Six Stupid Questions

What's Happening Now

EXHIBITORLIVE 2026 - Tampa, Florida
Register Today and Save $400

eTrak University-Affiliated Online Learning
Registration is Open!

Reach Marketing Professionals Ready to Buy
Exhibit at EXHIBITORLIVE

exhibit design

ssuing a request for proposal (RFP) can feel a lot like online dating. Sure, you compile a list of likes and dislikes, but if you're not specific enough or don't ask the right questions, you'll end up with a partner who isn't exactly a perfect fit. In online dating, putting out a vague call for the strong, silent type is just as likely to get you a muscle-bound mute as it is a rugged gentleman who lets his actions speak for themselves. Similarly, when it comes to RFPs, vague requests and unfocused questions are likely to land you with a less than desirable date - err, exhibit house.

So it's important that your RFP contains specific, focused questions, details, and requests if you want any hope of finding a match made in heaven. Because asking the right questions - and asking them in the right way - is vital to making sure you end up with the partner you're looking for. Common RFP questions and requests are often misunderstood or improperly crafted, leaving the exhibit manager and/or the procurement department with insufficient information upon which to make an informed decision. What's more, missing details and insufficient information in the RFP can result in a multitude of wildly varying proposals that make the process less like comparing apples to oranges and more like comparing grapes to gorillas.

Todd Simon, former vice president of business development at Chestnut Ridge, NY-based exhibit house MC², says he's amazed at some of the questions he's read in RFPs. "I've seen RFPs where people ask, 'If your company were a cartoon character, who would it be and why?'" Simon says he understands that prospective clients are just trying to force exhibit houses to show off their creativity. But no matter how fun the answer might be, its value in helping you select the right exhibiting partner is limited at best.

After years of wading through RFPs, Simon believes exhibit managers need to learn how to ask questions that will provide some qualitative differentiation between one vendor and another. Sure, you've heard that there are no stupid questions, but when it comes to RFPs, some questions are definitely better - and more likely to get you the information you need - than others.

So to help you navigate the RFP process without landing yourself on a blind date from hell, here are six of the most common "dumb requests," which while well intended, typically don't get you the information you're looking for. Learn which questions and requests to avoid and how to hone your search, and you'll undoubtedly find an exhibiting match made in heaven.

he first mistake most exhibitors make is issuing an RFP without one of the most important specifications: the budget. Simon says exhibit managers omit the budget because they are afraid a dollar limit might scare an exhibit house away from showing its best possible work. Exhibitors tend to think that they'll get a more inspired or creative proposal if the designer isn't constrained by budget. Unfortunately, what happens is some proposals come back with the-sky's-the-limit designs while other firms try to make educated guesses about what a company is willing to spend. Bottom line, the playing field ends up anything but level.

"What you get is one proposal at $200,000, and another at $2 million," Simon says. "If you're willing to spend $2 million, then that's not fair to the company that figured you wanted to keep costs down. And if you're going to eliminate the company that submitted a $2 million design because it's outside your budget, you've wasted that company's time."

At the very least, give vendors a ballpark estimate so you're comparing apples to apples - even if it is Red Delicious to Granny Smith. Otherwise, you'll end up looking at the coolest $2 million proposal you'll never be able to afford. And if you have a hard cap on your project, make sure the vendors understand that. If you mean "Not a penny more than $200,000," then make that clear, or you'll be disqualifying a lot of good proposals that come in closer to $201,000.

WRONG: "Submit a proposal for a 20-by-30-foot exhibit. Budget is negotiable."
RIGHT: "Submit a proposal for a 20-by-30-foot exhibit that fits the basic design specifications at a cost of no more than $200,000."
WHY: When prospective partners return your RFP, you're going to want to compare apples to apples. So make sure you include a budget, or budget range, to level the playing field and make sure all proposals are within your budgetary parameters.

hile you probably have a particular design aesthetic in mind when you send out an RFP, chances are you're not describing it very well. For example, adjectives like "sleek," "comfortable," "European," or "conservative" can mean vastly different things to different people.

"The more information you can give vendors the better," Simon says. "Explain how you want clients and prospects to view your brand's image in the marketplace. Because in the end, your company's trade show exhibit should be a reflection of the image you are trying to project to your clients and prospects."

According to Simon, a picture is worth a thousand words, and a few photos can go a long way toward explaining your vision in a manner that designers - who are very visual people - will understand. You can try to define "sleek" until you're blue in the face, but a little research and a handful of good photos can illustrate your ideas better than a list
of adjectives.

So include any photos of exhibits, retail displays, architectural inspiration, etc. that you feel are in line with your brand's image. If there's some taboo as far as colors to select or avoid, or what kind of chairs your CEO prefers in the conference room, provide that information up front. Otherwise your boss may eliminate an otherwise excellent exhibit design because the flooring in the rendering was his least-favorite color.

WRONG:"The booth should have a sleek, modern design."
RIGHT:"Our company has a unique corporate culture, and the exhibit should reflect that. Here are photos of three exhibits that we feel represent our aesthetic."
WHY: Adjectives like "sleek" and "modern" can conjure wildly different images in different people's minds. So rather than getting caught up in syntax, describe your brand's or company's image, and include visual reference points to illustrate that aesthetic.

any exhibitors are boarding the eco-friendly train to Greener exhibiting pastures. But when you include a request for a "Green" exhibit design, it's best to define exactly what Green means to you. According to Simon, the term "eco-friendly" has as many meanings as there are species in the rain forest. For example, do you want materials made of recycled products or materials that can be recycled when you trash the booth in five years?

