Episode Transcript
Monica Pitts 0:00
Hello again, and welcome back to marketing with purpose. My name is Monica Pitts, and
with me today, I have my chief wearer of many hats at mayecreate. Stacey brockmeier,
hey friends. So Stacey and I are going to hang out today, and we are going to talk about
trade show booth ideas for small budgets, everything from tabletop to backdrops. We're
problem solvers, right? And so we have been to many, many trade shows, and what we
have found is that the booths that stand out are the ones that break the pattern. There
are lots of patterns at trade shows, from the tablecloths to the way that they print your
name at the back of the booth, the piping, the flooring, all of it's the same. And so today
we are going to break down for you all the different elements and all the different patterns
that you notice at these booths that are consistent and give you budget friendly ideas to
break them. So let's get to business. You're on a mission, and you just need more people
to know about it. And whether you're brand new to marketing or a seasoned pro, we are
all looking for answers to make marketing decisions with purpose. I'm Monica Pitts, a
techie, crafty business owner, mom and aerial dancer who solves communication
challenges through technology. This podcast is all about digging in and going digital. I'll
share my marketing know how and business experience from almost 20 years of
misadventures. I'll be your backup dancer so you can stop doubting and get moving
towards marketing with purpose. This episode is sponsored by mayecreate design. Yeah,
that's right. We sponsor ourselves and brought to you with love by our Marketing on a
Shoestring mini course. Now our free beginners mini course is all about marketing on a
budget. And contrary to popular opinion, you don't have to spend a million dollars or do
something that you hate to market your business, get ready to challenge traditional
marketing assumptions, because this 101, mini course is designed to give you a rock
solid foundation so you can make the right decisions for you with total confidence. You
can check it out at you mayecreate.com that's Y, o, u, M, a, y, E, C, R, E, A, T, e.com, and the
link, of course, will be in the show notes. Okay, now back to business. So for years, Stacy
and I have went to trade shows, and we've walked up and down the aisles trying to learn
exactly what calls us into a booth. Like, what is it that makes these booths stand out
because we get tasked with doing this for other people. Some of our clients are national
clients that are like, what? While we build their website for them, they then come to us
and they're like, Hey, will you put together our booth display? And we're like, Sure,
Stacy Brockmeier 2:56
uh huh. We've been to trade shows before.
Monica Pitts 2:58
yeah. And we actually did take ourselves and have repeatedly gone to national like huge
level expos, just just to take it all in and and learn from the experience of going there. And
we like to look for patterns, right? And the things that we have found that will set a booth
apart from another booth, are anything that breaks the pattern. So when you walk into the
trade show, you notice that it has all the same flooring. You'll have the same piping, the
same chairs, tables, even the way that your name is written on the back of the booth. It's
all the exact same thing, right? And so, yeah, and so you want to change the change the
game and draw attention to yourself. You just need to be different, and you can do that in
a number of ways. And today, we are really focused on how we can do that cost
effectively, because we are like proverbial coupon clippers and thrift store shoppers over
here. And so we are going to talk about ways that you can set yourself apart that are
great for small budgets. Okay, so we're going to look at areas like your backdrop, your
flooring, tabletop, making reasons for people to come in, and then also adding movement
to your booth. So we're going to start at the top with backdrop. Now, this is something
that we end up designing, like a lot, and sometimes it's fun and sometimes it's really
weird, depending upon the client. Gigantic towels are kind of weird, I'm not going to lie,
Stacy Brockmeier 4:37
especially ones that you've hand drawn.
Monica Pitts 4:40
Yes, Rebecca has actually illustrated cattle, and then we were tasked with putting them
on these enormous, like 10 foot trade show banners. And it was like sketches, but they
were seven feet tall, and it was life size, life size cows. Yeah, that were hand drawn. Okay?
It's a good thing she can draw. I'm not talking about like, comic cattle. I'm talking about
like, literal, yeah, it looks good. Yeah. They were good. Okay, so when you're talking to
people about their backdrops, what are some things that you advise them to do that will
set them apart from others?
Stacy Brockmeier 5:18
Well, the first thing we always talk about is how they're transporting them, and that
sometimes dictates it, but then oftentimes people don't want to spend a ton of money on
this, like backdrop, and so the first thing that I often tell them is like, make sure your logo
or your name is at the top, and make sure the top is taller than the people next to you.
