Marketing and event professionals know that when it comes to your annual event budget, shipping and material handling costs can be one of the biggest expenses of the year. Whether your company attends large trade shows across the country or only a few key events each year, optimizing your trade show plan can help reduce the cost of storage, shipping, and getting material to the trade show floor.
At EFW Tradeshow, our professional event logistics team has decades of experience supporting event exhibitors across the U.S. and Canada – both big and small. We understand the significant investment in time and resources that it takes to create an event-worthy exhibit booth and the materials to fill it. Storing and shipping those items safely from event to event throughout the year is an investment, too. But there are ways to reduce your trade show logistics expenses while ensuring your materials get to the right place at the right time, every time.
Here are five tips to help keep fees down when shipping trade show materials from coast to coast or just around the corner:
Tip 1 – Weigh Your Shipments and Understand the Importance of Scale Ticketing
Knowing how much your shipments weigh is important to understanding the costs associated with trade show shipping and drayage. Weights and piece descriptions are essential inclusions on a Bill of Lading (BOL) to minimize the potential for billing errors.
Tip 2 – Shipping to an Advanced Warehouse vs. Straight to the Show Floor
One way to reduce event shipping costs is to better understand the pros and cons of shipping materials to an advanced warehouse or directly to the show site. Each option offers different timelines and variables that can impact cost- so choosing the right one for your event is important.
Tip 3 – Optimize Your Multiple Event Shipping Plan
If you plan to exhibit at multiple events during the year, there is money to be saved by carefully planning your event shipping calendar. Returning event materials to your home base each time may not be the most cost-effective way to store materials during a busy event season.
Instead, research the storage options around your next event location or check the date at your next event’s advanced warehouse. There are options available that may be less expensive than your original shipping costs.
Tip 4 – Keep Drayage Fees in Check
Drayage fees are one of the biggest complaints from trade show participants and one of the biggest surprises for companies who don’t plan ahead.
While there is no getting around drayage or material handling fees when shipping to large events, there are ways to reduce these costs with advanced planning. Make sure you know the minimum weight charge for each shipment to the event, and work to reduce the number of packages or shipments arriving separately.
In addition, identify and track deadlines carefully to keep your costs in check.
Tip 5 – Protect Your Assets and Budget with Liability Coverage
Don’t assume that all your materials are insured to their total replacement cost during transport or when away from their base location. Even with high insurance coverage levels, liability limits can leave the shipper financially responsible for misplaced or damaged goods.
Do your due diligence to better understand your coverage limits and options to ensure your trade show budget is protected in an emergency.
Wrapping Up
Planning to reduce costs associated with event logistics can help make your trade show budget go even further. There are many moving parts to prepare for an event, and if your team is attending multiple trade shows throughout the year, that planning gets even more complex.
Understanding the fees involved in shipping materials to and from a large event and optimizing your event shipping schedule can help your team reduce costs. If these tips seem overwhelming to implement, partnering with an experienced trade show logistics provider can help your team plan ahead, reduce surprises, and deliver a successful trade show season this year.