This guide walks through trade show shipping best practices that help exhibitors move a booth on schedule and without added fees.
Key Takeaways
- Book trade show freight two to four weeks in advance. Early booking gives exhibitors more carrier options and typically costs less than arranging shipping the week before the event.
- Follow the shipping instructions in the exhibitor manual. The manual lists the warehouse or show-site address, delivery deadlines and labeling requirements. Missing a deadline can lead to higher material handling or late-delivery charges.
- Consolidate shipments when possible. Trade show material handling, also called drayage, is often charged by weight in 100-pound increments. Combining freight and reducing unnecessary weight can lower handling costs.
- Arrange return shipping before the trade show begins. Exhibitors who have an outbound carrier and shipping paperwork ready can avoid forced freight charges and delays during move-out.
You don’t have much room for mistakes when you ship freight to a trade show. The general services contractor sets the warehouse deadlines, tells you which labels to use and calculates your material handling fees based on the weight of your shipment. If you miss a deadline, a routine 700-pound shipment can quickly cost more than you planned. The following trade show shipping tips can help you control costs and get your freight to your booth on time.
What Trade Show Shipping Tips Should Every Exhibitor Know?
Knowing how to ship to a trade show starts with understanding who touches your crates. Your carrier delivers them, but the show contractor moves them from the dock or warehouse to your booth, stores your empties and brings everything back at teardown. That service, called “drayage,” gets billed separately from freight.
Because you pay separately for freight and drayage, the choices you make before your shipment leaves the door can affect your total freight and handling costs. The following trade show shipping tips can help you avoid extra charges and keep your shipment on schedule.
1. Book Trade Show Freight Two to Four Weeks in Advance
Book your carrier two to four weeks before your pickup date. Trade show specialists serve every exhibitor on the calendar, and their capacity fills fastest right before major events. Booking early also lets a carrier combine your load with others heading to the same city, which often lowers your rate.
2. Turn the Exhibitor Manual Into a Shipping Checklist
Read the exhibitor manual as soon as you get it, and add the shipping dates to your calendar. The manual, sometimes called the “exhibitor kit,” gives you the shipping rules and deadlines for that specific show.
Add these details to your checklist:
- Advance warehouse address and delivery dates
- Direct-to-show address and move-in time
- Deadline for discounted material handling rates
- Required shipping labels
- Deadline for your return carrier to check in
- Contact information for the show contractor
Share the checklist with your carrier and anyone helping with the show so everyone follows the same dates and shipping instructions.
3. Compare Advance-Warehouse and Direct-to-Show Delivery
Shipping to the advance warehouse often costs less and gives you more time before move-in. The show contractor receives your freight there, then moves it to your booth before you arrive.
Direct-to-show delivery sends your freight straight to the venue on a set date and time. This option can work for late shipments or large custom exhibits, but missed delivery windows and dock delays can lead to extra charges.
Compare both options in the exhibitor manual before you book your trade show shipping.
4. Choose a Carrier With Trade Show Experience
Trade show shipping tips often focus on cost, but choosing the right carrier can also help you avoid delays. Trade show carriers understand marshaling yards, targeted move-in windows and venue dock rules that general freight carriers may not.
A driver who misses a check-in time can wait for hours or even get turned away. Before you book a carrier, ask about its on-time record at trade shows, what insurance it includes and whether you will have a dedicated representative.
5. Package Freight for Its Actual Risk Level
Pack your freight based on how many times people will handle it, not just how far it has to travel. During one trade show shipment, crews may load your materials at your facility, move them through the advance warehouse, deliver them to your booth, store your empty containers and repeat the process during move-out.
Reusable cases with foam inserts give screens and graphics more protection than cardboard boxes. Shrink-wrapped pallets also help keep items from shifting. Loose, pad-wrapped or stacked freight may count as special handling, which can raise your drayage rate by roughly 30% to 40%.
Take photos of your freight before it ships. If something gets damaged, those photos can help show its condition before the carrier picked it up.
6. Label and Track Every Piece of Your Shipment
Put a complete shipping label on every crate, case and pallet. Use the labels provided by the show when available and make sure each piece includes your company name, booth number, show name and the correct warehouse or show-site address.
Number each piece, such as “1 of 5” or “2 of 5,” and keep a list of what each one contains. That makes it easier to spot a missing case even if the overall shipment shows as delivered.
Remove old labels from previous shows before shipping, and keep your piece list handy so you can compare it with the warehouse receipt when your freight arrives.
7. Track Individual Pieces, Not Just the Overall Shipment
Don’t rely only on a tracking status that says your shipment was delivered. One crate can still be missing even when the overall shipment shows as complete.
Number every case and keep a list of what each one contains. When your freight reaches the warehouse, compare that list with the warehouse receipt.
If you find out that a case is still sitting at a freight terminal several days before the show, you may have time to fix the problem. If you discover it on move-in morning, you’ll have far fewer options.
8. Reduce Costs by Shipping Fewer Bulky Items
One of the simplest trade show shipping tips is to reduce the amount of freight you send. Drayage is often charged by weight in 100-pound units, and contractors may also set a minimum charge for each piece, often 200 pounds.
That means five small boxes shipped separately could each receive the minimum charge. Pack those same items into one crate, and you may only pay that minimum once.
You can also lower shipping weight by using aluminum frames and fabric graphics instead of heavier wood-and-steel exhibit materials. Consider renting furniture, flooring and AV equipment at the show instead of shipping them.
Reviewing typical trade show shipping costs before you pack can help you decide what is worth shipping and what you should rent on site.
9. Plan Return Shipping Before the Show Ends
Set up your return shipping before the show opens instead of waiting until move-out. After the show closes, crews start returning empty crates, forklifts fill the aisles, and exhibitors all need access to the loading dock.
Print your return labels ahead of time, confirm your carrier and check the carrier check-in deadline in the exhibitor manual.
If your carrier misses that deadline, the show contractor may send your freight with its own designated carrier and charge you for it. The industry calls this “forced freight.”
LV Exhibit Rentals Knows All the Trade Show Shipping Tips
Trade show shipping tips only help if you can put them into action. With more than 30 years of experience, LV Exhibit Rentals manages the freight, paperwork, deadlines and show requirements that can create problems for exhibitors.
Our team reviews the exhibitor manual, coordinates shipping and helps keep your freight on schedule from pickup through move-out. If something changes, you have a team that understands the show and can help you respond quickly.
Explore the trade show exhibit solutions from LV Exhibit Rentals and let us help manage the shipping for your next show.
