A Trade Show Booth That Was Anything but Expected

XGS is a valued client and a unique logistics company. They excel at the shipping and distribution of oversized, hard-to-handle freight. They’re also the flooring industry’s preferred logistics partner. The company was participating in an upcoming trade show and was looking for an unexpected way to share their unique story with potential clients. Our creative team, Morgen Tanksley, senior art director, Daniel Jackson, designer illustrator, and Ian Lewis, graphic designer, went to work.

They began by looking at the advantages shippers had with XGS versus their competitors. Advantages such as their ability to stock and stage inventory. Protect shipments from damage. Not transferring those shipments to multiple warehouses and trucks. And XGS’s on-time deliveries versus the frustrating delays experienced with other shippers. As the team dug deeper, they asked themselves if there was an unexpected way to show that XGS understands the pain points their customers experience and creates custom solutions to help eliminate them.

That was the spark that led the team to the idea of comic book illustration. It was classic story telling, which highlighted the problems in candid dialogue or thought. Not only was it unique but it worked well with the company’s brand colors and brought a memorable and effective message to logistics and the flooring industry. It was an unusual way of introducing the endless frustration clients were experiencing with the perfect solutions to their problems.

The trade show booth panels were modular and free standing in style, making them interchangeable and adaptable for smaller shows. Comic book dialogue appeared on the front, highlighting the problem, and detailed XGS benefits could be found on the back of the panel. This layout saved our client time and money. The panels could also be arranged in different configurations, providing plenty of flexibility. In short, they were transportable, adjustable, and could serve multiple purposes.

The team also came up with some surprisingly popular giveaways. The first was a Rubik’s Cube, a well-known symbol of problem solving. The XGS logo appeared on the cube’s white tiles. This would serve as a novel reminder of XGS’s problem solving capabilities that potential clients could keep on their desk. The second was Bazooka bubble gum with its memorable cartoon wrappers and colors. This turned out to be a great conversation starter. And the third was a two-sided comic book handout that reinforced the XGS brand story and encouraged potential customers to visit their website.   

The trade show was a huge success. XGS received numerous compliments on the graphics and the design. They’ll also carry the idea forward to upcoming shows. Whether it’s a trade show booth, ad campaign, brand discovery, you name it, we’re here to help you with marketing solutions that get noticed and produce results. To find out more, get in touch with John Wagoner or Aaron Petticord, our account supervisors. They can be reached at (423) 634-0123.