Creating
Effective Marketing Displays:
12 Budget-wise Tips
Whether you're doing a display to use at a volunteer recruitment
event, a community fair, a travel show or a conference, your
booth or presentation board needs to create an "environment"
that magnetizes and draws the attention of your audience -- one
person at a time. It must be dynamic enough to catch the eyes
of a sea of attendees, and compelling enough to hold each passerby's
attention long enough to get your message across. And it has
to accomplish all that in one small booth space or on top of
a six-foot table.
That's a tall order for any display, but especially for one
put together on a shoestring budget. There's no need to settle
for a homemade look, however. By using the tips below, you can
create a professional-looking, eye-catching display that will
get noticed and set you apart from the crowd.
1. Determine
the real message you want your display to convey.
Instead of trying to "sell" all of your museum's programs
in the 30 or 60 seconds that you'll have each passerby's attention,
focus on conveying one particular message. And remember that
this message will vary from presentation to presentation, depending
on your audience.
2. Decide what you'll use for a backdrop.
Brochures, business cards and
a few photos strewn across a tabletop aren't enough to make an
effective display. You need a backdrop that will give your presentation
height and presence and provide you with extra space to convey
your message.
If you seldom do presentations, you
can probably get away with using a cardboard three-panel display
unit from a craft or office supply store -- the kind kids in
school use to display their projects. Buy the sturdiest one you
can find and be sure to choose a color that looks professional.
If you're really ambitious, you might even "upholster"
it by gluing on a layer of batting and covering the whole thing
in fabric.
If you do more than one or two presentations
a year, though, you'll save time and money by purchasing a professionally-built
display unit that can be used over and over again. Look for one
that's lightweight, versatile, easy to carry and quick to set
up. When you're not using it for carry-to events, use it for
promotional displays in your lobby or visitor center. The portable
units we manufacture at Northwest, for example, can be folded
into several different configurations and even stacked to make
a floor display.
3. Sketch out what you want your
finished display to look like. A little advance planning
will save you money in the long run. Sketching out your design
makes it easier to decide how many photos you need and what sizes
they should be -- saving you the cost of ordering more prints
than necessary. And keep in mind that several large photos will
have more visual impact than lots of smaller ones.
When planning how much text to use in your display, remember
that less is better than more. You'll only have most viewers'
attention for a few seconds. If there's a lot of text for them
to absorb, you risk having them pass it by completely.
4. Choose images that illustrate the most important points you
want to make. Ideally, the photos you choose will
serve as a compelling illustration of your message -- but also
be "generic" enough to use in other displays.
5. What if photo enlargements are
too expensive? If your budget won't stretch far enough
to cover the cost of professional photo enlargements, good color
copies are a cost-effective alternative. Have them made at your
printer or office supply store. If you need sizes larger than
they can provide, they'll be able to recommend a company that
can do them for you. And if there's no money for enlargements
of any kind, try grouping small snapshots together to create
a collage.
6. Once you have your enlargements,
consider having them laminated. If you intend to reuse
your photos, they'll have more longevity if they're laminated.
I recommend that only a non-glare, matte laminate be used. Otherwise,
in many situations lights will bounce off the face of the photos,
making them nearly impossible to view from certain angles.
If you already have glossy photos on hand that are mounted
to backer boards or can't be laminated for other reasons, you
can spray them with a matte finish photo spray. It's usually
available in art or photo shops and requires little expertise
to apply... just a clean area with protection from possible overspray.
7. Mount each photo to its own "backer."
Attaching photos to a backing material prevents the edges from
curling, assures a professional look and allows them to lay flat
on your display panels.
Many people use posterboard or foamcore for backing because
both materials are lightweight, inexpensive, readily available
and easy to trim. The down side, however, is that photos mounted
this way don't hold up well for very long. You'll soon be discouraged
to see your work deteriorating, getting dog-eared and bent from
handling, and looking less than impressive.
A much better choice is a backer made with a polyurethane
foam core. There are several different brands of this material
on the market including Gatorfoam and Kapa. It can be obtained
from plastics companies, art stores and similar outlets in most
larger communities. You may also be able to purchase leftover
pieces, called "fall-off," directly from sign, display
or exhibit companies. They often generate fall-off in quantities
sufficient to accomplish your graphics tasks. Rather than throw
it away, they may be happy to donate it or sell it to you at
a deep discount.
