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Trade Show Promotional Items

Posted on by nicknydegger

When considering trade show promotional items to give away from your trade show stand, you will want to start out by considering the type of person who makes up your target market as this will greatly influence the type of giveaways you choose. You will also probably choose more than one type of promotional product, perhaps having one type for key customers or prospects, one type for new enquiries and a less expensive option for general visitors to your stand. You also need to work out the quantity of each type that you think you will be giving away at each show as this will determine the breakdown of your budget and the price point for each of the giveaways you choose.

Trade Show Promotional Items are available in a bewildering number of varieties so beginning the process by focusing on your target market will enable you to choose the most appropriate type. You may wish purchase all your promotional items from a single company. Doing this will ensure that you get the best possible prices by qualifying for volume discounts and a representative from such a company will call on you, bringing samples of items in the price range you are looking at and that are appropriate to your business and your target market. This is a much better way of evaluating products than by looking at them in a brochure.

There are independent professionals who work as consultants and who can help you to choose a selection of trade show giveaways and even develop products unique to your company that can be manufactured for you. For example you might want to develop a character that could become a sort of company mascot and which could be portrayed in a range of products, soft toys, mugs, key rings, pens, mouse mats and so on. Another popular ‘made for you’ item is a model of your delivery vehicle which, if manufactured by a well-known toy company could become a coveted collector’s item in its own right.

One of the best ways of deciding whether a product is a suitable giveaway and represents your company to the customer in a good way, is to ask yourself whether you would be pleased to receive it yourself – does the item have a higher perceived value than the price tag you would be paying for it or does it look like cheap ‘tat’? Would you use the item – would it be useful on your desk, in your office, in your car? Would it be a fun item that would be a talking point back at the office? Would people keep it or throw it away?

The fundamental thing about trade show promotional items is that they should carry your branding and keep your company name and message in front of the person to whom it has been given. However, you need to consider the size and weight of trade show promotional items too – after all, they are going to be given away to someone who is walking round a show, a long way from the car park – it is not sensible to choose large, bulky items that are heavy to carry as these will not be well received.

Edible trade show giveaways are often very popular and might make your stand popular on the day but this type of item has no longevity and will not keep your company name, branding and contact information in front of a customer for many months in the same way as an item like a mouse-mat (for example) that is a useful desk item.

You could also consider giving out your trade show promotional items on a ‘pre-qualified’ basis and use your pre-show marketing campaign to send out a ticket or voucher to get the recipient to come to your stand to collect a specific gift. Or send a mystery ticket that can be redeemed for a mystery item. This is a good way of getting top customers to visit you and perhaps to receive a high-value item you would not normally give away as a special ‘thank you’ for their business.

Finally, a great way of ensuring that you company gets extra publicity all round the show on the day is to get some really eye-catching carrier bags with your branding and even stand number prominently displayed produced for you. Hand these out to visitors to your stand who have already collected an armful of trade show promotional items but who have no bag to carry them in. These visitors will be so grateful that you have helped them out and will carry your bag and your message round the show for the rest of the day!

Experiential Marketing

Posted on by nicknydegger

Trade shows are a wonderful opportunity for businesses to put into practice all the best elements of experiential marketing. The phrase ‘people buy people first’ is one that resonates in the face to face marketing of trade shows where your stand staff have the opportunity to interact on a one-to-one basis with visitors in a way that is rare in this digital age where we all interact online and by email more often than in person.

I was reading an article online recently, Experiential Marketing By: Erik Hauser (http://www.experientialforum.com/content/view/112/48/) and I would like to begin with a quotation he provides from a Marketing Expert, David Wolfe

“The days of monologue marketing are over. Today’s customer wants to be involved in the marketing process by being engaged in a dialogue with you and your brand.”

As Erik Hauser writes in his article, what David Wolfe says, “forms the basis of the best in experiential marketing.”

Many large companies now have a specific department within their marketing team for experiential marketing, recognising that the ‘one size fits all’ of mass marketing has its place, but things have moved on and today’s customers want more.  It appears that it may be the experience of the brand itself that is the determining factor in the purchasing decision between one brand and another.

