Having motion graphics, touchscreens, or LED walls in your trade show exhibit will turn heads and generate foot traffic.
But that’s only half the battle.
To convert qualified leads, you need more than just eye-catching visuals. These visuals need to align with your brand. They need to tell a story about your company and capture the essential elements of your offering.
Put yourself in the shoes of your ideal buyers.
If you were them, would you rather see:
- An all-singing, all-dancing exhibit that looks pretty cool but doesn’t tell you much about what that company actually does.
- An immersive, storytelling asset that speaks to their pain points and desires and illustrates how you’re different from your competitors (while also looking pretty cool).
Hopefully, you picked option two. If you did, and you want something like this to represent your business, you’ve come to the right place, as we can do this for you.
Here are six examples of awesome exhibits we’ve created for our clients.
5 factors to consider for your exhibit design
First, you need a big idea. A vision. That’s the place to start. And it’s OK to let your idea get out of hand as you dream about what you want the experience to be like on the trade show floor or at any other live marketing event.
Once you’ve captured the feeling and end result, write it down. Then you can search for ways to make the logistics work. Seems a little counterintuitive, I know.
In general, we recommend keeping these five factors in mind as you collaborate with a reputable exhibit design company to craft a space that will attract your ideal buyers. It will help give shape to your vision.
1. Function & Design
The one doesn’t exist without the other. Is your exhibit both captivating and easy to move around in? If you’re booth space is not set up right, then you risk crowding your booth and prospects leaving.
You can think of function and design in this way. A good booth design is what captures the initial attention. It tells somebody about the company’s personality, capabilities and quality. Most importantly, it sets the stage for the primary function of the booth.
Function on the other hand, is what the exhibit does, whether it's showcasing the product, demonstrating the product in real time, making sales or capturing leads. In simple terms, function is the goal, design is the method for achieving the goal.
2. Decide if you're designing a Ford or Ferrari
One is not necessarily better than the other. In the end, the deciding factor should be determined by the goal. Is the goal speed or dependability?
Often the best way to go about answering the question is with another question. What space in the market does your company occupy? If you’re a start up, you may actually benefit more from a Ferrari-type exhibit, one that is eye-catching and draws visitors in to learn about what you do.
If you’re mid-market, you’ll have to research your competition and ask whether or not you need to match them or one-up them. But in this space, you may just need to maintain a presence and focus on cutting costs.
And if you’re an industry leader, you can set the pace and tone for the event. A custom exhibit is the strategy for keeping your lead and authority in the industry.
3. Marketing criteria
This is where storytelling becomes a player. Aside from revenue goals, what are the marketing goals? In what ways are your raising brand awareness? What ideas or core values do you want prospects to associate with your brand?
Jingles are a great example of this. Just finish the tune. “Bud up bup bup buh, I’m _____ it.” Obviously, it’s McDonald’s! What they’re trying to do is pair positive feelings to their food. That’s also why their kid’s meals are called “happy meals.”
Examples abound. Finish this one. “SC Johnson... a _____ company.” SC Johnson is renowned for their cleaning solutions, bug spray and a host of other products. But they want you to think of their family values when you picture their brand. That’s marketing.
What ideas, core values or feelings do you want customers and clients to think of when they picture your brand?
4. The demo
Trade shows were originally a place for people to touch, feel, hear, see and learn about new products. But in recent years, the demo element has been transformed with the advent of experiential marketing.
When crafting a demo space, make sure you have control over as many of the presentation elements as possible. Don’t just rely on your product to sell itself.
5. Physical limitations
Be sure to figure out how the venue may limit your design. For example, some convention building have height restrictions, odd configurations and utility service entrances, etc.
At this point, if you’re planning to have a big presence at a show, it pays to work with an award-winning exhibit design company like The Trade Group. (Sorry for the self-promotion, but we’re the best).
At the end of the day, remember this. Big ideas are great. But a good idea executed well is better than a great idea executed poorly. Design to be flexible and modular.
6 examples of awesome exhibits in 2025
With that said, here are 6 examples of awesome exhibits in 2025 to get you inspired for the 2026 trade show season.
1. Swimlane
This is what you call creating a big impression in a small space.
Swimlane, based in Denver, is an automated security operations platform that enables organizations to automate their response to cybersecurity threats.