Because if you're walking through a trade show and you like, look out over the sea of
people and the sea of booths, and you see one name that's above it draws attention,
right? And so if everyone else's backdrops are eight foot, maybe yours is 10 foot. Or if
there's some you know, that makes sense. You just want to be a little bit taller. But there's
lots of options for inexpensive or like cost effective. Let's call it cost effective backdrops.
Monica Pitts 6:12
So one that you see a lot is it's like a, I don't know it's like an expandable thing. It's
interlocking parts, and it has this big sleeve that goes over the top of it, and that, I feel like,
is one of the more expensive ones that we have printed for people. If you are on a budget,
you might consider like a backdrop that's almost more like a photography studio
backdrop. So it has a pull on each side. You're going to have to screw all the poles
together. It has a sturdy base, and then it has a pool that goes between the two vertical
pools, and it just slides through the top of your backdrop, and it hangs like like the
background of in a photography studio. And those are way less expensive because
they're way more work to put up, but they do have some benefits, because they don't take
up as much space, like floor space in your booth, and you can easily replace that banner,
and it's not super expensive to do it, and
Stacy Brockmeier 7:16
they're very easy to travel with, because everything comes apart and fits In a little bag.
Monica Pitts 7:21
Yes, and they're not super heavy. I load mine in on my own, so it's not bad. It doesn't it's
not going to break your bag to carry it. So that's a very positive thing, too. Another thing
that you could do if you don't have the ability to get like that big, tall banner stand is just
replace the sign that's hanging that has your name on it. Just get, like a vinyl sign printed.
And if everybody else is is going to be white, you could have it printed on another color,
hot
Stacy Brockmeier 7:50
pink. What bright green, something, whatever your company accent color is,
Monica Pitts 7:56
and so Stacy, when we're designing those big backdrops drops for people, or even just a
smaller vinyl banner, like we were just talking about, that would hang over and in place of
the name at the back of your booth. What are some of the things that you advise them?
Stacy Brockmeier 8:14
Less is more. That's the first thing, like I already said, to put your logo big and at the top.
But this is not the place to write a book. It's not the place to like, tell everybody your
company history. It's you're looking for, like, a few key services, like very short, succinct
key services and your logo. So not a lot of information goes here. Sometimes there's a
picture, sometimes there's not so things like that that are less is more.
Monica Pitts 8:47
Yeah, so for us, we ours is huge. It goes from the floor all the way up above everyone
else's, and it has our logo and like, four services on it, and then some pretty artwork. And
that's it, because it's a backdrop, it's not a focal point. But if you have lots of stuff to say
there, there's another option for you as well. And we design a lot of these for people,
right? Stacey,
Stacy Brockmeier 9:14
yeah. So if you have a lot of things to say or you want something more modular than the
big backdrop, I would say, pop up banner stands so things that you can use one. So a lot
of times we'll design like sets of three. So company will have three different banner
stands, and maybe one or two have more information. And one is just a logo and some
pictures, and they can put those up and take them down and use them in different
arrangements, if you will, yeah,
Monica Pitts 9:43
and if you're smart about how you design them, that's how you save money, because if
you have three primary services, for example, but sometimes you go to an event where
you only want to promote one service, well then you just pull out that one back, you know,
one. Banner stand, whereas if you were just having a backdrop, you would have to have
three backdrops made. And so it's nice to keep that backdrop design really basic, and
then have your banner stands be more specific and design them intelligently, so that way
you can break them apart and use them the way that you want to use them, right? And
one other thought on those banner stands, another way that you can save money is if you
go to a lot of career fairs, and I know career fairs, they they don't give you that huge
booth. It's more like a table, and you just decorate your table. You know you can design
that banner stand to have, like, cool stuff at the top, cool stuff at the bottom, but only
display it halfway up on top of your table at a career fair. So if you don't want to have two
banners printed, just be smart about the way that you design it and make sure that the
important stuff for the career fair is at the top of the banner, so that way you can just not
display the stuff at the bottom, and then it becomes like a multi purpose, thinking about
bobber.