So, how does this translate into the relevance of trade shows as part of the marketing plan for today’s modern, forward-thinking companies? Firstly, I think that a trade show should be considered as somewhere in the middle of the experiential marketing process. Publicity of a company’s forthcoming trade show presence to both its customers and prospective customers should be a main plank of the customer relationship management process. The trade stand and staff should build on this and it should be further developed and built on during the post-show follow-up.

If you have a trade show stand at a show, statistics show that more than 75% of those who attend trade shows talk about the experience to other colleagues and associates in their market sector. Making their experience of your stand a very positive one for them will help to get your message across and promote your branding in a really good way.

Ways of making the experience of your stand one that people will talk about can take many forms. Great design and clear concise messages with strong graphic images combine to make a good start, as do eye-catching stand elements such as tension fabric structures, special show offers and the launch of new products and/or services. Using a demonstration or a professional magician, musician or similar to draw a crowd can also form a talking point after the show. Introducing an element of fun can be an inexpensive but hugely rewarding method of making sure your stand is the one people are talking about when they get back to the office. Providing trade show giveaways with high perceived value can also have their place – even something as simple as a teddy bear can do wonders for building the relationship with a customer.

However, the fundamental factor in experiential marketing at trade shows is going to be your stand staff.  Their training and enthusiasm – or lack of it, can make or break the success of your stand at the show. Many trade show organisers provide training seminars and advice for stand staff who may never have worked on a trade show stand before. Take advantage of this training before the show, run your own training courses and have stand staff who are enthusiastic about the company and its products and services and who can convey this enthusiasm to visitors – as in the field of customer relationship management, people really do ‘buy people first’.

Trade Show Flooring Types Available

Posted on by nicknydegger

Trade show flooring is the extra dimension that can set your stand apart from the competition. It can make the difference between a good stand and a brilliant one. Some designers start from the concept of flooring in the belief that visitors stepping onto your stand, onto a flooring with a particular feel to it, will not only encourage them to linger longer but will also increase sales from the stand. This is an interesting concept and whilst I am a little sceptical, there is no doubt that having walked round a trade show all day, arriving on a stand with easy-on-the-feet flooring such as recycled rubber or rubber backed roll-out flooring is a great relief!

Trade Show Carpet

Trade show flooring may be provided as standard throughout an exhibition. Areas may be colour-coded to designate different aspects of the show. Generally this is carpet designed for a single use and may be made of material that has been recycled and is designed to be recycled again. There are benefits available to you as an exhibitor in that many organisers will sell advertising space on the floor. This could take the form of a printed piece of carpet set in, or printed vinyl affixed to the surface on main aisles and walkways, encouraging attendees to visit your stand.

On your stand itself, carpet is available in many weights, styles and thicknesses with backing padding to create an even more luxurious feel. Custom dyed carpets can match the pantone references of your logo or branding exactly for a completely cohesive feel as well as having logo or message inlays to further reinforce your branding. An alternative to inlays in carpet for branding purposes is to have the whole carpet digitally printed – the only limit to what can be achieved with this process is your own (or your designer’s) imagination! If you are choosing a carpet for re-use on your stand, it is worth checking the specifications of the carpet. You need to be sure of three things, ease of cleaning, resistance to pilling or shedding of fibers and most importantly that the backing has heavier latex glue than normal contract carpet so that it does not fall apart on multiple use. Checking all these things will ensure that your carpet is as cost-effective as possible.

Raised Flooring

Raised flooring is often seen at trade shows such as motor shows and there is no doubt that it looks extremely effective and adds to the feeling for the visitor that they are stepping out of the main exhibition and into a separate area when they enter your stand. A big drawback with this type of trade show flooring for smaller companies is that it is not only expensive to purchase, but is also often heavy and consequently expensive to transport between shows. It also raises trade show labor costs as it can take a long time to install and take apart after the show and can be quite difficult to get right.

A new alternative to this type of raised flooring comes in the form of lightweight flooring that it not only extremely robust and portable but is also 100% recyclable and fits together so simply, just like the pieces of a giant jigsaw puzzle. It is great for outdoor trade shows as it is completely weatherproof, if laid on grass it will protect the grass from wear and it can also be made with drainage holes to let rainwater soak through. It is designed to cope with temperature variations without becoming uneven or buckling and can be coloured or printed to your requirements.

Astroturf or Artificial Grass

This is a great trade show flooring option, although possibly more suited to outdoor trade shows it is very popular at gardening shows and sports/recreation/hobbies shows. It is really effective and extremely realistic as well as being reusable.

