Trade show space is expensive but fortunately there are a number of ways in which you can get the cost down. Running through the trade show statistics and price trends for 2009 and the years immediately preceding, it is clear that exhibitors are scrutinizing every last dollar of spend in the budget to make sure that maximum value is being extracted from it. The general trend of trade show budgeting and pricing has been downward, as much as 15% in some instances, but there is one glowing exception.

Trade show space rents have actually increased slightly.

At first sight this flies in the face of logic. We have just come through a terrible recession which has been the worst period for our economy since the Great Depression of the 1920’s. How can trade show managers achieve, never mind justify, an increase in trade show space rental.

This is where you need to understand what is happening in the market. The bulk of trade space is contracted for well in advance so the prices and contracts lock-in the clients. What has happened is that 2009 largely escaped a decline in trade show space cost because it had already been contracted for in 2008. Will this have an effect in 2010 as the lag in contracts with forward pricing of space take effect?

No. Certainly there has been no sign of this in 2010 space pricing which means that many exhibitors believe that the recession will be over this year and they are getting themselves back into harness in readiness for an upturn in business conditions.

So how do you minimize your trade show costs?

One lesson of the recessionary environment has been to delay making the rental decision for as long as possible. Certainly there has been a contraction in trade show sizes of around 10%, so pricing has been maintained, and is still being maintained, by restricting the size of the trade show itself. Nevertheless, there is a lengthy delay between launch of the show and finally getting the space contracted out to exhibitors. This means it’s time to play hardball with trade show managers and extract the very best concessions and pricing.

Another technique is to look for odd shaped space which does not conform to the regular allotment of the trade show arena. If you have a display which allows for flexible configuration or can be easily adapted to different space availability, then there are frequently opportunities to take the space off the manager’s hands at a substantial discount.

Finally, if you feel like taking a bet on a trade show, choose several secondary shows which you can use in your calendar but are not too concerned about if you are not able to get in. Wait until a month before the show and approach trade show management to see if they have any space left they are trying to get rid of. Alternatively, do they have any exhibitors who have pulled out of the show and want to sell on their allotted booth space? If you are lucky, you can pick up space at a fraction of the asking price and if you aren’t, well it doesn’t matter too much after all.

Author Bio: Rena Patton is the president of ExhibitWholesale, a leading provider of trade show displays and accessories such as pop-up displays and banner stands. ExhibitWholesale can be found online at: ExhibitWholesale.com .

Category: Marketing
Keywords: trade show hints, trade shows, trade show, about trade shows, trade show rental costs