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Email Metrics


Four metrics you're overlooking - and three you can ignore >> full story

Game Theory


EXHIBITOR sits down with author, lecturer, and experiential-marketing expert Yu-kai Chou to discuss all things gamification. >> full story

eBay Plays its Cards Right


The e-commerce giant attracts twice as many new and inactive users as the previous show with an insight-driven swag strategy that ties directly to its new buying feature. >> full story

Promotional Products


I constantly worry that much of my program's swag ends up in the dumpster before the show even ends. How can I tailor my giveaway strategy to meet my audience's needs? >> full story

Market Scan's Split-Bet Strategy


Determined to raise its profile at one of the auto industry's top expos, Market Scan Information Systems Inc. goes for broke with a two-pronged tactic - an elaborate, digitally driven pre-show campaign and a supersized slot machine - and hits the jackpot. >> full story

Creative Dimensions' Hollywood Ending


With the show-floor premiere of its promotional film cancelled by COVID-19, Creative Dimensions Inc. switches to a digital strategy that nets more than $250,000 in new business. >> full story

Sustainable Swag


Here are six Green giveaways that will put some sustainable swagger back in your swag. >> full story

First-Class Mailers


With people drowning in digital missives, now might be the time to toss clients and prospects a life jacket in the form of a hard-copy mailer. Here are five creative examples that delivered dividends. >> full story

Game On


These five examples of gamified activations made winners out of exhibitors and participants. >> full story

Ensemble's Emergency Services


To increase awareness and lead counts, Ensemble Health Partners concocts a comedic, EMT-themed campaign that disrupts an oh-so-status-quo health-care show, gets social-media buzz, and boosts sales opportunities by 107 percent. >> full story

Email Marketing


What's the CAN-SPAM Act, and what do I need to know in order to write compliant email-marketing campaigns? >> full story

The Breakfast Club


GE Appliances drums up interest in a utilitarian product with a nearly invisible differentiator by hosting a VIP breakfast and staging an ingeniously apropos percussive performance. >> full story

Down and Dirty


To drive exhibit traffic, K-Tec Earthmovers Inc. uses sensory-based activations and social-media tactics that help the firm exceed its attendance and lead goals and score a 100-percent return on investment with a single sale. >> full story

Show and Sell


Faced with demonstrating a product for police vehicles that normally remains invisible, Federal Signal Corp. arrests attendees' attention with a transparent car, and in the process captures a 60-percent jump in sales leads. >> full story

Vets' Best Friend


Zoetis Inc. doubles engagement by taking vets for a walk through a park-like setting filled with its expanded portfolio of products. >> full story

Corteva's Magic Trick


Hoping to link its newbie name with a celebrated brand - and to symbolically connect two exhibits positioned more than 900 feet apart - Corteva Inc. stages a teleportation illusion that generates 584,000 impressions and attracts 25,000 people to the stands. >> full story

Health Check


The PhRMA Code on Interactions with Healthcare Professionals, which addresses, in part, company conduct at trade shows and events, can sometimes be as difficult to decipher as the disclaimers on drug ads. >> full story

Gatorade Drinks Outside the Box


With its market share in sports drinks slowly drying up, The Gatorade Company Inc.pours it on with an exhibit that appeals to athletic influencers via a mix of gamification and education that leaves visitors thirsting for more. >> full story

Game Changer


With the recent re-release of "The Experience Economy," author Jim Gilmore reflects on his then-radical contention that experiences are as valuable as products and services and predicts what the future holds for experiential marketing. >> full story

Sponsoring Versus Hosting


We want to spend more time with our target audience outside of our booth at upcoming trade shows. Should we host our own hospitality event or sponsor something already organized by the show? >> full story

VIP Treatment


These five strategies pulled from trade shows and corporate events successfully targeted high-value clients and prospects. >> full story

Booth-Traffic Building Blocks


Eager to make her skills and presence known at a new company, Elizabeth Thomas uses Legos and comic-book-inspired caricatures to engage with introverted attendees, and in the process builds event-related revenue by nearly 600 percent. >> full story