Rollable Flooring

Rollable Flooring or Roll-out flooring as it is sometimes called, is suitable for use indoors or outdoors. This type of flooring has many advantages when used as indoor trade show flooring for example, a padded back can be laid under the floor for comfort, the flooring takes very little time to lay and often a small stand can be covered by just one piece with no need for any joins and can be done in just a few minutes. Rollable flooring is very easy to ship too as it can be rolled up inside a hard storage case for transport. This type of flooring is very resilient, non-slip and easy to clean.

The best thing about this type of flooring though is the amazing digitally printed graphic images that are possible and can create some really stunning effects, complementing the design of the rest of your stand. This type of printing is UV resistant and so is also suitable for outdoor use without fading.

Green Trade Show Flooring

For stands that need to be environmentally friendly, the roll out type of trade show flooring mentioned above is also available made from bamboo which looks stunning when laid and projects a very ‘up-market’ image. It is also very safe for your visitors as it has a natural felt backing with rubber non-slip dots attached to ensure that your floor stays firmly in place.

Recycled rubber tire flooring is also very popular and can contain over 90% of recycled tires. This type of flooring is not only good environmentally it is also extremely good to walk on and very beneficial for staff who are standing all day. It is available in a wide variety of colours and effects and either as roll out flooring or interlocking squares.

Recycled Carpet as mentioned earlier is another option for green trade show flooring as is cork flooring made from a renewable source, the bark of cork oak trees.

Anti-Fatigue Mats

Finally, having chosen the right trade show flooring option for your stand, spare a thought for your stand staff and their poor aching feet and backs! Anti-fatigue mats are available and can be purchased in colours and styles to unobtrusively blend with your main flooring choice. These are absolutely brilliant and pay dividends when your stand staff are still on top form and just as ready to engage with prospective customers at the end of the day as they were at the beginning.

The Benefits of Turnkey Trade Show Services

Posted on by admin

The chances are, that having started on trade show exhibiting as part of your marketing plan, if you are managing everything in-house, you are finding that the logistics of the whole process is turning into a major headache for you. It will undoubtedly tie-up time that could more profitably spent on other matters, those more closely aligned to your main job role. You may never have heard of Turnkey Trade Show Services but in this article I hope to introduce you to the benefits of using such a service for managing the logistics of your trade show requirements.

Sometimes, with trade show exhibiting, the pressures on man-power and the problems that can arise in organising everything for your trade show presence can seem to outweigh the benefits for your company of taking a stand at trade shows around the country. At this point, unless you call in a company specialising in turnkey trade show services, things can go one of two ways. Either you will give up trade show exhibiting altogether as not worth the hassle, or you will take on a new staff (with all the costs involved), to manage the whole process for you.

A turnkey trade show services management company offer a much better alternative for everyone concerned. Just imagine for a moment, how much more attractive exhibiting at trade shows x, y and z in quick succession at different locations around the country would appear to you and all your staff if all the minutiae of the organisation of the process were already taken care of for you.

Talking with a company like this and finding out how they could tailor a solution that is designed specifically for your company will cost you nothing and the cost of the service will almost certainly turn out to be far less than you expected when you measure it against the costs and hassles involved in managing everything yourself.

First of all, imagine that you could hand over the design process of your new stand to a turnkey trade show services company that could deal with the whole thing from start to finish, liaising with you throughout but taking away all the problems. Then, imagine that your trade show stand was stored by this company, protected in a climate-controlled warehousing facility to ensure that everything remains in good shape, checked after each use for damage and any repairs necessary agreed with you and carried out before the next show.

This company would provide you with complete trade show coordination services. Your trade show stand would be shipped to the show, and fully assembled and installed and all trade show labor management issues – ensuring that everything is completed on time and on budget, would be dealt with for you.  After the show, your stand would be carefully dismantled and packed and shipped back for storage – or straight onto the next show if that is what is required. This would leave you and your staff free to concentrate on doing what you do best, promoting your company products and services and gaining new business from the show as all you would need to do is tell your turnkey services company which show you want to go to, where it is being held and when.

