21st Century Tradeshow Tchotchkes

The summer tradeshow season is almost here, and marketers are already busy creating booth exhibits that best showcase their products and services–and lure potential clients and customers like a moth to a flame. But after you’ve grabbed the attention of a prospect and finished your show-and-tell, you want to leave her or him with a takeaway message that keeps your brand or company top of mind during and after the tradeshow.

The best way to do this is with a giveaway that literally goes everywhere the attendee goes, so that she or he becomes a walking billboard for your logo and message. Tradeshow giveaways fall into two categories: Practical and whimsical. Practical is often forgettable—pens, note pads, messenger bags. Whimsical is often gimmicky—for instance, thumb drives with very little storage capacity other than an exhibitor’s marketing materials or clunky water bottles.

Instead of the same old same old, here are several projects highresolution® printing created for clients that would make terrific tradeshow giveaways:

• Flip Flops: If your show is held in a resort location–say, Honolulu, Orlando or San Diego–flip flops imprinted with a logo and slogan are the perfect giveaway because the conference attendee will literally become a walking billboard for your logo and message. And recipients will associate the flip flops with the wonderful time they had engaging in fun downtime tours and activities arranged by the convention organizers, which means they will be kept as souvenirs rather than leaving them behind in the hotel room, and probably worn all summer long back home.

We made these flip-flops for New York-based marketing firm Athorn Clark and Partners. The dye sublimation process used to transfer the image onto the flip-flops guarantees vivid color and durability. The design won’t rub or scratch off, and should last an entire summer at the beach—and then some. Design proofs are available for review in 48 hours, and the flip-flops will be in hand 15 days after we get the green light.

• Look Books: Fashion designers and make-up artists have long used look books to illustrate how to put together and accessorize outfits, or to showcase a cosmetic line. Look books can also serve this purpose for a variety of products, including furniture, electronics, fancy foods and potables. A look book can pull various pieces of furniture and accessories into beautifully designed rooms, can conjure a high-tech lifestyle incorporating cutting-edge devices and offer ideas on how to prepare and serve exotic ingredients or high-end hooch.

Looks books can be produced in any size, shape and quantity—even as few as 10. highresolution produces look books from brochure style to booklet style, such as this bound book we did for TripTych Footwear.

We created several look books for Sofia Cashmere’s annual show in Milan. Sofia provided the images and rough layouts. Prepress production—sizing and retouching the images—took less than a week. With gloss lamination, die scoring and hand folding, production of this accordion style look book was completed in 10 days.

• Augmented Reality: AR can be used to bring look books, business cards and other printed material to life. For tradeshows that attract an international audience, AR can also provide dynamic subtitles in a variety of languages.

Fill-A-Need Foundation came to us with a 2D architectural blueprint of its project, The Hamlet, a campus for adults with autism that would help them transition from high school provide vocational job skills. For The Hamlet’s inaugural gala, we created a 3D rendering of a map of the campus to enable investors to better visualize the buildings and grounds, so as to immerse themselves in The Hamlet. Attendees took one of 25 iPads provided at the event and pointed it at our rendering. The complex popped up on the screen in 3D, and they could turn and zoom in on buildings and other features. AR capability added an informational layer that described the various buildings on campus.

With a bit of imagination, tradeshow swag can be both useful and unique, without breaking the bank.