Stacy Brockmeier 11:06
Yeah, many times those banner scenes have an adjustable pole. So you can show it full
size, you can show it half size. You can show it somewhere in between. So again, if you're
being really intelligent or really intentional about your design, you can use them in multiple
facets, and
Monica Pitts 11:23
there's so many different types of these banner stands. If you're going to use them all the
time, you probably need to get a nicer one, because the less expensive ones, I know from
experience, are not made to come up and come down all the time. They're just not as
sturdy. But if you're only using it once a year, you're going to want to replace it in a few
years anyway. So you don't need to have, like, the fanciest thing, you know, out there. You
can go with the the low model,
Stacy Brockmeier 11:54
yeah, if you're going to use it multiple times a year, spring for the deluxe model, yeah, one
with the nicer base that actually retracts nicely and goes up easily and all of that fun stuff.
Monica Pitts 12:06
When we transitioned to doing more at trade shows and events, versus just going to
networking events and doing chamber functions, we had to invest in some nicer banner
stands, because we were like, blowing them up like we were hearing them, scratching
them, bending them. They weren't even standing up. At one point we had to shove a chair
Stacy Brockmeier 12:28
there. There was that one time where I used it outside in the wind, and then it never stood
up again. That was fun. I think we used a bungee cord for a while
Monica Pitts 12:38
if you plan on putting something up out in the wind. Might I suggest that it is not a banner
stand. Instead, just have a vinyl banner printed and use bungee cords to hang it, put it on
a fence or something. Okay, it's safer.
Stacy Brockmeier 12:55
They do now have outdoor banner stands. They This is not something they had back in
the day when I set that up in, like, the Lowe's parking lot at my BNI groups event. But they
now, they actually do have banner stands that are made for outdoors. Do they have
stakes? I don't know. You know, I haven't printed them, but I, I am assuming, yes, I'm
assuming it's more like a tent, like, you know, you have stakes. Yeah. Okay,
Monica Pitts 13:23
that's good. So that was a lot about backdrops and signage, and we have even more
information about backdrops and signage in our vlogs, so you can hop on over to me
create.com and we'll tell you what to include on it and what to think about as you're
designing it, so that way you don't forget anything and and it turns out beautiful in the
end. Okay, so next up, flooring, my favorite. So we came about this really organically.
Stacy tell the story of how we figured out flooring.
Stacy Brockmeier 13:56
So we went to a trade show. It was a national trade show. It was massive, probably the
biggest trade show I'd ever been in. I was newly pregnant at this trade show, so my feet
hurt, my body hurt, I didn't feel good. And so we are walking through all of these, like trade
show booths, and I'm like, we kept noticing, like we wanted to stay in some of them, like
they felt very comfortable. They made your body feel better. It was the flooring. They all
had nice carpets in them. So instead of like being like the concrete or the tile floor, like
these, would have like a plush rug or something like that. And so that's how we came
across. My very, most favorite topic for trade show booths, buy a rug and change up your
flooring. Our
Monica Pitts 14:43
first mayecreate rug was from Walmart, yeah, and it was fine. You don't use it for that
long and you don't it doesn't get stood on that much. I don't think it has to be like a super
high quality rug. Rug, our new one, Stacy, you got it on Amazon. I
Stacy Brockmeier 15:04
think, I can't remember if it came from Amazon or IKEA, but regardless, it was very
inexpensive. And the biggest thing is, you want to have a rug that will actually, like, lay
down so immediate, like, you're going to keep it rolled up in the closet, and you don't want
people to trip over it. So, like, while ours doesn't lay down immediately, after like, 30
minutes of being unrolled, it lays down. So if it's the difference in like, $30 rug and a $40
rug, that's actually gonna lay down spring for the $40 rug, I'm pretty sure I've never spent
more than $40 on a trade show rug, because why closet? Most of the time
Monica Pitts 15:44
do you see them professionally printed with logos and that kind of stuff on them? And
you totally can do that, but I just don't know if you need to having one that is your
company colors, that kind of fits your vibe, that works. I don't know that you need
anything different than that. And if you find it rolling up, you're going to want to duct tape
it down. Yeah. And if you're wondering what else you might need to pack, we have a
whole packing list for you also on our blog, so definitely you can get the whole list, but,
yeah, make some friends with some duct tape.