Sound great doesn’t it? Even better, the range of turnkey trade show services offered can be as exhaustive as you wish, it can include such basic things as arranging a daily clean of your trade show stand and making sure the furniture and fittings are arranged as agreed. Or they can deal with trickier things like making sure the internet connection on your stand works properly, that the electricity supply is ok and that there are sufficient sockets for all your lighting and other requirements. They can even deal with ensuring refreshment supplies to your stand staff or arranging fresh flowers for your stand each day.

Turnkey trade show services do just what they say, they ‘turn the key’ for you, unlocking doors and sorting out problems that you would otherwise have to deal with yourself or delegate to your staff. Using the services of a company like this makes the whole trade show experience so much more enjoyable for all the staff concerned and consequently, because everyone is free to do what they are paid to do – gain new business, build existing customer relationships and promote your products and services, the increased profitability of your trade show exhibiting will soon be apparent on the order books once you start using Turnkey services – which will turn out to be a great investment for everyone concerned.

Why Choose Custom Exhibits?

Posted on by nicknydegger

Choosing Custom Exhibits rather than an ‘off the peg’ design for your trade show stand can highlight the difference between your company and the competition for visitors to the show. Choosing a custom designed exhibit will enable you to create a trade show display that is fundamentally a unique environment. If it is done well, you will create exactly the right impression for your visitors, conveying your branding and message in a beautifully designed space, far more eloquently than any other form of marketing materials.

The difference with custom exhibits comes in the design process which is all about you, the customer. The supplier you choose will work with you to bring about the visualisation of a design that perfectly encapsulates your company branding and message, your goals and objectives. The designers will endeavour to find out as much as possible about your company and your target market to help in the process of creating a stand that perfectly matches your expectations.

Initially, a designer will show you some examples and make recommendations that will help you to choose the style of design that is right for your company – this might be an island stand, a peninsula stand or an inline stand – or a completely individual shape. As an illustration, a high tech company might choose a modern, almost futuristic design of island display (http://www.tradeshowdisplaysinc.com/custom-exhibits/dm-0146-island) or (http://www.tradeshowdisplaysinc.com/custom-exhibits/hexagram-island) – on the other hand, for a company that has a target market of young professional women might prefer something ‘softer’ but still at the cutting edge of design (http://www.tradeshowdisplaysinc.com/custom-exhibits/modern-postcard-island).

This initial consultation will help your designer come up with ideas and after this, a custom exhibits designer will work with you to create the basic framework and structure of the stand, to decide on the graphics and how they should be placed and also on the positioning of key focal points. Of course this also allows for quite a lot of flexibility because although you are choosing a custom exhibit stand, it does not have to look exactly the same each time you use it.

Clever use of graphics, interchanging according to the season, new products, new services and so on will give the stand a fresh new look every time. Changing the lighting at different shows so that a different element of your stand is highlighted will have a similar effect, giving you the opportunity to draw your visitors’ attention where you want it to be focused. ‘Stand-dressing’ elements such as plants and decorative items all help towards the goal of producing a visually striking but cohesive whole, promoting your branding and your message whilst allowing you the flexibility to update this by replacing and exchanging inexpensive elements of your stand – making the whole thing much more cost effective.

Additionally, details such as literature display, counter positioning – should you wish to have products demonstrated on your stand or if you are employing someone specifically for drawing attention to your stand (for example, a magician or musician to do performances at set times throughout the trade show day) will also be agreed with you.

Of course, the design process for custom exhibits does not finish with how the stand will finally look – it also encompasses how the component parts are put together and how they will be broken down again for storage. The aim is to make everything as cost-efficient as possible, not only from the storage and transportation point of view, but also to keep assembly and disassembly costs to a minimum where trade show labor needs to be involved.

Protect Your Investment With Trade Show Cases

Posted on by nicknydegger

If you are investing in a new trade show stand, trade show cases are a vital element to consider as they will protect your investment from becoming damaged, either during transportation to and from a trade show or whilst in storage, whether this is at your own business premises or at a warehousing facility.

Trade show cases are available in many different types and styles but all are designed to provide protection for the contents. For your pop up display stands, wheeled trolley cases are available and are often included in the price. They may also be offered as an optional extra when you purchase your stand and in any event are available to purchase separately online.

