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Trade Show Furniture

Trade show furniture is an area where you can cut costs without harming your exhibit's effectiveness. Here are the basic requirements for booth furnishings, and how to spend less on them:

• Chairs: You probably don't want to encourage your booth staff to sit during their shift at manning the booth. But you may need a place for customers to sit, especially if you'll be writing up orders with them.

• Conference table: Will you need a table for writing orders and closing sales? If so, it's cheaper and much easier to rent a table at the show than to bring or ship your own.

• Wastebasket: It's far less expensive to buy a cheap one at a dollar store or grocery store that's near the exhibition hall, than to rent one from the exhibit management.

  And to really cut costs on this inelegant item, you can just use a small box instead of a plastic wastebasket. You - or a neighboring exhibitor - probably have a cardboard box you don't plan to take back home with you, and it can make a good (and cheap!) substitute for a wastebasket. Just line it with a trash bag so you can empty it at least once each day during the trade show.

• Booth flooring: Buy anti-fatigue mats at a home improvement store in the vicinity of the trade show. It's far cheaper and easier than shipping them. Most of these stores have an "online order and pickup" service, where you can place your order online from your office before leaving for the show, and simply pick up your purchases that are already gathered and waiting for you at the store when you arrive in town.

• Other booth furniture: If your display or demonstration require other special furnishings, brainstorm the least expensive way to obtain them for your booth. Can you rent them from a supplier near the show venue? How much would it cost for to you bring or ship a collapsible version of the furniture to the trade show?
  
  

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Learn how to turn all your trade shows and exhibitions into pure profit centers - Read "Trade Show Secrets", the ultimate trainer, guide, and checklist for more trade show sales with less effort.