Of all the trade show display types, rental booths have gotten a bad rap. They’re talked about in hushed tones, like your cousin’s fiance who everyone knows about but doesn’t want to get caught hanging out with. “Oh yeah, Ron? I’ve heard of him… What have you heard?” But here’s the deal. Rental booths are not like Ron. Not even a little bit. 

They’re not secondhand or cheap or lame, and they certainly don’t damage property at family gatherings. So if you’re into efficient trade show planning (which we expect you are), it’s time to give them a shot. Here are three truths and a lie about renting a trade show booth, so you can sort fact from fiction. 

 

Truth #1: The ‘80s called; they want their trade show booths back 

When you rent trade show booth components, you want your final display to be top tier. You want it to look custom, professional and kickass. But we’ll admit it. Some trade show booth rentals are lackluster and leave a lot to be desired. They’re drab, and look like they had a rough go of it in the ‘80s and have never recovered. 

But while this is true for some providers, it’s a lie for others (like us, of course). This is why it’s critical you do your research into your trade show display provider. Ask for examples of trade show display types, and business cases for past clients who have rented booths from them. This will quickly tell you what kind of quality and designs you can expect. 

 

Truth #2: Rentals provide a great entry point into trade show display marketing

Is your company just dabbling in trade show marketing, or perhaps trying out some new shows you haven’t gone to before? This can be scary territory. You don’t want to commit to a full-fledged custom booth that you have to buy because you have no idea if it’ll work or if you even want to stay the course with trade show marketing. 

This is when booth rentals make so much sense. Not only will you avoid storing a gigantic booth somewhere at your office, but you can also avoid paying the big bucks before you know you’re going all-in.  And when you conduct your ROI analysis of trade show efforts, you’ll see better returns early since you’re not investing so much into the display upfront. 

 

Truth #3: You should test before you invest

The beauty of trade show booth rentals is that you can A/B test designs and options before you make the leap into a purchased trade show booth. Experiment with one of the trade show display types you’ve heard about, and then try a different one at the next show. 

Compare traffic, conversions, sales and other results to see which performed better. Ask your trade show team which design worked better for flow and function. It should become clear after a few shows which type of booth is going to best support your trade show strategy. Once you know for sure, you can invest in the right one, which you can then keep for your very own. 

 

Lie: Renting trade show booths is never a great long-term solution

Here’s one final thought for you… renting trade show booths can actually be a good long-term solution. But, it depends on how often you plan to use the display. If you do one big show per year, renting is probably best. You won’t have to worry about storage, and you won’t incur the same expense when you rent as you do when you buy. However, if you plan to use the same display (with maybe some updated graphics or different configurations) for three or more shows per year, purchasing is likely best. 

 

Where do you stand? If you’re curious about our trade show display types or how to rent trade show booth displays that are updated, effective and just plain good, give us a call.