Hunter's Victory App


Burdened by a booth bursting with displays, Christine Sionne, CTSM, helps devise a new stand design and corresponding app that solve her product-related predicaments, increase demo opportunities, and grow leads by 100 percent over the course of two years. >> full story

The Greatest Show on Earth


Despite a slashed budget, Frank Jones develops an experiential exhibit inspired by the circuses of yesteryear that results in more than 200 contracts being signed at the show. >> full story

Interactive Tech Delivers Solutions


Interactive technologies can be useful tools for engaging attendees and helping exhibitors navigate marketing obstacles. Here are three engagements that used a variety of technologies to overcome the challenges associated with marketing products that are too small to see or just plain... >> full story

Promo Primer


Get the most out of your promotional giveaways by heeding these five tips. >> full story

Virtual and Augmented Reality


How can I customize virtual- and augmented-reality experiences so they reflect our brand and products, as opposed to being a technology stunt? And how much can I expect to pay for these activities? >> full story

The Statistics of Sponsorships


According to the results of EXHIBITOR's 2019 Trade Show Sponsorship Survey, the vast majority of marketers currently invest in sponsorships. But the jury is out with regard to whether or not they're worth the investment. >> full story

Honda's Augmented Storytelling


With no new models to launch at the Los Angeles Auto Show, American Honda Motor Co. Inc. uses augmented reality's high-octane capacity for storytelling to drive booth traffic and generate 72 percent more dealership contact requests. >> full story

A Case for Charity in Six Steps


Executing an effective cause-marketing campaign requires shrewd partner selection paired with an inventive on-target activity. This planning guide, from eight exhibiting veterans who have staged successful altruistic activations, will walk you through six critical steps in the process. >> full story

Direct-Mail Effectiveness


Management won't free up the funds for a direct-mail campaign. How can I convince stakeholders that direct mailers are effective? >> full story

Aryzta's Unusual Taste Test


A rotating docket of games and inventive food-sampling experiences elicit multiple booth visits from attendees and help Aryzta AG exceed its charitable fundraising goal by more than 66 percent. >> full story

Old Dog, New Tricks


Idexx Laboratories Inc. unleashes a slew of marketing tactics at the Western Veterinary Conference - everything from augmented reality to chocolate dog poop - and tops its sales goal by nearly 200 percent. >> full story

Sand and Deliver


Hoping to improve product awareness and bolster booth traffic, the Amerimix brand of preblended mortar devises a data-driven integrated program that bests the previous year's lead count by 156 percent and doubles its goal for total impressions. >> full story

Direct-Mail Testing


I understand the power of A/B testing, but what factors should I be assessing to ensure that our pre-show mailers are as effective as possible? >> full story

Deceptive Marketing


Attivo Networks Inc. takes a bold new approach to exhibiting by deceiving attendees, ultimately netting seven times as many leads as it had the previous year. >> full story

Right on the Money


Visit Omaha tweaks its exhibiting tactics with a cash-themed campaign that lures almost 30 percent more organizations to its booth. >> full story

Room Service


EXHIBITOR found five examples of room drops that captivated attendees and drove booth traffic. >> full story

Beefing up Booth Traffic


An audience-savvy exhibit design and in-booth activity helps Zoetis Inc. capture attendees' attention and best its booth-traffic goal by 240 percent. >> full story

Giveaways


How do I choose giveaways that will give me the best bang for the buck? >> full story

How Caterpillar Owned the Show


Caterpillar Inc. took advantage of every potential touchpoint at Minexpo, engaging with nearly 70 percent attendees and generating $1 billion in business opportunities. >> full story

Cause Marketing


I want to incorporate cause marketing into our trade show exhibit, but I need to be sure we select an appropriate beneficiary organization. Can you provide some tips and strategies for the selection process? >> full story

Bag Drop


EXHIBITOR tracks down eight branded bag options ranging in price from $1.39 to $11.11 based on an order of 500 units. >> full story

Personal Space


Using a personality-assessment activity, Mirror Show Management Inc. wins over VIP prospects, surpassing its qualified lead goals by 340 percent. >> full story

