What to do Instead of Panic
by Liz Lathan, CMP
Picture this: You’ve completed the setup of your booth on time. Early, in fact, and feeling good. You’re just waiting on the boxes that contain all of your merch to show up. Your booth is actually a merch store, making the jerseys, hats, and T-shirts vital to the experience.
An hour to show time. No merch. You check with the show team. “It’s on the truck. We just can’t get a hold of the driver.”
Thirty minutes to show time. No merch. “We know it’s on the truck. They said the driver left the warehouse an hour ago.”
Ten minutes to show time. No merch. “We’re not sure.”
Doors. No merch.
The crowd streams in. You have a beautiful, empty booth. What do you do?
This happened to me at a show last fall representing a professional women’s fastpitch softball team. We didn’t have a plan for it. But we did have a portable speaker and four professional players in the booth.
Rather than wallow in despair, we turned on some tunes, put the players in the empty area of the booth, and invited passersby to come meet the team. We turned on our crowd-gathering charm and created an atmosphere that felt inviting, fun, and crowded enough for no one to notice that the booth was empty of merch.
About two hours into the show, our merch showed up. We could have sold a lot more had it arrived on time, but we still made an impression, and our fans had a great experience.
The takeaway of this experience is: Things happen. It’s okay. Don’t panic.
When it comes to getting your things, put the general contracting team on highalert. Have someone reminding them every five minutes that you still don’t have your stuff. While this seems like overkill, they are busy and if they don’t hear from you, they will assume everything is fine. Be personable, not angry. They are much less likely to help you if you’re yelling at them.
Now for that empty booth. Standing around, looking stressed, and ignoring the crowd is not a good look for you or your company. Gather up your staff and stand tall! Look around to see what resources you can pull together to still have a presence while you wait for your materials to arrive.
Here are 10 ideas on what to do in an empty booth:
1. Got a trashcan in your booth? Run to the business center and grab some printer paper and some markers. Put the trash can at one end of the booth and the stack of paper on the other. Ask attendees to write their greatest challenge on one and try to throw it into the trash can! (Keep those challenges and use them as insights later!)
2. Got digital content? Print up a QR code at the business center and have it ready for people to access!
3. Got a portable speaker? Crank up the tunes and host a lip-syncing competition amongst your staff! Invite others to join!
4. Run to the back and grab some cardboard and markers. Write a pithy saying on the cardboard and hold it up! (“Booths are overrated! Our company is not!” “Will work for SQLs” “Free hugs!” )
5. Got a cocktail table and two stools but nothing else? Put it in the center of your empty space, grab a piece of cardboard and make a sign like Lucy from Peanuts that says “The [insert industry] doctor is in! Advice 5 cents!”
6. Make a quick trip to a local store and buy a pile of children’s books and some markers. Invite attendees to write words of encouragement in the front of the books and donate them to a local children’s hospital at the end of the event.
7. Got a curtain and a draped 6-foot table and nothing else? Run to the office supply store and buy paper, markers, and binder clips and invite attendees to write one thing that would make their job easier and hang them up on the curtain in the booth (keep these for insights!)
8. Make a sign that welcomes people to the booth, asks a thought provoking question, or is a statement that draws the eye.
9. Get out your smartphone, turn on the stopwatch, and invite 10 people into your booth for 90-second networking. In 90 seconds, they all have to meet each other and tell someone one thing that they hope to learn or find at the event.
10. Run to the nearest store and buy a bunch of rugs and throw pillows. Make a cozy floor living room and post a schedule of “Cushion Conversations” or “Rug Roundtables” or “Throw Pillow Think Tanks”!
See? All is not lost—even if your merch is. In fact, you might just find that your booth is even more successful than it ever would have been with all your stuff there!
Liz Lathan, CMP, runs a community for corporate event professionals.
This story originally appeared in the Q4 2024 issue of Exhibit City News, p. 26. For original layout, visit https://issuu.com/exhibitcitynews/docs/ecn_q4_2024/26.
