What Is a Trade Show? Definition and Guide
Trade exhibitions are one-time events that take place at variously spaced intervals and are intended to showcase newly released goods and services.
Why in Queue
An industry group gets together for a trade exhibition to showcase, demonstrate, and talk about their most recent goods and services. Large trade exhibits typically span several days and are held at convention facilities in larger cities. Local trade exhibitions give local businesses the chance to network with potential customers in venues like hotels or arenas.
Many trade exhibitions, sometimes called trade fairs or expositions, only allow industry members to attend because their main goal is to bring together members of the trade or industry.
One yearly event that restricts admission to experts in the publishing industry is Book Expo America, while another significant event, the Consumer Electronics Show, attempts to restrict attendance to professionals in the electronics and technology fields.
On the other hand, the public is welcome to visit SXSW (South by Southwest), which takes place in Austin, Texas, every year, as well as America's Largest RV Show, which is first available to industry members only before being open to the public for several days.
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What happens at trade shows
Trade shows often provide:
- Exhibit space
- Workshops or presentations
- Opportunities to interact with the media
- Evening networking events
- Private exhibitor events
- Awards presentations
By participating, exhibitors want to network with media and influencers, strengthen their ties with dealers and distributors, and establish connections with prospective new customers.
Trade show attendees come to learn about the newest items on the market, to take advantage of exhibitors' special "show prices," and to expand their knowledge of the sector.
What it costs to participate
Even if the price to participate in or exhibit at a trade show varies widely, common costs can reach the hundreds of dollars and include:
Exhibitors
- Booth space rental
- Design and production of a professional display space
- Shipping of booth and equipment
- Costs to unload booth and move onto show flow, called drayage
- Travel and accommodations for staff manning the booth
- Marketing materials specific to the event
- Samples or promotional items handed out
Attendees
On the other hand, attendees also incur expenditures, but they are much lower than those associated with exhibiting.
- Attendance fee
- Travel and accommodations for staff in attendance
For this reason, rather than putting up a booth of their own, smaller businesses frequently choose to just attend a show and network with the captive exhibitors.
Popular trade show venues
These ten top venues are among the biggest convention centers in the United States:
- McCormick Place - Chicago, IL
- Orange County Convention Center - Orlando, FL
- Las Vegas Convention Center – Las Vegas, NV
- Georgia World Congress Center – Atlanta, GA
- Sands Expo and Convention Center – Las Vegas, NV
- Kentucky Exposition Center – Louisville, KY
- New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center – New Orleans, LA
- Reliant Park – Houston, TX
- International Exposition Center – Cleveland, OH
- Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center – Dallas, TX
Attending a trade show should be deemed successful for a business if it leaves with a list of potential customers, orders, media mentions, or relationships.
