Booth Design Strategies to Attract Foot Traffic (with Caitlin Book) | Ep. 14

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EVENTASTIC Conference registration is now OPEN! The world's largest event about EVENTS!

Free + Virtual! Save your spot! https://www.eventastic.com/

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• Guest LinkedIn: Caitlin Book
• Company Website: Backblaze
• Host LinkedIn: Kristin Nagle
• Website: Eventastic

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How do you design a trade show booth to actively pull people in instead of just waiting for passive foot traffic? Host Kristin Nagle asks Caitlin Book, Senior Events Manager at Backblaze, this critical question. They discuss why booth architecture is just as important as the swag on the tables. Caitlin explains the value of open floor plans and why putting up walls can subconsciously turn attendees away.

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The conversation covers specific tactics, such as pre-show sales outreach to secure meetings before the doors even open. Listeners will hear how to use gamification to encourage meaningful interactions rather than hit-and-run swag-grabbing. Caitlin also shares why training your booth staff to stay approachable is your ultimate secret weapon on the show floor.

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Guest Bio

Caitlin Book is the Senior Events Manager at Backblaze, a publicly traded cloud storage and computer backup provider. She manages all logistical aspects of global trade shows, tech conferences, and conventions with up to 50,000 attendees. With over 15 years of live production experience and an MFA in Theatre Management, Caitlin brings a highly orchestrated, audience-first approach to corporate event marketing and custom booth builds.

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The Event Question

Kristin Nagle asks: "How do you design a booth to pull people in instead of just waiting for foot traffic to go by the booths?"

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What You Will Learn

• Enable your sales team to do pre-show outreach and schedule in-booth meetings before the event floor opens.
• Build an open and accessible floor plan without tall walls so attendees feel comfortable walking right in.
• Keep the space active with live product demos and presentations so visitors have a clear reason to stay.
• Implement gamification like a sticker rally to reward attendees for completing specific actions like watching a demo or speaking to a rep.
• Train your booth staff to avoid huddling together in the center of the space so they remain welcoming to approaching visitors.

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The Ridiculous Question

The Question: What is a random skill you are weirdly proud of?

The Answer: Thanks to her background in theater and cosplay, Caitlin can fix almost any event disaster, including a collapsed booth wall, using just gaff tape, hot glue, and safety pins from her handy stage manager kit.