A Guide to Eco-Friendly Exhibiting

Exhibitions are a great place to connect with potential clients and customers, as well as getting your brand noticed with an eye-catching exhibition stand.

If you’re someone who’s passionate about saving the planet, why not give your business the edge and go green while exhibiting?. Whether you’re a first-time exhibitor or a regular, it’s never too late to turn your business green.

Unfortunately, these events can generate an extreme amount of waste, which is usually dumped at the end of the day. However, your business can bring about change with a few clever tactics to reduce your carbon footprint and take on an eco-friendly approach to your exhibitions.

Here are some of the best ways you can achieve eco-friendly exhibiting:

1. Hire exhibition stands

When it comes to sustainability, two of the most important features to take into consideration is to re-use and reduce the amount of waste you produce. If you’re planning on attending just a few events in 2020, it would be well worth hiring an exhibition stand, instead of purchasing one. This will only cut down on your expenses when you have a tight budget, but also means you don’t have to think about how to discard it once you’re finished. Rented exhibition stands can be re-designed and re-shaped from its previous use to suit you, while also cutting down on the amount of waste produced.

2.  Choose materials that can be recycled

If you’re planning on attending a large number of exhibitions this year and wish to purchase your exhibition stand, opt for a material that can be recycled such as cardboard or plastic sheeting. Aluminium frames are also another popular option, which can be fully recycled and, re-shaped to different sizes.

3. Flooring

The type of flooring you choose for your exhibition stand is often greatly overlooked, however, it’s usually one of the first aspects that potential customers notice. Wouldn’t it be even better if it was eco-friendly too?

Carpet tiles are hard-wearing and are very easy to clean. After use, they can also be recycled, which makes them an ideal green flooring solution. It’s not always the case that carpet will suit your exhibition. If so, make sure you choose a natural flooring option that can be recycled. However, flooring options such as laminate, illuminated flooring and flexible tires can also be hired from companies such as ourselves, which reduces both cost and waste.

4.  Use LED efficient lighting

If you own an exhibition venue or are looking to light up your exhibition stand, aim to use eco-friendly lighting where possible. What you may not realise is that LED lighting contains no toxic components or contributes to Co2 emissions. LED is 80% more efficient than traditional lighting and is also cheaper to run, so you’ll be slashing your energy bills almost in half. What’s more, LED bulbs last far longer than traditional bulbs – 50,000 more hours to be exact. They also come in a range of colours, which is sure to draw attention to your stand.

5.  Cut down on materials

One of the most obvious pointers on the list and perhaps one of the most important is that you should aim to cut back on materials where possible. With the growth of technology, there’s really no need to print off marketing materials, as all of your business details can be accessed online. QR codes, newsletters and digital posters and brochures still communicate your message to the potential customer, while cutting out the need for paper, ink, energy and of course, extra time. If you do have to print or give out physical handouts, always make sure to use recycled paper.

6. Giveaways

Giveaways are an important element of trade shows. With the vast amount of competition to contend with, sometimes the only hope of drawing in hundreds of visitors is to give away freebies. If you wish to make this part of your marketing strategy, ensure your gifts are eco-friendly and useful, or they’ll most likely be thrown onto the rubbish pile. Choose items such as organic cotton clothing, recyclable bags and even vegan snacks. If your items happen to be thrown into the bin by consumers, not only is it bad for the environment, but it doesn’t look great for your business either; especially if they’re branded with your company name,

7.  Market your mission

Make sure you keep your customers and followers informed on your mission of going green via social media. In the current day and age with the effects of global warming severely harming our planet, people are looking to businesses to make more of an effort to reduce their carbon footprint. According to studies, 93% of consumers have a more positive image of a company if they choose to go green, while 90% admitted they would choose to stay loyal to a green company over non-green competitors.

While at the exhibition, you could also make contact with bloggers and journalists to take a look at your eco-friendly exhibition and ask them to do a write-up for their publication. By gaining attention from the media, you have a high chance of boosting brand awareness and motivating other corporations to join in with your mission.