
By Jessica Barrett on in Branding, Design & Experience
Take stock when selecting stock art
If a picture says a thousand words, what does the same picture on three different trade show booth backwalls within two aisles say?
To me, it says no budget, no research, and worse, no creativity.
Throughout my career, I created content for and attended many, many trade shows. The booth collateral and signage always mentioned the product or service’s competitive differentiators—as do most companies’ materials. However, as the content boldly shared these differentiators, the images were often uninspiring and repetitive.
Before you settle on a stock image, short list a few and spend a few minutes researching your competitors’ websites and downloadable brochures, as well as those of organizations whose booths will be near yours.
Differentiating your imagery—on your booth walls or on your home page—doesn’t have to be expensive. And the time spent to avoid looking like everyone else in the category will be worth it.
In the healthcare space this is especially important, as it’s always the same young-looking-for-his-age man, active couple, intently listening doctor or busy pharmacist (the trope that sparked this post). But any service-oriented business can fall into the trap of showing people something they’ve seen a thousand times.
You have many options beyond a single, large stock image. With a little budget, time and imagination, you could work with an illustrator to create something unique, or develop fresh information designs, such as compelling flowcharts or graphics.
If you want to stick with stock art, use it differently. At a trade show, one quick, low cost option is to create a step-and-repeat image. You could loop multiple images on a large monitor. Or develop an interactive wall or banner—maybe you ask a question in large font and booth visitors answer with sticky notes. This not only looks fresh, but engages visitors and provides valuable audience feedback. The options are limitless.
Before you settle on a stock image, short list a few and spend a few minutes researching your competitors’ websites and downloadable brochures, as well as those of organizations whose booths will be near yours. If you see one of the images you’re considering, perhaps you should discard it. Of course, you never know what someone has in mind for their booth design, so once you’ve settled on an image, make it your own with a color overlay, unexpected cropping or some other graphic treatment.
Don’t let your prospects think of you as a “me too” brand. Stand out from the crowd and make sure your visuals are as differentiating as your product or service.
Exhibiting at trade shows costs a lot of money. Get the most bang for your buck—talk to FATFREE about how we can add that spark to your space or any of your marketing.