The Trade Show and Event Planning Checklist

Ever wish you had one place to keep everything you need to know, bring and do for a trade show? Today's your lucky day.

Planning a show means coordinating a lot of moving parts. Whether you prefer an app or a pen and paper, there's one reliable way to cover every base: a checklist.

A good trade show checklist keeps all your event details in one place: the event itself, travel and hotel, vendors and services, and everything your team needs on site. Use whatever tool your team already works in, like a shared document, a project management app or a three-ring binder. The format matters far less than keeping it complete and up to date.

Step 1: Event details

Start with the basics for each show. Record even the obvious details, like the event name, in the same place every time. Past checklists become a valuable reference for future shows, and they're far easier to use when everything is together.

• Event name, dates and venue address
• Booth number and booth size
• Move-in date and time
• Move-out date and time
• Loading dock location and access instructions
• Sponsoring organization and main contact
• Show management contact
• General service contractor and other official contractors, with contact details for each
• Link to the exhibitor services kit
• Key deadlines from the kit, including the advance shipment deadline and advance order deadlines

Step 2: Travel and hotel

Getting your team's travel sorted takes a lot of stress out of the show, so you can focus on the event itself. Keep these details somewhere everyone can reach from their phone.

• Hotel name, address and phone number
• Hotel contact for your group
• Number and type of rooms
• Check-in and check-out dates
• Confirmation numbers
• Flights or other travel for each team member
• Getting between the hotel and the venue

Step 3: Vendors and services

These are the services you order from outside vendors and the show's contractors. For each one, note the vendor, contact details, order date, confirmation number and who on your team placed the order.

• Shipping, inbound and outbound
• Install and dismantle (I&D) labor
• Electrical and lighting
• Internet and phone
• Audio-visual equipment and computers
• Carpet, padding and furniture
• Booth cleaning and trash removal
• Lead retrieval
• Printing and delivery of literature
• Giveaways
• Graphics
• Photography
• Floral
• Security
• Meeting rooms
• Client entertainment and meals
• Team apparel

Step 4: What you need on site

Last, list everything that has to be at the booth for the show to succeed. It will look a lot like your shipping inventory, but not exactly. Cross-check the two before your freight leaves, so everything on this list is either packed, ordered from a vendor or traveling with your team.

• Every piece of the exhibit: structure, panels, graphics, lighting and cables. Is everything current and ready to ship?
• Product and demo equipment
• Literature and giveaways
• Computers, monitors and chargers
• Team apparel and badges
• A tool kit and spare parts
• Inbound shipping details: tracking numbers and the bill of lading
• Outbound shipping details: your carrier, the Material Handling Agreement and the carrier check-in deadline
• Return labels and packing materials

One final note: communicate

A complete checklist only helps if everyone is working from it. The more partners involved, like your exhibit house, printer, I&D crew and shipper, the more coordination it takes. Agree on who owns each item, share the checklist and set a routine for updates, so no one is surprised at the last minute.

For more on getting your exhibit to and from the show, see The Complete Guide to Trade Show and Event Shipping and our First Timer's Guide.

How NorthStar helps

Your Shipping Coach takes the shipping lines off your checklist: helping you locate the deadlines in your Quick Facts, planning pickup, delivery and booking the move out of the event. With NorthStar 360, we reach out 90 days before each show, so planning starts early.

Have a show coming up? Request a quote, or reach a Shipping Coach at 703-532-0520 or shippingcoach@northstarexpress.com.