VisitBritain was last year’s hottest stand. This year, it could be your turn!
When Svenska Expoförbundet (Swedish Association of Advertising Studios) selected the Stand of the Year at TUR 2009, the VisitBritain stand took first prize in the category for stands of over 100 square metres.
“I think we won because we had a clear message and an unorthodox stand design. We’ve worked very hard in recent years to change our stand concept,” says Leif Leganger, Marketing Manager, VisitBritain. VisitBritain decided on a big floor - all of 40 square metres, and five-metre high walls. The walls were adorned with a huge Union Jack emblazoned with the faces of a boy and a girl.
“The red of the Union Jack and the great lighting effect made the stand a real eye-catcher. The whole stand shone. You just couldn’t miss it,” says Johan Ekström, Managing Director, Ekström Reklam, who was the supplier and stand builder.
“We felt the images reflected the message: ‘Britain just got more attractive’. We also went in for a lighthearted, humorous touch - a Kiss Yourself to London competition on the days open to the public.” Even professionals found the stand special. There were lots of activities including a get-together on the first trade-only day with music by a DJ from London.
“The trade-only days are the most important for us. Our warm-up get-together prior to the TUR Party has become something of a tradition. It’s when we make contacts and build networks,” says Leif Leganger. And the bottom line was great. VisitBritain made contact with 240 people from the industry, which led to 169 people taking part in VisitBritain’s network meeting. A total of 364 Swedes participated in the stand competition, and all of 1,853 signed up for the newsletter.
For anyone who wants to their stand to be chosen Stand of the Year 2010, Johan Ekström has a few tips:
- Think about the lighting. Too light is better than too dark. Light attracts people.
- The message should be short and simple. No long texts.
- The stand should be open and welcoming to visitors. It should be easy to walk through it and make contact.