What are the hidden costs of an exhibition contractor which you should be aware of?

An exhibitor is often not aware of the hidden costs when they rope in an exhibition stand contractor in Dubai to design and build their exhibition stand. Here are the other costs that are likely to be generated by the exhibition stand design construction company.

A pitch for a prospective client is an expensive game for an exhibition stand contractor.  Before they finalise the deal, they have to do an initial briefing, email marketing, design drawings and present them before the client. Regardless of whether they win the work or not, all this will cost the construction company quite a lot of money on each enquiry.  An exhibition stand contractor in Dubai on an average wins one in ten new tenders. Each job won must pay for several lost tenders.   

Even if they are advertised as free, design drawings do not come without any charge.  Any job that is time consuming will cost money. When you have already been awarded the job, design revisions takes huge executive time as well as designer time. However, sometimes the exhibition stand contractors do several sets of drawings and still lose the job.  Before asking for drawings decide what you actually want. Try and address all the points in one go during a revision.  

If the company is big, the overheads will be bigger. Well equipped exhibition company will have 100% of the stand done in house with skilled workers and experienced account manager. This will ensure quality delivery on time and reduces the risk factor from stand installation at the site within the time frame given by the organiser. Small exhibition stand contractors in Dubai are often ‘one man bands’, and they outsource everything from unreliable sources which is at heavy risk for the client. Many times such small contractors who offer low rate will find it hard to execute the job at the site and end up running away from the site leaving the exhibitor helpless situation. Respect the expertise which large exhibition companies are able to offer and its better to pay small premium for the guaranteed quality delivery on time rather than risking the company reputation with small players. 

Some of the services an exhibition stand contractor in Dubai offers are usually sub contracted out.  For instance, audio visual and graphics, furniture, and carpets are mostly sub contracted, but often these services are claimed to be ‘in house’ services.  This is not always the case. Some of the top exhibition stand contractors in Dubai have in-house facility to provide these services. Remember that when a company sub contract services, there is no guarantee about the quality.

This is something most exhibitors think about at the end of a show.  In fact, an exhibitor should consider this before the stand is built. An exhibition stand design construction company in Dubai will be able to custom build an exhibition stand differently if it is proposed to be used multiple times. By reusing the stand, you can save at least 20% of your budget when you exhibit the next time. By saving materials of the initial build you can save the workshop time. All you have to do is set aside refurbishment costs to make the stand look like new each time it is installed. The bigger the saving should be if most components of a stand are purpose built. Storage of the material takes lot of space and it has to to packed well – this attracts additional cost which might be invisible for many? You need to pay a storage charge between shows, which you will be charged either separately or built in to the next refit. If you are going for the same stand space and configuration for your next exhibit also then the refit cost will be considerably low. However, if the exhibition stand contractor has to chop and make your stand fit in a different space, there’s extra work involved and be ready to pay extra costs. Also, remember that if you keep a stand for a future show it will look the same as it did the first time it went in. If you want your stand to look different, then it will cost you more.

 

 

Have you been considering exhibiting at the upcoming trade show but are worried about hidden costs and last minute surprises? Strokes Exhibits has been providing reliable exhibition fabrication services in Dubai for over 20 years. Our team of experts will work with you to design and build a stunning exhibit that represents your brand perfectly. Request a free consultation today to learn more about our services and how we can help you make a big impact at your next trade show.