As you can see in the photo, we created an exhibit that contained:
- Clear, concise messaging about the company’s offering.
- Striking colors with contrasting elements (the LANE on the LED screen changed color to attract attention and create intrigue).
- LED strip lights used to create an ambient blue glow throughout.
- Multiple kiosks to act as touchpoints for meaningful conversations.
A bold vision for security automation, this exhibit gave visitors something real to buy into and remember.
2. Bridor
Feast your eyes on this. (Pun intended, sorry not sorry.)
Bridor, based in Brittany, France, is the leading manufacturer of frozen bakery, Viennese pastry, and patisserie products for business-to-business professionals.
We helped Bridor ‘cook up’ a storm with this exhibit, which bridged tradition and innovation.
Featuring a series of on-brand designs, this exhibit also incorporated practical, functional machinery such as ovens and refrigerators.
If you want to set the stage for product samples, demos, and memorable moments, an exhibit like this will do just that.
It was a space designed to serve up quality, craft, and connection—bite by bite.
3. Cloudflare
This exhibit is very much a nod to the present and future.
Cloudflare, based in San Francisco, provides content delivery network and Domain Name System (DNS) services. These services empower organizations to make their employees, applications, and networks faster and more secure for years to come.
We decided to build Cloudflare’s exhibit using organic wood materials. These materials are recyclable, sustainable, and in keeping with Cloudflare’s forward-thinking approach.
The illuminated sign was designed to attract instant attention, and the individual seats allowed for one-to-one interactions while also signalling to attendees that there would be presentations where they could learn something valuable.
We’re proud to partner with brands like Cloudflare, which is at the forefront of what's new and next.
4. Colmet
Colmet was a ‘cut above’ its competitors with this high-tech exhibit we created for the company.
Based in Garland, Texas, Colmet is America's most reliable manufacturer of steel lawn edging, landscape, and retail products.
You might think that turning these products into something both high-tech and visually captivating would be impossible—but you’d be wrong.
We went with a 20 ft x 70 ft display that incorporated metal edging, a hanging sign, and dark green strips that resembled giant, oversized versions of their lawn edging.
The display includes kiosks with different color samples, a steel edging motif, planter boxes, steel yard signs, and so forth. Every significant detail we could pull out, we did with this display.
This was a really nice exhibit that got Colmet’s message across and captured the true essence of its offering.
5. NewTechWood
NewTechWood was pulling up trees thanks to this exhibit from The Trade Group. (Ok, no more puns from here on out.)
Headquartered in South Africa with offices around the world, NewTechWood is a pioneer in the development and manufacturing of outdoor composite wood decking, wall cladding, fencing, railing, DIY quick deck, and garden furnishings.
For this project, we decided to use the product as the centerpiece of the exhibit, making the most of the ample display and demo space.
Another key point to note is that this was an outdoor exhibit. Some companies and event spaces naturally lend themselves to outdoor exhibits, and we’re adaptable enough to provide compelling assets for all manner of environments.
6. Konami
Many of you will be familiar with the name Konami.
For those who aren’t, it’s a Japanese international digital entertainment company and video game developer. It’s published video games for various consoles, with its most popular series including Metal Gear Solid, Pro Evolution Soccer, Silent Hill, DanceDanceRevolution, and Castlevania.
We teamed up with Konami to build hype around a game that was yet to be released by creating a thematic booth.
This booth drew on the game as the inspiration for the design. We recreated models of the characters, brought in a fog machine, and created plenty of photo opportunities. The line to get in was as long as your arm.
The event was hosted in Los Angeles, which is notorious for its logistical challenges and red tape. The city has strict building codes that apply to trade show booths, requiring that they be secured to prevent them from falling during an earthquake.
But we overcame these challenges by building a robust, engaging exhibit—and we can do the same for you.
Let's create an awesome exhibit for your next event
Since 1986, The Trade Group has helped businesses like yours stand out with immersive, cutting-edge exhibits that function as storytelling assets.
We will work with you to create an exhibit that aligns with your branding and business goals and brings in high-quality, relevant leads rather than just interested passersby.
As you know from reading this article, we can team up with you wherever you are in the world.
Interested in partnering with us? Contact us here or give us a call at (800) 343-2005.