Stacy Brockmeier 16:17
The other thing that I like to do with our flooring, like, whatever we have at that trade
show, usually a rug. I like to put it out in the path of like, people walking. So it's like, just,
you know, even if it's just a foot, it'll get people like, come on in and see like, come on into
my home for the week in my trade show booth. So just kind of disrupt the pattern of
movement there, as long as it's not a tripping hazard, yeah, don't trip anybody. That's bad,
yeah? But if it's not a
Monica Pitts 16:49
tripping hazard, then yes, because you're like, making your booth feel bigger, which is
good, because we're Americans, we like space. Okay, so moving on to tabletop. That's
another thing they always provide you with, is a either the table cloth or the piping around
your table. So there's actually two pieces of this, of this, though, like you have your table
cloth, but then you have the table itself. It's always the same for everyone. So what do you
what advice do you have for us on this Daisy? Well, I'm
Stacy Brockmeier 17:26
gonna go on a tangent, so just like, get on my soapbox with me for just a minute, and
then we'll get off. And I promise it won't be a really long like tangent, but do not leave this,
like, eight foot table in the front of your booth and then sit behind it. It makes you feel like
people can't come and talk to you. And for me, the entire reason I'm at a trade show.
You've heard me say this already today. I want people to come talk to me. I want to have a
conversation. I want them to come into my booth. I want them to hang out there. So do
not put this table across the front of your booth and like, cut you off from the people that
you're trying to talk to so often, the very like, literally, like, before I even bring all of my stuff
in, I will turn that table and, like, shove it up against the side of my booth. So if
somebody's gonna come in and take something off my table, it'll be like, they have to
actually, like, come into my booth, and that opens an opportunity for me to have a
conversation with them, even if it's not about my service or my product or anything like
that, it's just building a relationship with them. So don't put the table in the front of the
booth. Now. I'm getting off the soapbox. I've like spent enough time on top of the box like
we're out now, but other things you can do for your table top are, like a lot of people will
do a table cloth. I don't necessarily think you have to have a table cloth with your name on
it. Some people are really married to that idea, and that's okay. But you can just even have
a table cloth that has that's your company color, or you can skip a tablecloth altogether
and just like decorate your table, but keeping it pretty simple, easy to transport, it's
probably not the most noticed thing in your booth.
Monica Pitts 19:17
Well, not when it's turned sideways, and that's just that our clients that use them are more
likely to either have them over the top and have the logo on the top of the table, so you
might see this the brand that way, or they might have a different shape table that, like
some of them, have, kind of like a podium style table. And so then we will design
something that, you know, shows on the front of the podium, and then that's another
place that the logo might be. But yeah, I agree, for us, it doesn't make sense to have a
designed table cloth, because we don't want people sitting behind the table, because it
feels like you're you're approaching the like the teacher's desk. Risk. It's intimidating.
Stacy Brockmeier 20:02
I oftentimes will bring a like a cocktail table and put that kind of more at the front of the
booth where people can, like, stand on it or lean on or put their arm on it, but that way it's
more again, just like inviting that conversation or inviting people to hang out.
Monica Pitts 20:21
It is nice to have some type of table at the booth. You got to have something to put your
giveaways on, or very least
Stacy Brockmeier 20:27
set, yeah, make a note, yeah, and let people ride on something, yeah. And
Monica Pitts 20:32
it's also but you have to put all of the bags for everything someplace. And so if you don't
have a backdrop. You have to have a tablecloth over your table, and you have to have
some type of table in your booth, or you're gonna have to haul all your stuff out to the car
and put it in your car, and then haul it back out of your car, so you can pack it all up to haul
it back to your car. So, like, just think about how that's gonna go, because sometimes it's
really freaking cold.
Stacy Brockmeier 20:59
It's a really great place to hide stuff, hide it underneath that table.
Monica Pitts 21:05
There was one show I go to. It's in February, and the way the place I have to park is a
gravel lot that's, like, almost a half a mile away, I swear, from the doors that you have to
load in and load out of. And if I do not want to go back and forth between that over and
over again to get my stuff. Yeah, I just really like a tablecloth very
Stacy Brockmeier 21:28
similar to that and that it's like, almost been canceled the last two years because the
weather is so bad that week every year. Yeah.