The beauty of using one trade show cases for your pop up displays is that your entire stand, including graphic panels and light fittings will all be stored in the same case. This makes checking that you have everything you need before the show a very simple operation and makes booking a courier an easy process too as these cases are almost universally accepted by delivery services such as UPS and you can be confident that your exhibit will arrive at the destination in good shape, thanks to the protection offered by the case.

These trade show cases have another benefit too as many of them can be converted, quickly and easily into a trade show counter to provide a workspace for stand staff or for demonstrating products. A graphic can be attached to the outside of the case and a counter-top affixed quickly and easily, often with Velcro fastening. This has another cost benefit too as it not only avoids the necessity of shipping a suitable table or counter for the purpose but it avoids having to rent trade show stand furniture separately.

Trade show cases are usually constructed from molded plastic and although lightweight, they are very tough and can carry considerable weight without a problem. Internal foam linings protect delicate items such as lighting fixtures and accessories. Once everything is safely stowed inside, you will be as confident as you can be that the stand will arrive at the other end in the same condition in which it was packed, saving you last minute headaches, trying to repair or replace damaged items right before the show.

A great example of this type of case is the VBURST Hard Case to Counter Conversion. (http://www.tradeshowdisplaysinc.com/cases/vbursthardcasetocounterconversion-trade-show-displays-fabricpopup) This hard shipping case will store a ten foot display stand complete with lights in one neat, robust, easy to transport and store package and foam pads are available for the interior to keep all the elements of your display safe and secure. The built-in wheels make it very easy for one person to bring the entire stand to the location of your stand space and makes for extremely fast set up and breakdown after the show as well as providing you with a counter to work from on your trade show stand. The price includes the graphic for the outside of the stand and a hard counter top.

Roller Banner Stands, X Banner Stands and Flag type banners normally come in a soft, nylon carry-bag but if you have more than one of these to transport, a drum-style ROTUNDA CASE (http://www.tradeshowdisplaysinc.com/cases/rotunda-cases) is an ideal solution. These hard cases not only protect your display but make transportation very easy as they can be checked in as luggage when travelling by air or they will be accepted for transportation by carrier if necessary. The 12” and 16” versions of these trade show cases come with wheels but there is also an easy-carry handle. This type of case is also a great way to keep all your banner stands and graphics in perfect condition whilst they are in storage between shows.

Trade show cases really do provide a great return on investment as not only do they protect the capital you have tied-up in your stand, they avoid as far as possible, the problems and potential consequential financial losses should you stand become damaged in transit and unusable at the trade show when it arrives. Cases are readily accepted by carriers and their lightweight construction helps to keep carriage costs down too.

Why You Should Hire A Professional For Trade Show Stand Graphic Design

Posted on by admin

If you are new to the world of trade show exhibiting you may, quite understandably, be rather nervous about the capital outlay and be looking to save money where you can. You may be thinking that you could take care of the trade show graphic design requirements for your new stand and save on the cost of a qualified designer. However, there are some areas where cutting corners can cost you money in the long run and where investing a little more ‘upfront’ will really pay dividends and provide an excellent return on investment. This absolutely holds true in the area of graphic design for your stand. In this post, I hope to persuade you of the benefits that will be gained by employing a designer experienced in working with companies such as yours to produce stunning graphics that will draw customers to your stand and make you money!

Trade show graphic design is very different to the design of normal marketing materials such as brochures, flyers and packaging. If you have an in-house design team, they will be able to co-ordinate the project because they will be familiar with your house style, branding and logos but all too often, small companies that try to use their own designer who is used to working on a small scale will end up with a stand that looks cluttered, has too much information and lacks impact. With trade show stand design, the two phrases ‘less is more’ and ‘you never get a second chance to make a first impression’ really do ring true.

A qualified designer will show you previous work on stands similar to the one you are thinking of and ask you about elements that appeal, what you like and what you don’t. You need never be ‘rail-roaded’ into accepting something you are not comfortable with but, if you are a sales or marketing person, that is where your skills lie and there is no point in trying to ‘re-invent the wheel’. Listen to the advice you are given, a good designer KNOWS what works on a trade show stand but even more importantly, he knows what does NOT and will save you making very costly mistakes, not just in terms of hard cash, but in terms of the potential damage to your company image and branding that can be done by having a stand where the design elements are not right.