Once you have the backing material you need, use a fixed-blade
utility knife to cut it into pieces slightly larger than each
photo. To adhere the photos, I recommend using a 3M product called
77 Spray. It's available at most art, hardware and super stores.
As with any product, follow the directions on the label. If you've
never mounted photos before and you're nervous about making a
mistake, experiment first with a few scrap photos to get the
hang of it. It's always a good idea, by the way, to spray both
the board and the back of the photo. Coating only one or the
other often isn't enough to ensure good adhesion.
Next, trim your mounted photos to the desired size. Any rough
edges can be smoothed out with a light sanding. And if the edges
of your backer boards are white, you'll want to paint them black
for a more professional, dimensional look. Do this with flat
black latex paint applied with a small natural bristle brush.
Don't use markers or paint pens! They can penetrate the
backing material, causing the edges to look pock-marked and unsightly.
8. Give your display added dimension
with "floating" graphics. Images that appear
to "hover" off the panels of your backdrop will often
attract more attention than those that are flush mounted. To
achieve this floating effect, paint some one-inch squares of
plywood flat black, staple Velcro onto the blocks and attach
them to the back of your photos. For an even more interesting
3-D appearance, use several different thicknesses of block. This
will make it possible to overlap the photos slightly at different
points.
Another visual enhancement you might want to try is the "jig
saw effect." After gluing a large photo to a backer, cut
it into sections resembling
big pieces of a jig saw puzzle. When attaching the pieces to
your display panels, leave an empty space of about half an inch
between each one. This can be a great attention grabber when
done with the right photo and the
right message... "Bringing our community together,"
for example.
9. What to do about text and captions?
As mentioned above, minimizing the amount of text
on your display improves readability. And most booth visitors
will only read a limited amount of information anyway. Those
who do want to read it all will be blocking others' view of your
table and slowing down the flow of traffic in the process. Instead
of trying to cram lots of words onto your display, put all that
extra text onto a flyer that visitors can pick up and take with
them -- making sure, of course, to include your institution's
address, phone number, Web address and any other important information.
Have a sign company produce your text panels or save money
by doing them yourself on your computer. Use a sans-serif font
in a point size large enough to be read from a few feet away,
then print everything out and mount it to backer boards just
as you did your photos.
You'll also need a sign with your museum name and logo as
a header for your display. A sign of this type will come in handy
for many different purposes, so it's well worth having it done
professionally by a local "fast signs" company. The
finished product will look just as good as regular silk screening
and will cost a lot less. Since you need it to be durable yet
lightweight, have it done on Sintra or a similar plastic rather
than on Plexiglass.
10. Don't use push pins! Nothing makes a display look more homemade than
photos stuck onto panels with push pins or tape. Instead, use
adhesive-backed Velcro or a similar hook-and-loop type fastener
to mount your graphics. Apply small pieces to the back
corners and experiment with placement on your display until you
get the look you want. (If you're using a professionally-built
display unit, you only need to use the "hook" side
of the fastener. The fabric covering on the panels will act as
the "loop.")
11. Take your display beyond the
ordinary by adding a few objects. Once the photos
and text are affixed to your panels, rounding out your display
with a few eye-catching objects will add the dimension and visual
interest most static presentations lack. One or two lightweight
reproductions of items from your collections, attached to the
panels with Velcro, would be a great choice.
And don't overlook the display opportunities available on
the tabletop itself. By placing a couple of small empty boxes
of different heights upside down on the table (use the boxes
you brought your handouts in) and draping them with a piece of
fabric, you'll instantly create several more levels of display
space. Decorate those with a few good-size props and you'll catch
people's attention for sure. A railroad museum, for example,
might use a conductor's cap and a lantern. And instead of fabric-draped
boxes, a farm museum could use miniature bales of hay. Get creative.
A few clever props will draw passersby into your display and
help you get your message out.
12. If you absolutely don't have
the time or energy to create your own display, consider
asking a sign company, a graphic designer or the graphics department
of one of your corporate partners to take on the job. If they
provide all or part of your needs at a discount or for free,
a thank you on your display is an appropriate reciprocation.
It doesn't need to be large... just a small strip on the bottom
of one panel saying something like "Our thanks to ABC Sign
Company for their generous help with this display." And
once your finished display is in use, take a few pictures --
maybe even get an enlargement -- and send one to the folks who
helped you out. It's a small gesture that will truly be appreciated.
Copyright © 2002 Don Blake All
rights reserved.
Don Blake is owner of Northwest
Presentation, Ellensburg, Washington.
His company specializes in the manufacture of portable display
units for
nonprofits, educators, government and small business.