Monica Pitts 21:37
So I like the tablecloth because it lets me stash everything from my winter coat to my
snacks and my lunch and all the bags that I keep all the stuff in right underneath the
table. It's like an attic, yeah, in my booth. Okay, so you were kind of alluding to the table,
right, that people can gather around, and so the way that you have your booth arranged
can really give people a reason to come in. So you have some ideas. My
Stacy Brockmeier 22:09
goal is always to get people to hang out. Like I want people to come in and sit down and
hang out. And so I often will take some kind of like fold up chair, so we have directors
chairs, and they're tall, so people don't feel like they're imposing, like, or a lot of people I
see bring like stools, so just something somewhere somebody can, like, lean on or sit in,
that doesn't feel like they're just like, lounging around. But people will come in, sit down,
have a conversation, eat some candy, all the things, those are really candy. Great way for
people to get into the booth and hang out. Candy
Monica Pitts 22:49
is the best giveaway. It's the best giveaway. It's the best one people and try to get the
candy that not everybody else is going to bring, because everybody likes a different kind
of candy. And if everybody like, you know what I'm saying.
Stacy Brockmeier 23:05
I'm telling you, Skittles and starbursts, like other people, almost everyone brings chocolate
candy. If you have sugar candy, you will get a whole nother crowd of people. Some Yeah,
usually I try to take chocolate candy and sugar candy because I want all the people. I
Monica Pitts 23:21
want all the chocolate. Yeah, and if I have the sugar candy, I'm not gonna eat my own
candy. And that means that I can go make new friends, because I'm gonna steal their
candy. Yes, it's very smart. It's strategic. I'm telling you my candy eating. But if you're not
gonna bring candy or other giveaways, one really inexpensive thing that you can do, if you
have a tangible product, you can bring that like you can have a show and tell, basically, for
people to be able to touch right? So, yeah, I have, we have one client that's they do, like
siding, roofing, doors, windows, and they can bring in samples of siding and samples of,
like, different roofing materials. And it's like, show, tell, right? And, yeah, other examples,
Stacey, well, it's
Stacy Brockmeier 24:10
kind of bringing what you do inside, or bringing what you do to the trade show. And often
it's really inexpensive because it's something you already have. So for like our asphalt like
testing labs or asphalt companies, they might bring pucks or, like asphalt samples we
have seen, like greenhouses that will bring in plants and stuff and fill their booth. And so if
you can bring the things in that you use or do on a daily basis. Like, I love to walk around
and, like, stick my hand in whatever gravel or whatever somebody brought at these trade
shows and see how it feels. And so it's just a way to get people's attention. And a lot of
people are super tangible at those things. And so if you can bring what you do into your
booth, but. That's really cool.
Monica Pitts 25:01
And then you're a web designer, and
Stacy Brockmeier 25:04
we can't bring anything because we don't do anything that's tangible. No, that
Monica Pitts 25:08
what we do. Bring our work into our booth. We do. We have, you know, printed pieces of
paper and banners, yes, bringing our work into our booth. It just feels like everybody else's
stuff that they have in their booths. We do have some giveaway advice, though, because
we've bought all the different kinds of giveaways. We got the really expensive ones, and
you know what we still have in some of our closets at the office. They're really expensive
giveaways because we, like were afraid to give them out. They were so expensive. But
there are a few things that give away really well. Yeah,
Stacy Brockmeier 25:45
so the I would say the like, biggest giveaway that from this past year is we printed these
little holographic stickers. So they're really inexpensive, but they were really shiny and
pretty. And they say you are somebody. Start acting like it. And people like that. They have
a quote on them and that it's not just a like sticker of our logo. If you're gonna print
stickers, it can't just be your logo. They don't want the sticker of your logo. But you can
Monica Pitts 26:15
put your logos really cool on. Some people have really cool logo,
Stacy Brockmeier 26:19
yeah, you can put your logo on it. But then also just include something else really fun that
people will want to put on their laptop or want to put on their water bottle or something
like that. I agree. Always pens and notepads, like things that are useful. People always are
like walking around looking for a pen or walking around looking for a notepad. So those
are super useful. One of the other, like, really good giveaways that we did this year was,
like the glasses or like screen cleaning cloth, like the lens cloth, and people keep those.
That's really, I mean, your goal with your giveaways to get something that people keep.
