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Trade shows can be expensive, but year in and year out, all different types of companies realize the benefits of doing so. Each of those different company types has its own reasons for doing so. Small businesses and startups participate because they are hoping to buy some market share. Medium sized businesses are looking to announce new developments and lure customers away from other providers. Large businesses - like those in the Fortune 500 - are largely there to remind customers, competitors, and prospective employees of exactly how much more successful they are than all the others.

This is normally achieved by investing in style and image; for example, the glossiest brochure, the largest booth, and the most attention-grabbing custom exhibit booth. Custom exhibits are a critical strategy employed by companies at conferences and trade shows. Attendees are easily bored by the sameness of the booths, the same old tabletop displays. Custom booth design can give your company a much-needed edge.

As the name implies, custom exhibits can be designed in a variety of ways. Lately one of the more popular styles has been the use of the multilevel truss exhibit. This exhibit has the advantage of multiplying the floor space around the booth and allows the exhibitor more than one area to work with. It is a design that portrays innovation, attention to detail and intelligence.

How could a small business compete for customers or employees if they were unlucky enough to find their exhibit space right next door to one of these multilevel monstrosities? Not coincidentally, that is the point. Custom exhibits are an incredibly effective weapon for reminding the entire market of your company's ability to excel.

Trade shows are a prime opportunity to impress the "right" people in your industry. The expense is worth it if you can generate the buzz that matters. Word of mouth advertising is the most effective kind there is, so if you can get your audience talking about what you have done this year, they will remember your name. Having something special to display at a trade show can catapult a company into the top ranks of the industry in a hurry.

By no means should any company use this logic to decide to ignore other more basic needs in hopes of making a big trade show splash. It is more important to invest in payroll and utilities than custom exhibits until the company builds some name recognition. Once that mission is accomplished, standing out from the crowd and investing in the adornments of excellence can be a very smart decision.