With more than 18 years in the trade show and event marketing industry, Advanced Exhibit Methods (AEM)has established itself as not only the company to help you get noticed by creating high-impact, attention getting environments, but also as an invaluable resource for all of your event marketing needs.

From Pop-Ups to 4000 square foot custom and custom modular exhibits, AEM has the knowledge and the ability to get you noticed in any size market. Our convenient Orange County location enables us to easily service trade shows in the bustling Anaheim, Los Angeles, Long Beach, and San Diego Convention Centers, as well as nationwide. Your events are sure to be successful with AEM as part of your team.

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Are You Prepared for the Months to Come?

Murphy's Law #17: If there is a chance for disaster, disaster will surely strike. Here's a quick checklist to help make sure your upcoming events go off without a hitch: 1. Plan Ahead. Which shows will you be attending? Which exhibit will you bring? Are you planning to rent or purchase a new exhibit for the occasion? You should be able to answer all of these questions six months before your event, especially if you plan to purchase a new exhibit. 2. Order Your Show Services. We're noticing a very troublesome trend with show management deadlines lately--they're all moving further away from the event. This means that you have to order your services even sooner than you planned: on average approximately six weeks from the start of the show. 3. Make sure your exhibit is in good repair. Whether you store your exhibit in house or with your exhibit supplier, make sure someone has checked out your properties lately to avoid nasty surprises. 4. Confirm. Confirm. Confirm. Check your paperwork. Is the freight ordered? Have the new graphics been made? Are all of your services ordered? Did you receive confirmation from show management or your exhibit house? Have you ordered your return freight? Does your rep or supervisor working the show have a copy of all of these items? Preparation is always the best defense against disaster. The more time you give yourself to get ready, the less chances there are to let Mr. Murphy interfere with your program. Please feel free to email questions or article suggestions to design@advancedexhibitmethods.com.

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The names and dates in the following stories have been changed to protect the innocent:

Are you spending unnecessary funds?
If you don't have a game plan laid out in the months before your event, you could be spending a lot more than you think. The ABC company was planning for their annual appearance at the Alphabet Soup convention in December. They were a little behind schedule, but they ordered their freight, reserved their booth, informed the exhibit house that stores their exhibit, and bought all their plane tickets in time for the show. The day before the show during installation, Janet Wice realized that they didn't bring their stuffed puppy giveaways. In a panic, Janet called the storage house where ABC stored their premiums and ad specialties and had them overnight the puppies to the show in time for opening day. Unfortunately, what Janet didn't anticipate was the Fed Ex charges and additional drayage fees that ABC would be charged for this small neglected detail.
Cost of the show: $2,750.00 Cost of the mishap: $375 (nearly 14% of the total costs).

Are you missing markets?
The Beesy Wax Company got what some what consider a pleasant surprise. They found out (totally by chance) that their wax was being used by dentists to create dental impressions of their patients. Not only was their product being used, it was actually the preferred product for this method among a large number of dentists--not just one or two. The unsettling news, however, was that this has been the case for more than 2 years. When a company plans for market research, it usually does just that--researches its market. But the problem with this practice is quite simple: how many markets and how much money are you missing out on? Unless we get a little creative with our research, we may never know.

Do you really know what you want?
This next story is so common that I can't even pick one company to tell you about. Communicate, communicate, communicate. This mistake is so easily avoided with a little correspondence inside your company, but you'd be amazed at how much money it can cost.
I can not stress enough how important it is for the trade show manager and her field rep to communicate. In the last month alone we have seen more than $3000 wasted among three different companies simply because the person ordering show services either didn't order enough (lit racks, lap tops, tables & chairs, etc.) or ordered too much. It may not seem like a big deal--until you get your services bill that is. Here's the thing though: hopefully your field reps know what works best for them at a show, so heed their input when ordering services and equipment for the shows that they will be working. The money you save will be well worth the few extra minutes well spent communicating.

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Rural Electric Utilities Underwriting Managers needed an exhibit that was going to make them stand out at this year's Tech Advantage show in New Orleans in March without breaking the bank. The solution: A simple 20x20 island rental exhibit that gets its character not from shape, but from texture. We used an aluminum frame system called the Matrix and used sintra infill panels with wood grain MBA. The effect was modern and pleasant. The wood grain finish gave a solid and steady impression while the aluminum details implied that this was a company that was up to date with modern trends and tactics. Colorful and powerful images finished off the effect by telling the story of Rural Electric. Shots of crane trucks in the pouring rain, large power stations, bulldozers, and board meetings showed the vast range of coverage that Rural Electric offers in a matter of seconds. The end result: a very successful show and a very happy client.

To see used 10' x 10' exhibits, click here 10 ft used

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