In my experience, a good graphic designer will work with you, find out about your products, your services, what is new in your company, what you are most proud of, what your achievements are, who your target market are, what special offer you want to promote. They will take all this information and draw up some preliminary ideas for you. Once you have agreed on a design idea, they will work this into a cohesive design for the whole stand.

Good trade show graphic design may cost you a little more in the first instance, but any investment you make will be repaid many times over. You will have someone who will project manage the design, needing only the ‘rubber stamp’ of your approval. They will get the project done on time and to the agreed budget, saving you the hassle of the endless chasing up, proofing and approvals and any worries about the project costing more than anticipated.

Your finished trade show graphic design will be translated into a product which is a clean, clear, crisp, well-designed stand, accurately representing your company branding, image and products or services in a visual way. You will have graphics that can communicate your message to trade show attendees in those few seconds that are all you get when a passer-by could turn into a prospective customer and decide to approach your stand. Your graphics will help to build your brand image but most importantly, good design draws people onto your stand and gives your staff the opportunity to do their job and turn your investment into a profit by closing deals at the show.

Expand QuickScreen 3 Will Add An Extra Dimension To Your Stand

Posted on by nicknydegger

The Quickscreen 3 is a beautifully designed retractable banner stand, if you are bored with plain base cassettes which, whilst functional, add nothing visually to the impact of your stand, the Quickscreen 3 could have the answer for you.

It has a patented design and sleek base shape which makes it the only one of its kind in the marketplace at the moment, allowing you to choose a banner design that is truly exclusive to your company’s branding, image and logo colours. This is the extra, finishing touch that many marketers have been looking for in their banner stands.

The Quickscreen 3 has the portability and ease of assembly that is vital with retractable banner stands. Weighing less than 11 lbs in the nylon carry-bag in which it is supplied, the stand can be set up in less than half a minute without the need for any tools.

The feature which sets this stand apart from the competition is the very clever interchangeable graphic cassettes that make it a breeze to change your graphic display in seconds to suit the application you are using the stand for.  The silver-finish base comes with a choice end caps in five different colours plus transparent and chrome (choose from green, red, grey, blue or amber). To change your graphic, it is such a simple process, just turn the base of the stand upside down, unscrew the screws, take off the plastic end cap, slide out the graphics cassette from inside the base, exchange it for your new one and replace the plastic cap and ‘hey presto’, you have a new stand!

The QuickScreen 3 comes in two useful width sizes 85 cm (approx 33.5”) and 100 cm (approx 39.25”) with heights adjustable between 160 cm and 225 cm (63” and approx 88.5”) by means of a telescopic supporting pole at the rear of the stand. For table top displays the stand is also available in smaller sizes of 50 cm wide (approx 19.75”) and up to 180 cm (approx 70.75”) in height.

A useful accessory is the spotlight that can easily be affixed to the top of the stand and which comes in a protective plastic case which can be attached to the nylon carry bag of your stand to ensure that everything stays together in transit. In the USA, this spotlight comes with a dimmer switch to allow you to alter the amount of light thrown onto your graphic according to the ambient lighting in the location of your stand.

If you are looking for a retractable banner stand that will give you that little bit extra in terms of stylish design, colour co-ordination and ease of use, the QuickScreen 3 gives you all three – plus the versatility to replace your graphics cassette so easily that it becomes very cost-effective as there is no need to buy an additional stand when you want to change your message.

Expand M2 – An Innovation Using Racing-Yacht Inspired Technology

Posted on by admin

The Expand M2 is a top quality retractable banner stand. This type of stand is sometimes referred to as a roller banner stand, or roll up banner stand and work with a mechanism that rolls the banner or graphic panel safely away into the base cassette for storage and transit. This avoids the possibility of damage to the graphic when not in use.

The Expand M2 has taken the retractable banner mechanism to a new level, completely eliminating the spring-tension type of mechanism found on most other retractable stands. What the M2 has is what the manufacturers call a Modular Tension System which has been developed using inspiration from the technology employed on ocean-going racing yachts. What happens is, as the graphic panel is pulled up out of the base, tension is generated, once it is rolled back into the base, the tension is released. This makes assembling the stand a very simple operation and makes the Expand M2 unique in the marketplace at the moment.

As with all display stands from Expand, you can expect only the best of Swedish design and the reassurance of a lifetime warranty on the frame which, if you want to use the stand on a regular basis gives great peace of mind.

