Technology is ever-changing, and choosing which options will deliver on your marketing objectives can be overwhelming when designing a trade show exhibit. Here are five ways technology can enhance your exhibit experience and help you achieve your marketing objectives.

1. Increase Engagement

Creating an interactive experience within your exhibit captures the attention of attendees and allows them to experience your brand. Augmented and virtual reality are great ways to achieve this. 

Augmented reality (AR) enhances a real-world environment using digital, visual and sound elements. Virtual reality (VR) is a three-dimensional digital simulation that users interact with in a seemingly realistic way. AR and VR have recently surged in popularity, and well-known brands are returning with more streamlined devices that combine real and virtual environments. 

Use AR and VR to support your brand message and enhance the attendee experience by leveraging physical points within your exhibit design. Create an immersive experience for your audience to interact with products without physically transporting them to the trade show floor. These activations can easily be repurposed and updated as your brand messaging and marketing objectives evolve.

2. Brand Storytelling

Technology adds a level of content and storytelling for your brand. By presenting content in fun and engaging ways, digital activations allow attendees to explore and choose their own adventure.  

Touchscreens are an excellent tool for brand storytelling. While this technology is not a new concept, the approach has changed, with animation and motion graphics taking touchscreens to new heights. Use touchscreens to invite your audience into the story and explore it at their own pace. Remember that attendees walking the trade show floor are constantly faced with distractions, so keep your messaging simple and entertaining. 

Curate your brand’s core message within your exhibit. Ask yourself what goal you want to achieve in your exhibit and apply that to the touchscreen experience. Is it creating brand awareness? Is it launching a new product? Create a strategy for your story that translates into technology.  

3. Immersive Experience

Using motion graphics and design animations keeps your audience interested in your content and curious about your brand. The more content you create, the more time attendees spend interacting with your brand. 

Hand-tracking cameras and screens are my favorite technology trend and an excellent tool for creating a brand experience. Positioned near or on an LED screen, tracking cameras detect and track your hand movements, providing the same experience as a touchscreen without touching it. 

This is a simple and cost-effective way to layer content that attendees can experience in their own way. Collaborate with your creative and design teams to use the same elements in your exhibit as your touchless screen so the attendee feels part of the same story with or without screens.  

4. Data and Analytics

One of the primary benefits of digital activations is collecting data and analytics. This information is invaluable to planning your exhibit marketing strategy, measuring ROI and improving your experience. 

Beacons and RFID technology are great tools to gather the data needed to understand your audience and attendee journey. This can be achieved with in-booth devices such as motion-tracking cameras and wearables. Understand the laws and regulations in the region you’re exhibiting and your company’s privacy policy to ensure you can legally collect this information while at the trade show.  

One specific technology that I find helpful is a heat map, which is placed under your exhibit and connected to the system’s database to track steps in real time and show where attendees spend time in your exhibit. No additional device is needed as you are simply tracking steps. You can review the data daily and modify your exhibit for the next day at the show.

5. Product Showcasing

Digital product showcasing is an easy way to tell the story of a product virtually, using specs, graphics and demos. Utilizing technology reduces the space needed in your exhibit by including multiple products in one digital display. 

Transparent LED screens are great for product showcasing and seamlessly blend with your exhibit design. When it’s not in use, it merges nicely with the surrounding environment. You can use design elements in your exhibit to include layers in the real world and enhance the story of your product. 

Digital activations capture your audience’s attention and connect them with your brand’s story. When choosing technology to include in your exhibit, it’s important to start with your goals and business objectives. Let your business objectives drive the technology to provide measurable results.