utilize data collection methods such as attendee surveys, traffic counters, and booth interaction tracking tools to gather quantitative and qualitative data about your trade show crowd.
With the data you get from post-event analysis, you can evaluate the effectiveness of your booth strategies, identify areas for improvement, and refine your approach for future events.
For an effective post-show analysis, you should track metrics such as booth traffic flow, dwell times, popular attractions, and attendee feedback to understand how visitors interacted with your booth and what aspects resonated most with them.
Based on your findings, it’s important to evaluate further strategies and make the required changes accordingly in your next exhibition.
We hope the strategies we have shared in this blog about crowd management at a trade show will help you enhance your exhibition’s overall experience and be better prepared for higher footfall! You can take inspiration from the examples we have shared in the blog and apply them in real-life situations.
As trade show booth designs play a crucial role in crowd management, you can contact our team of experts at Pure Exhibits to get state-of-the-art booth designs that help you facilitate better experiences for your attendees and potential clients. We provide end-to-end booth rental services that include everything starting from booth designing to transportation and dismantling!
Feel free to check our booth portfolio and contact our team of rental booth builders at info@purexhibits.com or +1 800-379-8451 to get started now!
Some of the ways to control the crowd with booth design include strategies such as incorporating open layouts with multiple entry and exit points, utilizing interactive displays to disperse crowds, and integrating clear signage to guide traffic flow.
To control the flow of people within your booth, consider implementing strategies such as creating designated pathways, using crowd control barriers like stanchions or ropes, and strategically placing attractions or demos to distribute traffic evenly.
To engage a large group of visitors while ensuring individual attention, you can leverage interactive technology like touch screens or VR experiences and assign dedicated staff members to attend to visitors.
You can ensure the well-being of visitors and staff in crowded trade shows by implementing safety measures such as hand sanitizer stations, enforcing social distancing guidelines, and regularly disinfecting high-touch surfaces in crowded areas.
One of the best ways to manage long lines without frustrating leads is by utilizing digital queue management systems to provide real-time updates on wait times and providing entertainment or interactive activities to keep attendees engaged while they wait.
If you want to measure the success of your crowd management strategies, it’s important to track metrics such as booth traffic flow, dwell times at key attractions, and attendee satisfaction ratings.
