Jeff was very clear from the outset that what is done in Event logistics is not freight, “We are in the exhibitions industry, we travel the world and see good and bad practice from exhibitors.”

For the benefit of our readers we thought we’d tap into his 34 years of experience in the events industry and collate our Top 10 Tips from an Exhibitions Addict.

1) Set your objectives and make them achievable

Be clear on what it is that you want to achieve by exhibiting and make those objectives reasonable.

2) Choose the right exhibition

Do your research and make sure that the event you attend is the right one for your market. Organisers provide a lot of data to help you decide which event is right for you.

3) Book early

Location matters. You can have the best stand in the world but if it’s in a part of the hall that no one visits then you’ve wasted your money. So, book early to get a prime position.

4) Design your stand to meet your objectives

Speak to your stand designer and use their knowledge in helping you achieve your goals.

5) Have a system in place for separating the wheat from the chaff

Many people will pass your stand so it’s imperative that you have a system in place for separating those you need to talk to from those you don’t. Start the conversation with an open-ended question to ascertain whether they have potential business for you. If you think they have then pass them on to someone else on your stand to dig a little deeper and get their details and follow up afterwards, don’t do it then. Speaking to them for too long runs the risk of letting that major potential customer pass your stand.

6) Don’t do the “Win a free prize”

You know the one where if you drop your business card into the bowl you could win a free prize? People who do this think they end up with lots of sales leads, you don’t, you just end up with a lot of business cards (you’ve also got to be mindful of GDPR and PECR). Whilst we’re talking about sales leads/business cards, take them back in your hand luggage, don’t send them back with a courier as they could go missing and with them the whole reason for you attending the event.

7) Tell people you’re attending

Tell your current customers you’re attending and invite them to come along. Put it on your emails, letters, website, sales brochures and your social media channels, start doing this at least six months before.

8) Staff your stand sufficiently

Standing on an exhibition stand all day is tiring, have a rota to give people a break and make sure that there’s fresh water available, it really does stop aching feet.

9) On the stand on the day

Don’t; use your mobile, eat on the stand, sit down, turn your back on the aisles, have a messy stand or have tacky give-aways. It’s potentially cost you a lot of money to make a good impression with your stand, so you don’t want to undo that.

10) Finally choose the right logistics company

Using a specialised Exhibition Logistics Forwarder, particularly if the event is overseas, will pay dividends as they will have the specialist knowledge of getting goods through customs, into the hall and onto your stand. We would never recommend using a courier company for exhibitions as these companies are great on a standard commercial delivery, but exhibitions are much different.

What else would you add? Because we want to make sure it’s “All Event and Correct”.

If you would like to talk to us about our exhibition logistics service please contact showfreight@ltsglobalsolutions.com T: 0121 753 0080 option 1.

But like so many good things in business, trade shows come with a heavy load of logistics on the side. 

You have to design your stand, organise travel, promote attendance, and on top of it all; get your goods to the show safely AND on time. 

This is where the most significant cause of anxiety lies. If you can’t be sure your products will be there in mint condition…you don’t have a trade show. Full stop.

Perhaps you’ve been considering sending your products to a warehouse in advance. 

We’re here to tell you why that’s a good idea.

Read on for five reasons to include warehousing in your trade show shipping process!

What’s an Advance Warehouse?

In short, advance warehousing (at least where trade shows are concerned) is where you store your products with a third party warehouse.

These warehouses are well-renown for undertaking all the tasks involved with handling your goods.

As the day of the trade show approaches, you can rent space for your goods. Companies like LTS Global Solutions will handle your products, and make sure they’re organised, labelled, and loaded onto a truck ready to get to the show on time. 

1. No More Fretting: Know Your Goods are Going to be There

Organising shipment on the day of the trade show and handing them over to venue personnel is risky. These workers are already swamped with hundreds of other stands to prepare.

Send your stuff to a warehouse in advance! Cut out the stress. You’re bound to be more relaxed when you know your products are already close to the event site.

Not to mention, warehousing companies usually also organise and label your stuff ready for venue personnel — what’s not to love about that?!

2. Save Money!

You might not think it, but often advance shipment warehouses have lower rates than if you were to ship directly to the show. 

You also stay clear of additional handling or other rates the event might apply on the day if you handle shipping directly with them.

If you ship directly to the event venue, your driver will probably get stuck for hours waiting to unload at the marshalling yard.

3. What’s a Marshalling Yard?

A marshalling yard is just a waiting dock where freight trucks queue to have their wares unloaded when they ship directly to the event location.

Marshalling yards usually unload freight on a first-come-first-served basis, meaning your shipment will be in a long queue. 

As there are no specific appointment times, there is no way to anticipate just how long your driver will be waiting. And it’s not uncommon for shows to have hundreds or even a thousand trucks queuing to unloaded!

Not only is this frustrating for the driver, but it may cost you a great deal when you are charged for the added inconvenience – so it’s well worth it to skip the marshalling yard.

4. Easier Set-Up

With all the excitement, location checks and travel stress, the last thing you’ll want on the day of the trade show is to spend hours trying to get your stand set up.

Having your goods there and at the ready, means you can spend more time perfecting the location of your flyers and less time fretting with boxes.

Venues often handle the shipments from advance shipping warehouses before they accept the loads from the marshalling yard so that you could be saving yourself hours, sometimes the whole day.

