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How To Put A Proper RFP Together for Trade Show Displays

Posted March 18th, 2010 by admin

As an exhibit booth design and manufacturing firm we are approached many times with potential client who require trade show displays. Some are well educated as to what is required to have a successful trade show booth, while others have no clue at all. I n simple term this may help those who wish to put together a proper RFP for their next trade show display.

Candy Adams is an exhibit management consultant wrote the following and I do agree with all of her thoughts. She writes “There are multiple schools of thought on providing exhibit houses with your budget parameters. Some believe this gives them free reign to go hog wild up to this budget number. Other believe that the exhibit house, who will become one of your critical show team members, needs all the information they can get to do a good job for you. There is no ‘right’ answer, but I lean more toward full disclosure of budget information (or at least giving a 90% figure so I still have a few pennies left for last minute requests and upgrades) and then requesting a line-item budget based on the areas below to make comparison between the proposals easier. Include information to the exhibit house regarding the flexibility of the budget. Is it all- inclusive and there’s not a penny more to be had in your corporate piggy bank, or is there a budget range ($40,000-$50,000)? Also let them know if your analysis and decision to choose a proposal is more design- or cost-oriented. You’ll also want to know their payment

terms and when deposits and progress payments will be due.Budget line items to request the exhibit house include in their proposal: Exhibit design, production of drawings, construction (including all labor, materials, fees,and taxes), drawings and set-up instructions, exhibit preview, project management fees

  • Graphics
  • Lighting
  • Audio-visual equipment
  • Computer equipment
  • Furnishings including tables, chairs, stools
  • Flooring
  • Crates or cases
  • Gang box and supplies
  • Ongoing cost of ownership, including general maintenance, sometimes called
  • refurbishment, storage, graphics upgrade, flexibility to different configurations.

You’ll also need to determine the ownership option that’s most advantageous. Options include renting at approximately 1/3 of the cost of owning for one-time use (plus the cost of graphics), negotiating for multiple uses with an ownership option after a pre-determined number of uses, to lease it, or to purchase it outright. TIP: Your accounting department will be able to guide you through this part of your RFP, depending on whether they want to capitalize the exhibit properties or expense them. If capitalized, you’ll need to work with accounting to determine the “life” of your exhibit for depreciation purposes, which is usually either 3 or 5 years.”

Gathering these ideas together before you contact an exhibit house is a wise idea, it only helps in getting the best and most cost efficient trade show display as possible. For more information on trade show displays please contact ELDS, Inc at (626) 969-3399

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