Audible's Sound Idea


Audible Inc. captures New York Comic Con attendees' attention with a gamified exhibit that generates 8 million social-media impressions and a 90-percent increase in booth visitors. >> full story

The Great Escape


American Express Open traps attendees at the International Consumer Electronics Show - and earns a 17-percent increase in engagements and a 29-percent jump in credit-card applications. >> full story

Fast Food


To promote avocados and strengthen its position as an industry innovator, Avocados From Mexico creates an in-booth avocado vending machine that captivates attendees for an average of almost five minutes and draws 40 percent more booth traffic than the previous year. >> full story

Alpha Mail


Use these 11 research-based tips to make sure your email campaign doesn't end up in the digital trash bin. >> full story

Plug it In


Five savvy exhibitors offer captivating cellphone-charging stations to help juice up their brands. >> full story

Screen Printing


Many promotional products are customized with screen-printing technology. So what exactly is screen printing, and how does it compare to digital printing? >> full story

Pre-Show Marketing


EXHIBITOR Magazine surveys more than 100 corporate exhibit managers to get the hard numbers on pre-show marketing tactics. >> full story

Sowing Seeds


Garden of Life transforms its booth at Natural Products Expo West into a fanciful horticulture scene and entices 500 showgoers to proclaim their loyalty to organic products on video. >> full story

Larger Than Life: How to Make Small Exhibits Stand Out


A down-and-dirty primer to help small exhibitors find their strength, own their power, and compete with the big booths at every turn. >> full story

Sponsorships


My exhibiting program can't afford show management's sponsorship packages, but I have a few ideas that might be less expensive. How can I get show management to negotiate on costs or agree to custom sponsorships that better fit my needs? >> full story

Price Check


"Price is what you pay," Warren Buffett once said. "Value is what you get." In this quiz, we rounded up several unique giveaways whose value is easy to see, but whose price we challenge you to guess. >> full story

Stronger Together


Chris LaRoy brings together a diverse portfolio of Cox Automotive Inc. brands to generate record booth traffic and close 35 contracts. >> full story

13 Things You Should Know About Millennials


Often discounted and misunderstood, members of Generation Y carry plenty of consumer clout and can be a marketer's Holy Grail, but only if they are targeted correctly. >> full story

Giveaway Items


We asked 10 industry experts to share their opinions and advice on trade show giveaways. >> full story

Orange Ambush


Jacobsen, a Textron Innovations Inc. company, increases leads by 36 percent using a passport strategy, the lure of a free lunch, and a trio of exhibits at the Golf Industry Show. >> full story

The Savory Smell of Success


Micron Technology Inc. combines the power of scent and the allure of cured pork to attract its target audience, increase sales leads, and ignite a social-media firestorm -- all on a prosciutto-thin budget. >> full story

Entrata's Big Red Booth


To announce a company name change and product launch, Entrata Inc. thinks inside the box. Employing a 1,600-square-foot, blazing-red cube, along with a bevy of high-profile on- and off-floor tactics, the firm scores. >> full story

Email Marketing


I'm in charge of writing all of our marketing text, including our trade show email promotions. What are some key things to keep in mind when composing these ever-important messages? >> full story

How to Save on Swag


Don't cut your company's giveaways; cut their costs. Here are eight tips to help you trim expenses without eliminating incentives. >> full story

Brain Teasers


GE Healthcare deploys an interactive game at the Radiological Society of North America annual meeting to demonstrate the time-saving benefits of its newest MRI machine, drawing more than 1,100 contestants. >> full story

Direct Mail


We asked 10 industry experts to share their opinions and advice on direct mail. >> full story

Promega's Strategy of Conversation


By ditching its boring, old exhibit and prioritizing substantive conversations over traditional sales pitches, Promega Corp. doubles booth traffic and increases qualified trade show leads by 400 percent. >> full story

Taking it to the Streets


Ten examples of off-floor activations that increased exhibiting effectiveness. >> full story

Musical Legacy


Universal Audio Inc.'s Dan Fulop devises an authentic recording-studio display that helps boost leads and Twitter mentions by 73 and 50 percent, respectively. >> full story