As for Green exhibiting, one huge movement is to use lightweight materials so shipping and drayage leave a smaller carbon footprint. But if weight is an issue, perhaps you should spell out a target weight.

Simon suggests providing additional, specific information, such as any Green policies, corporate mandates, or mission statements your company already has. These often outline the company's goals and opinions with regard to decreasing its environmental impact, and that information can help an exhibit house create a design that will meet your exhibit-marketing objectives and eco-friendly mandates. Simply outline what your Green goals and priorities are, and ask exhibit houses to explain how their designs will meet them.

It's also fair to ask prospective partners what their own internal Green policies are, and whether or not they have an environmental mission statement. After all, if going Green is important to you, your company, or your customers, you'll likely want to opt for an exhibit house with Green goals of its own.

WRONG:"Submit a proposal for a Green exhibit that diminishes my program's environmental impact."
RIGHT:"Attached is a copy of our Green policy. Explain how your design will meet the goals set forth in this policy."
WHY: Green means different things to different people, so be specific about what your company's priorities are with regard to going Green. Providing more specific information up front will result in proposals that are more appropriate given your goals and parameters.

ccording to Simon, some exhibitors include parameters such as: "The exhibit needs to fit into no more than three cases for transportation." While keeping your shipping and drayage costs in line is important, and specifying the number of shipping crates - even giving suggested sizes of containers - isn't a bad idea, it's not the best way to get what you're ultimately after, which is an exhibit that's affordable to ship.

After all, an exhibit that packs into three crates could weigh a couple hundred pounds or several thousand pounds. And those cases could be small, lightweight cases or giant, bulky crates. So focusing on the number of crates/cases is not necessarily the best approach.

The cost of moving an exhibit - either from one city to another or from the loading dock to your booth space - can be based on several factors. But actual and dimensional weight are the most common factors when it comes to shipping costs. By setting limits on the dimensional weight and the number of pounds an exhibit can weigh, you are setting limits on the two major costs of moving your booth.

"Get vendors thinking about how to make your exhibit easy to move," Simon says. "If you can set realistic limits, vendors will be forced to find ways to build a booth that meets the guidelines you prescribe, and you can evaluate their proposals based on how well they fit within the parameters you established in the RFP."

WRONG:"The exhibit needs to fit into no more than three cases for transportation to and from each show."
RIGHT:"The exhibit should weigh no more than X pounds and have a total dimensional weight of no more than Y."
WHY: The number of crates is less important than actual and/or dimensional weight when it comes to shipping and drayage costs. So focus on these numbers instead, and let potential vendors know that these costs are an important consideration.

hen asked whether they're financially stable, most exhibit houses are going to paint a far rosier picture for potential clients than might be accurate. Unfortunately, in today's economy you can't be sure which exhibit house might unexpectedly declare bankruptcy, close its doors, or scale back its services - and leave you out in the cold. But asking about a company's financial situation can be tricky. No company will say, "We've got one foot in the grave."

"Don't get taken in by platitudes such as, 'We've been serving the industry for 25 years,'" Simon warns. "First, that doesn't answer your question. Second, just because a company survived 9/11 doesn't mean it is currently turning a profit and investing in its future."

Numbers, on the other hand, don't lie. And numbers over a period of time tell an important story. Healthy financial statements point to smart planning. But make sure to ask for the whole story. Request explanations regarding any significant growth or contraction the company has seen in the past few years. A company might have contracted its client base and cut some staff, which could have kept the organization profitable. But that might have also rendered the company unresponsive to its remaining clients, or unable to take on additional projects like the contract it's trying to win from you. So financially it is still using black ink in the ledger, but that contraction may - or may not - mean trouble if this company becomes your partner.

WRONG:"Describe your company's financial status."
RIGHT:"Submit your financial statements for the last three years and explain any significant growth or contraction in business during that time period."
WHY: No exhibit house is going to tell you that it's experiencing major financial trouble, even if it is. So ask for actual financial statements instead, and inquire about any fluctuation over the course of the past few years.

n addition to inquiring about potential partners' financial status, plenty of exhibitors ask for a list of companies with whom the vendor has previously worked. Asking for a list of clients isn't a bad idea, per se. Seeing that list of Fortune 500 clients can be impressive. Of course, each company on that reference list is also making demands on your potential vendor's time. To understand where you stand among an exhibit house's stable of clients, you might want to ask for a list of the companies keeping each vendor busy, or query each vendor about how its client base has changed over a period of time.

But Simon warns exhibitors to be careful when comparing the responses. While a long list of clients or a sharp increase in business might look impressive, it could also mean your comparably smaller project will be handled by a junior designer. On the other hand, a drop in the client base might show a vendor is losing business, but it could also mean an exhibit house has consolidated around a few big fish that are providing steady work.

Additionally, any potential vendor will have other projects it is working on. But you need to understand when its busy season is. If a vendor has several major shows going on - with several of its biggest customers - right at the same time you'll need its help, that could be a red flag that your project will take a back seat to those big clients. E

WRONG:"Provide references and a list of your 10 largest clients."
RIGHT:"Which months are the busiest on your calendar, and which shows will you be helping clients with during those months?"
WHY: A list of big-name clients can be impressive, but it can also mean you'll be a little fish in an ocean-sized client base full of whales. So when asking about existing clients, also ask about peak times when those clients may be most demanding of your potential vendor's time, attention, and resources.