The Expand M2 is very quick to set up and can be fully assembled in around thirty seconds by one person with no need for any additional tools. The telescoping pole is opened out to its full length and the bottom end is located into the base cassette. The Media banner is then pulled out with a steady upward pull, using the rigid top profile of the banner. The height of the graphic can be adjusted to suit your requirements by means of the locking mechanism on the telescoping pole.

Another great feature of this stand is the ease with which you can change the graphics banner yourself. The Banner graphic or media roll is tightly wound inside the base cassette, to change the graphic, follow the simple instructions supplied with your stand, slot your new graphic media roll into the base and a new banner will be in place and ready to use in about one minute flat! This is very useful at shows where you may have a different show offer for each day as you can simply take additional banners with you and update your stand as required.

The stand graphic is 85 cm (approx 33.5” wide) and the height of the stand is adjustable between 160 cm (approx 63”) and 225 cm (approx 88.5”). The weight of the complete stand is just over7kg (approx 16 lbs) including the media roll graphic banner and the stand is supplied in a robust nylon shoulder carry bag. The stand frame is black with chrome end caps. An optional 50 watt spotlight is available for this stand which has a built-in dimmer switch for models supplied in the US. The manufacturers advise that the spotlight is not recommended if the stand is used at the full 88.5” height as this could cause the stand to lean forward.

The Expand M2 with its sleek and stylish design and the new technological innovation of the tensioning mechanism when coupled with the lifetime warranty on the frame makes this an ideal choice for anyone wanting a practical, portable and robust stand for regular use.

MediaScreen XL – Head and Shoulders Above The Competition!

Posted on by nicknydegger

As the name implies, the MediaScreen XL is extra large, a wider and taller retractable stand but the X in XL could well stand for the eXtra features that you get when you choose the MediaScreen. First of all this stand has a special magnetic connection device, located at the rear of the stand which enables two or three – or more, MediaScreens to be connected together forming a seamless graphic wall which is sure to attract the attention of your customers and prospective customers in whatever location you place them. This could be at a trade show or exhibition or just as easily at a product launch, point of sale, boardroom or foyer.

The possible applications of the MediaScreen XL are limited only by your imagination as you need absolutely no technical skills to assemble the stand – in fact, I had to have a little chuckle when I took a look at the assembly instruction sheet as although it tells you absolutely everything you need to know, it comprises four simple line drawings. The assembly of the stand is dealt with in the first three pictures, taking the banner out of the bag, putting the pole in position and fixing the graphic onto the pole. No tools whatsoever are needed for assembly.

There is only one difference between an ordinary roller banner stand and this one. Because of its height, to enable assembly without the need for a step ladder, once the stand has been removed from the nylon carrying case/bag in which it is supplied and the rear supporting pole has been put in place, you simply lay the stand down, or lean it towards you, pull the banner out of the base cassette, affix it to the top of the pole and lean it back into the vertical position. Of course, if you are very tall, you may well be able to reach the three metre height of the tallest version of this stand without needing to make this small concession either – and the fourth picture? This simply shows the reverse of two stands that have been clicked together with the patented magnetic connector. Each stand has two of these at either end of the rear top profile.

The beauty of the design of the MediaScreen XL is in its simplicity and its versatility. You could have a ten foot wide stand, three metres in height that you carry to the show in three small bags by simply connecting three of the 100 cm wide displays and having one section of the complete image printed onto each. The stand comes in two width sizes, 39 3/8” (100cm) and 47 1/4” (120 cm) and four heights, 78 3/4″ (200cm), 85 13/16″ (218 cm), 98 3/8″ (250 cm) and 118 1/8″ (300 cm).

A useful accessory is the 50w spotlight which is available in the USA with a dimmer switch to enable adjustment of the brightness of the light on your display.

The manufacturers recommend a polyester fabric for the graphic banner and supply a fabric with excellent curl-resistant properties that ensures the image will appear almost seamless when more than one stand is used for a display. There are other suitable fabrics, the only type not recommended, is laminated material as the thickness of any fabric used should be 12mm or less.

If you are looking for a lightweight, portable and robust stand which, with up to three metres of height will set your message head and shoulders above the rest wherever you choose to display it, you could not do better than the MediaScreen XL, either singly or in combination to make a complete graphic wall.