Returning Shipments

OK, the show is over, and all of the freight has been packed and the bills turned in.

Now what?

Well, the stuff (freight, goods, graphics, exhibits, demo equipment) is going back somewhere (or multiple somewheres). What are you going to do with it when it gets there? And what if things are damaged?

Make a list, a plan, to make sure all of these things get done upon return. But also be prepared for the worst: do you have a detailed manifest of each skid, roll and crate including contents and weights?

What this will save you is being able to recover the cost of lost goods if you have the details. You also have ammo if your weight differs from what the trucker and the general contractor at the show have, which could save you lotsa bucks.

Be prepared on the out and the back and you won't lose things or money.

TTSG

Why worry about a booth?

Seen at the IWCE trade show in Las Vegas: the booth-less booth?

With all of this talk about saving money yet still have a strong marketing presence, here's an idea that seems to have resurfaced.

Motorola apparently just rolled in their 48-foot (or longer) tractor-trailer rig, dropped down the sides (and opened the doors) in their booth space at this show. this does the following:

• Saves on additional freight. After all, the truck is the freight.
• Saves on drayage. Well, I haven't seen the bill; wonder how GES charged for this?
• Minimizes labor. Hire a spotter and some guys to roll out carpet.
• While you do have the tremendous up-front cost to design and build out the trailer itself, this is just one more stop on its tour.

It's not entirely true that there wasn't a set of booth properties in the space. On the other side of this photo were some kiosks and banners. However, the bulk of the exhibit was this trailer.

TTSG