The $700 Search-Engine Strategy


Using little more than 24 search terms and $700, Jacqueline Deavenport creates a pre-show digital-marketing campaign that doubles her company's lead counts at the International Franchise Expo. >> full story

Share the Love


Here are five exhibitors that incorporated photo-sharing activities to increase traffic and improve brand awareness. >> full story

Automatic Transmission


Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. fuses mobile and RFID technology to create an interactive exhibit experience that fuels an 80-percent increase in dwell time and jumpstarts approval ratings by 15 percent. >> full story

Biggie Smalls


Here are four examples of exhibitors with 10-by-10- and 10-by-20-foot booths who used promotions, pre-show mailers, activities, and giveaways to create a big presence on the show floor. >> full story

Mind Games


To boost awareness, booth traffic, and media attention, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers creates an ingenious mind-control activity. The experience attracts more than 1,000 participants, retains them for 20 minutes each, and generates 80,377 new Facebook fans. >> full story

Social-Media Machine


By appealing to its target market's affinity for selfies and rewarding every engagement with branded goods, Scion's in-booth experience was picture perfect. >> full story

Purposeful Premiums


Before placing your next order for branded giveaways, follow these recommendations to ensure your tchotchkes of choice align with your company's objectives and target market. >> full story

Hyundai's Killer Campaign


Capitalizing on the popularity of The Walking Dead franchise, Hyundai Motor Co.'s Comic-Con campaign comprises celebrity appearances, in-booth activities, and an outdoor VIP party that nets 923 million impressions. >> full story

Party, Print, Destroy


Hammermill Papers launches a mobile-printing app at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, helping attendees print and shred the evidence of their nighttime debauchery while generating 10,000 application downloads. >> full story

Mindbody's Bold Move


After cranking out an ultra successful exhibit-marketing program in 2011, Noelle Luchino Feist delivers a repeat performance - devising a Bold-themed campaign that exceeds all goals and prompts Mindbody Inc. to adopt the concept company wide. >> full story

Read all About It


Before shipping boxes of collateral literature to your next show, consider these cost-effective digital options. >> full story

Formula for Success


Faced with a flat budget and a trade show city with sky high ancillary costs, Kathleen Gunderson, CTSM, makes calculated cuts to her exhibiting formula and achieves a 66-percent increase in highly qualified leads. >> full story

Evolving Exhibits


Three companies keep attendees coming back for more with ever-changing exhibit elements >> full story

The Giving Exhibit Tree


From photo-driven activities and art projects to "The Price is Right" games, here are seven examples of exhibitors that incorporated cause marketing into their trade show programs. >> full story

The Marketing Midway


A vintage carnival theme, stylish exhibit, and multistage pre- and post-show marketing campaign generated big-top results for Steelhead Productions at EXHIBITOR2014, including a 229-percent increase in leads. >> full story

Musical Genius


Global Experience Specialists Inc. creates the perfect blend of art and science to strike a chord with attendees, boosting leads by 328 percent and scoring 500 new fans and followers. >> full story

Star Search


American Express Open, the small-business division of American Express Co., takes a reality-show-style competition to two events in vastly different industries, boosting card applications and generating nearly 5 million potential social-media impressions. >> full story

Sweet Talk


To build brand recognition at EXHIBITOR2014, Deckel & Moneypenny Exhibits pairs an acerbic ad campaign with a sweet cupcake-decorating activity that leads to more than 134,000 brand impressions. >> full story

Going Postal


In today's overdigitized world, a clever hard-copy mailer can be more captivating that an email missive. Here are five dimensional mailers that prove direct mail gets read. >> full story

Promos by Price


When it comes to promotional items for trade shows, one size doesn't fit all. So we've broken down tchotchkes of all types by price range to provide an easy-to-read guide to giveaways. >> full story

June 2014


Tag Line, Drawing From Experience, Silent Partnership, and more >> full story

Tactile Tactics


Three examples of hands-on booth activities that got people involved and delivered serious results. >> full story

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The Buyer's Guide to Trade Show Exhibiting