5. Better Organisation

If you choose to include advance warehousing in your trade show shipping process, you will have a much larger window of time to prepare your budget. Research potential deals and find the best rates for delivery and storage!

Use this time to check reviews and familiarise yourself with the event procedures so you can make sure all your boxes are correctly labelled and prepared. 

The extra planning time can often save you lots of money. After all, you don’t have to hurry your shipment decisions. You can thoroughly research your choice, which means you can prioritise a warehouse with better customer support.

This also gives you more time to double-check your shipment and make sure you have everything you need. Realising last minute that you have forgotten your freshly printed flyers is never a good feeling!

6. More Delivery Options

The delivery window for an event venue is usually quite small and often falls on a weekend.

This often means having to shell out for extra costs on expedient weekend shipments.

With an advanced warehouse, it is as easy as calling up customer service and arranging a time in sometimes up to three-week-long delivery windows.

Make sure to only pay the basic shipping costs like FedEx Ground or ‘standard freight’.

Get the delivery out of the way at the best rate you can find, and feel safe in the knowledge that this important task is taken care of.

Ready to Organize Your Trade Show Shipping?

Are you convinced that warehousing might be a great addition to your trade show shipping process? We hope you are!

Save yourself the time, money and mental energy by using advanced warehouse shipping so you can enjoy the trade show to the fullest and spend as much time as possible selling and networking.

When it comes to planning, exhibition logistics are crucial to ensuring that your event goes off without a hitch. But if you take your time and prepare early, things will run smoothly and you should be able to create a memorable event. 

Follow these nine tips to ensure you host a successful event.  

1. Find and Check Your Venue 

Think about the size of your event and the number of attendees. Then locate a venue that fits everyone and is also within your budget. Consider other features such as car parking, Wi-Fi, mobile phone reception, or smaller meeting rooms. 

Consider the impression that you want to give attendees. Your venue should elevate your event. If you can’t find a traditional space within your budget that can do this, get creative about where you host your event. 

You could book an aeroplane hangar, greenhouse, or even a country estate. 

2. Stick to Your Plan 

You need to create a plan and stick to it from the start. Create a schedule of the essential dates leading up to the big day. List what needs to be accomplished by those dates. 

Share this schedule with everyone you work with. That way, everyone is on the same page about what is needed and expected. 

3. Have Weekly Team Meetings  

Your team meetings don’t necessarily have to be weekly. They need to happen as often as you need. The goal is to have effective communication. During these meetings, your team can check in on any issues they are having. 

This will prevent a small problem from turning into total chaos. It will also allow people to collaborate and lean on each other when required. 

4. Create a Running Order and Follow It

Think of the running order as the bible for the day. It will outline every detail of the event, so have someone assigned as responsible for it. Everyone working the event needs to have a copy. 

You should include a map of the event that is clearly marked with key areas. There should be a comprehensive contact list. There should also be a schedule of the day’s planned events. 

5. Embrace Technology 

You can embrace technology from the start of your event planning and make your job easier. Create a centralised online task hub where all team members can log in and see the status of tasks. 

You can update your working calendar, change deadlines, and update your entire team with just a few clicks. 

You can also use technology to communicate with and track your attendees. This will reduce your overhead and make you more productive. 

On the day of your event, you can embrace technology to make check-in faster and easier. You can also use it to make presentations more impressive. Maybe you need a quality video or sound system that can be heard throughout the venue. 

6. Have a Plan B, and a Plan C 

Everyone hopes that their initial plan works. But life is unpredictable, and it doesn’t always work out that way. You need to create a plan B and plan C. 

That way, if something gets off track, you already have everything in place to divert paths and continue smoothly. 

Knowing that you have backup plans will also reduce the level of stress you feel. There will be less pressure to ensure everything goes perfectly. 

While you are creating your alternate plans, you should create an escalation path. This will identify people dedicated to “putting out fires” or resolving any other issues that arise. 

Inform everyone of who they should turn to in the event of an escalated issue. 

7. Embrace the Challenges 

Have confidence in yourself and in your team. Embrace any challenges that come your way. Remember, you’ve communicated well and have created backup plans. 

Embrace any issues and use your problem-solving skills to overcome the challenges. You can then use the experience to learn and sharpen your event skills for the future. 

8. Think About the Details 

There are a million details when it comes to planning an event. It can help to create lists covering the different areas of the event. No detail is too small when it comes to planning. 

Think about the small things like what the name tags will look like. Or if there are enough toilet facilities available. Or consider if the acoustics in the room sound right. 

9. Do a Walk-Through on the Day 

On the day of your big event, you should arrive early during the final setup and walk through the event as if you were an attendee. For instance, is it clear where people should go to check-in? 

Is your signage easily seen and in the right locations? Do you have enough signage? If you are too familiar with the site, then have a volunteer do it and get their feedback. 

If there is going to be a presentation or events at a specific time, then review those with everyone involved. 

Master Your Exhibition Logistics

By using these nine tips, you can master event logistics. That way, you can put on any event from personal to professional whether they are small or large. 

Start early, create a plan, stick to that plan, and communicate it with everyone. Then focus in on the details and prepare a backup plan. 

Contact us today and be confident that your shipments will arrive in time for your event.