And honestly, those like we ordered them off of Amazon and uploaded a design. I Before,
I had never ordered something custom like that from Amazon, but you can, and they're
pretty inexpensive. You can also get those from, like, your promo products companies
too. But if you're looking for something really
Monica Pitts 27:16
easy, when we talk about notepads. We're just talking about like the simple cut paper
glued on one side, like notepads. When you get into like, full bound notebooks, those are
more expensive. They're really cool, but they are more expensive. And so we we've done
both for sure, and they both give away fine, like there's not a right or a wrong answer, but I
do find that the the non bound, non actual notebook, more like Notepad, those, those
work better. But also, I don't really think that you have to have giveaways. I think that you
can just have business cards, and I mean, or candy. Candy is good. And I saw people last
year that had they made really fun popcorn At Home and covered it in sugar and
chocolate, and then they put it in these cute, clear bags, tied them with ribbons, and put
their logo sticker on the front of them. And that was their giveaway. And so you could do
something like that. We've done it with cookies before when we're feeling ambitious. But
yeah, it doesn't have to be something expensive. It can be simple and yes, and if you're if
you're not sure what you're going to put your candy in or something else in, don't go to the
office supply store. Don't do it
Stacy Brockmeier 28:40
the most expensive place on the planet, like it and Disney World, I swear, it probably
Monica Pitts 28:46
costs the same amount for a soda at the office supply store as it does at Disney World.
Yes, I don't know, actually,
Stacy Brockmeier 28:54
but it feels right. But you could totally raid the dollar store. I mean, like, there are neat little
bowls and stands and fasteners and just different stuff at the dollar store. And so I'm
always a fan of raiding the dollar store for just the handy things that you you're gonna
break it, like you're traveling with things, and you're gonna break it. So don't spend a
gajillion dollars on, like, some really nice bowl or some really nice bucket or really nice
stand, like, it's okay, braid the dollar store.
Monica Pitts 29:30
All of ours are from the dollar store, and they look just fine. Yeah? Nobody has
Stacy Brockmeier 29:34
ever been like, Oh, is that from the dollar store? Nope. They're like, and
Monica Pitts 29:37
you know what? They may not be microwavable, but it doesn't matter, because they're
just holding candy, yeah, and business cards and stuff, yeah. Now, one of the things we've
done a few times is host a game, and if you can figure out a cool game to make in your
booth inexpensively, I think that's a great way to bring people in. It could be, I mean, I've
seen. Like the Plinko, and then also people play bags. People will have putting, and those
are not expensive. You might even just have those things at home. We've done surveys
which are kind of fun. Any other ideas? Stacey,
Stacy Brockmeier 30:15
I was gonna say the putting, but yeah, I think I mean anything you can do that your
audience is drawn to that way is really good. One
Monica Pitts 30:25
of my favorite ones was they had these huge pieces of paper hung up on the back of the
booth and markers, and you just signed your name on the pieces of paper, and you were
signing saying that you would not use a certain word in your vocabulary anymore, and it
was for people with disabilities, and it was a nonprofit that did it. And I thought this is the
coolest thing ever, because you got people into your booth, you got us to change a
behavior that you feel is important for us to change, which it really is. And I don't let my
kids say that word either. But you know, I was like, this was good and it was not
expensive. It was those long sheets of paper and some like, markers, and so you could do
the same thing, you know, take a pledge, um, put your phone down when you're driving it,
buckle up, whatever it is.
Stacy Brockmeier 31:16
We've seen people do photo booths, things like that. I mean, like anything that draws
people in is a fun game to do.
Monica Pitts 31:24
Yeah. Okay, so last but not least, movement is the last thing, because movement catches
your eye, it draws you in. So give us some ideas. Stacy, well,
Stacy Brockmeier 31:37
I think the movement's especially easy for people who don't have a tangible product. So
for us, we have a really nice slideshow. We made it in Canva. Anybody can use Canva and
make a slideshow, and then you can display it on a TV from your office or just a monitor
and your laptop, or even just your laptop. So if you have an intangible product or
something that could look really good on a slideshow, like making your own slideshow is
probably the like, most cost effective way to add some some judge or some like, fun
movement to your trade show booth. Yeah,
Monica Pitts 32:19
and they're not hard, like when I made ours earlier this year. We had it in Adobe Premiere
Pro. It was a full on developed video. And I was like, Girl, I don't have time to make this. I
knew, we knew we needed to change it, but I was like, I don't have time to do this. And
Stacy was like, check this out. So what you do is you just start with a presentation, and
now with AI and Canva, it will automatically apply all of the animations to your
presentation at one time. And it feels like you have a fully developed video. It is nuts. And I
was blown away. You literally
Stacy Brockmeier 32:59
download it as a video, and so then you just put it on your laptop, and you hit play and put
it on repeat, and it just repeats and plays forever.
