5 Trade Show Booth Tips That Make Your Message Stick

Trade shows move fast with people scanning dozens of booths in minutes.

If your graphics don’t stick visually or mentally, they won’t stop anyone.

Here’s how to design booth materials that speak clearly and stay with your audience, using principles from the psychology of memorable ideas.

1. Keep Your Message Simple

Your booth should communicate one idea, fast.

Use a short headline that spells out what you do or what problem you solve. Instead of a broad statement like “Building Stronger Communities,” aim for something specific and action-focused. For example, “Free Health Clinics for Local Families” communicates a clear purpose and impact. A simple, direct message is more likely to catch attention and stick.

2. Add Something Unexpected

People are drawn to surprises.

Whether it’s a bold visual, an unusual material, or an unexpected phrase, novelty makes people pause.

Just one creative twist can be enough to start a conversation.

3. Use Proof People Can See

Trust builds faster with evidence.

Add a testimonial, client logo, or quantifiable stat to your display. Even a simple “Trusted by 300 manufacturers” banner builds credibility at a glance.

4. Tap Into Emotion

Design elements that connect emotionally, such as color, typography, or imagery, can help people feel something rather than just see something.

That emotional response often drives a second look or a deeper conversation.

5. Tell a Quick Story

A clear before-and-after visual, a bold benefit statement, or even the layout of your booth can guide people through a mini narrative.

Storytelling doesn't have to be long or complex. It just needs to help people quickly understand what you do and why it matters.

Make Sure They Remember You

Design for attention, but also for retention. What people remember after they leave your booth is what drives follow-up conversations. That starts with graphics that stick.

Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die

by Chip Heath & Dan Heath

In Made to Stick, Chip and Dan Heath reveal the anatomy of ideas that stick and explain ways to make ideas stickier, such as applying the human scale principle, using the Velcro Theory of Memory, and creating curiosity gaps.

Along the way, we discover that sticky messages of all kinds—from the infamous “kidney theft ring” hoax to a coach’s lessons on sportsmanship to a vision for a new product at Sony—draw their power from the same six traits.

Made to Stick will transform the way you communicate. It’s a fast-paced tour of success stories (and failures): the Nobel Prize-winning scientist who drank a glass of bacteria to prove a point about stomach ulcers, the charities who make use of the Mother Teresa Effect, the elementary-school teacher whose simulation actually prevented racial prejudice.

Provocative, eye-opening, and often surprisingly funny, Made to Stick shows us the vital principles of winning ideas—and tells us how we can apply these rules to making our own messages stick.