Unexpected costs and “reconcile billing” are a frequent drain on a trade show budget. There are ways to dramatically reduce these costs.
Example: “Show services” has become an area where provider markup has ballooned over time to account for the cost uncertainty involved in using third-party providers for various services ranging from shipping and drayage to rigging and cleaning. This practice has become the norm in the exhibit industry
But are these markups justified? In the majority of cases, unanticipated fees and cost overruns by third-party organizations are still passed through by trade show exhibit providers with substantial markups, which means they actually bear little risk. Yet, their markups can amount to many thousands of dollars.
A more appropriate method—now applied by Divinitas—involves full-service coordination and project management of trade show services on behalf of exhibitors, which is covered by a reasonable administrative fee built into the exhibit budget. The invoices for these third-party activities are then sent directly to the exhibitor.
In our experience, this approach, even after accounting for the administrative fee, can save you as much as 30% on the cost of trade show services. Over the course of an annual program those event budgeting savings can make a big difference in your trade show budget.