Monica Pitts 33:08
Yeah, and if you have internet access, you can just play it from Canva too. That's true,
though. I would totally download
Stacy Brockmeier 33:13
it, download it, play
Monica Pitts 33:14
it for sure, download it. Don't, don't risk it. People don't risk it. And you can play we have,
like, a big TV with a stand, and that's our choice, right? But you don't have to have a big TV
with a stand. It could sit your TV, could sit on a table, or you could just bring a monitor.
You could just play it on your laptop. It's fine, yeah, it's not just use
Stacy Brockmeier 33:39
what you have, like, especially if you're on a budget, using what you have, is going to be
totally fine. You're not going to be the least stressed person there. There's always going to
be that one person with, like, the you remember when we were kids? I don't know how old
you are when you're listening to this, but when we were little and like, at the elementary
school, they would have, like, the felt backdrop, like felt board, and you could, like, put your
stuff on it. There's always going to be at least one person that has a felt board with like,
pictures velcroed to it. So, yeah, you're good.
Monica Pitts 34:13
Yeah. They might have even written all of the information about their company, like, on a
piece of notebook paper and cut it out and then stuck it to the felt board. You don't know.
You don't know. Like, who does everybody have access to a word processor these days? I
don't know. It's surprising sometimes. Um, yeah, so Stacy's right, and it's really easy to
make a video. It's man, don't be scared of it, because it's way easier than you think. And I
mean, if nothing else, last year, I walked past a booth six people deep. There were six
people in this booth, and it was not a big booth, and they were all wearing fluorescent
pink shirts. I. It's hard to know. I left over there. There's nothing else in the booth, but these
six people in their fluorescent pink shirts, so just wear something white. Ultimately, too. I
think if you just smile,
Stacy Brockmeier 35:13
yeah, that's good smile, and eye contact is pretty great.
Monica Pitts 35:18
Smiling. It's a thing. People should do it more well. And then, Monica,
Stacy Brockmeier 35:22
you used to like have a conversation piece. Do you remember what that was?
Monica Pitts 35:27
Yes, I So now everybody paints their fingernails bright colors all the time. But I'm old, not
that old, but 10 or 15 years ago, that was not a thing, right? Women did not paint their
fingernails super bright colors. And so I would paint mine bright green, and some or one
nail each, like a different color, and wear it. And everyone would be like, Oh my gosh, your
fingernails. And it was just a conversation starter, yeah, now I wear obnoxious earrings
that my kids made at a fuse beads.
Stacy Brockmeier 36:07
Just be original. Make your own conversation piece, anything to build a relationship with
people. Get them in your booth, spend some time. Talk to them about what they do, yeah,
Monica Pitts 36:21
and just remember too, that the whole conversation isn't just about selling something, it's
about meeting someone. You never know what they're going to need from you. The the
people that I end up doing business with out of a trade show are not necessarily the ones
that told me that they needed a website when they stopped by the booth. It's often the
people that you see three times, and then they need the website, and that's when you end
up doing the business with them. So it's about making friends, really, more than anything,
yeah? So hopefully today, friends, you feel a little bit more empowered to go plan a trade
show booths, right? So from tabletops to backdrops, trade show booth display ideas for
small budgets, remember what you're trying to do is shake up the pattern. There's a
pattern and it's really consistent between all the booths. You need to break the pattern
with things like your backdrop, your flooring, the tabletop give people a reason to come in,
maybe put some movement or smile if, if you just stand up at the edge of your booth and
smile, it might be the pattern breaker, right? So you don't have to spend a ton of money,
but if you put some thought into it to begin with, you can totally go and have a very
successful trade show on a very limited budget. So thank you so much for joining us
today. We appreciate all of the thoughts and energy that hopefully you're feeling rolling
through your head as you're planning your next trade show. And if you enjoyed this
episode, please subscribe. So then you won't miss the next episode. In our next episode,
Stacey and I will be hanging out together again, because you may have heard we ran a
four day work week experiment in our office in 2023 and now in 2025 we are still running
a four day work week, and we've learned some stuff along the way. And we were asked to
give a presentation to a group about how we like came about and modified our business
to be able to work a four day work week. So we're going to be taking some of the content
from that presentation and sharing it with you guys in our next episode. So definitely
subscribe so you don't miss it. And before I let you go, I want to give one more shout out
to our mayecreate resource sponsor Marketing on a Shoestring. It is the free beginners
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