Putting Your Products to the Test

A smooth-running exhibit begins with a well-prepared booth staff. How much do you know about your products and services?

Ask your booth staffers, and you’d probably get a very confident response. After all, they work with these products every single day. There’s not a feature they don’t know, nor a design element they can’t describe in their sleep.

Put them to the test. Try hitting them with these questions:

• Are your products produced in an environmentally sensitive fashion?
• Where are your products produced?
• What type of conditions do the workers encounter?
• Is this product made using renewable resources?
• What safeguards does your company have in place to ensure no child labor is used or sweatshop conditions exist?

Increasingly, these are the type of questions that consumers are asking retailers -- which means, in turn, that these are the types of questions you’re going to be asked. The trend is slowly but surely working its way into every show. No matter what industry you’re in, you need to be prepared.

Some exhibitors provide flyers or literature speaking directly to these concerns, while others prepare a list of talking points for their booth staffers to use. No matter what strategy you decide on, it is imperative to have all of your team on board and informed.

Trade Shows & Convention Centers

Trade shows, convention centers, and service providers have taken a shine to the green movement. Facilities that once emptied piles of trash in the nearest dumpster are now competing for the coveted Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED ratings, the standard for measuring and verifying environmental programs. Designers say the rush to green buildings is driven by cost concerns, customer demand and a desire for environmentally friendly facilities.

Participation in green programs can range from the simple to the complex. Many show organizers are providing exhibitor information on CDs and online, saving thousands of sheets of paper per year. Promotional brochures are being printed on recycled paper. Some convention centers are incorporating design features that allow more natural light and better ventilation. Others are adding programmable control systems for heating, ventilation, air conditioning and lighting to reduce use—an increasingly important goal for cities amid rising energy costs and this summer’s heat wave.

Recycling also is a big part of the green movement. It’s easy to implement and can have a major impact on the quality of life for local residents as well as visitors. “Recycling is one of the simplest things you can do to be conscious of ecology,” said Greg Smith, executive director of Anaheim’s Convention, Sports & Entertainment Division, which includes the Anaheim Convention Center.