What an Exhibitor Prospectus Is, and What It Isn't
An exhibitor prospectus is the document a company reads before it decides to buy a booth. Its job is narrow: show the audience, show the space, show the price, and make booking easy. Everything about how to exhibit once the booth is bought belongs somewhere else. Three documents get confused with it, and keeping them apart makes each one shorter and easier to use.
| Document | Reader | When it goes out | Its job |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exhibitor prospectus | Companies deciding whether to buy a booth | Before booth sales open, then on request | Sell booth space: audience, floor plan, packages, prices, deadlines and how to book |
| Sponsorship prospectus | Companies deciding whether to sponsor | Before sponsorship sales open, often with the exhibitor prospectus | Sell sponsorship levels, a la carte items and digital placements |
| Exhibitor manual | Companies that have already booked | After booking, usually a few months before the show | Explain how to exhibit: move-in, shipping, services, rules and contacts |
Many trade shows publish one combined exhibitor and sponsorship prospectus, and our sponsorship prospectus template covers that combined version and the sponsorship levels in detail. A separate exhibitor prospectus makes sense when most of your revenue is booth space, when sponsorship is sold by a different person, or when you want a short document focused only on choosing and buying a booth. Logistics such as shipping and move-in stay in the exhibitor manual.
What an Exhibitor Prospectus Contains
A company reading your prospectus is asking four questions: will my buyers be there, where would my booth be, what will it cost in total, and what do I have to do by when. Each section should answer one of them.
- Show summary: name, dates, venue, city, exhibit hall hours and a one-paragraph description of who the show is for
- Audience: registered attendees by job function, seniority, industry, region and purchasing role, with the year and source
- Floor plan: the full hall with booth numbers, entrances, food, sessions and other traffic drivers marked, plus a link to live availability
- Booth packages: each booth type with size, price, open sides and exactly what is included
- Pricing rules: member and non-member rates, early pricing, corner premiums, multi-booth pricing and any deposit
- Exhibitor benefits: badges per booth, listing in the directory and app, lead retrieval and other included items
- Sponsorship add-ons: a short menu of upgrades exhibitors can add, with a pointer to the full sponsorship prospectus
- Key dates: booth selection, early price deadline, balance due date, manual release and move-in
- Terms: payment schedule, cancellation and refund policy, and the main booth rules that affect what can be built
- How to book: the steps, the booking link and a named sales contact
Audience Data Exhibitors Look For
Exhibitors read the audience section more carefully than anything else, because it is the part they have to defend to their own manager. Use your own registration data and say where each figure comes from. Breakdowns are more useful than a single headline number: a company selling to plant managers needs to know how many plant managers come, not how many people walked through the doors.
- Registered attendees, labeled with the edition it refers to
- Share of attendees by job function and seniority, in the categories exhibitors use to segment their market
- Industry or organization type, and organization size if you collect it
- Region or state, especially for regional shows
- Purchasing role, from a registration question such as what is your role in buying decisions
- Returning exhibitor rate, if you track it, since it signals that exhibiting worked for others
Exhibitors use this section alongside their own checks. Our guide on how to choose a trade show shows what they compare, and it is worth reading from the organizer's side before you write.
Booth Packages and Prices
List every booth type the way an exhibitor will compare them: size, number of open sides, price and what comes with it. The single most common source of complaints after booking is an exhibitor who assumed something was included. Spell it out, including what is not included.
| Booth type | Size | Open sides | What to list as included | Pricing notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inline | 10x10 ft | 1 | Back and side drape, ID sign, badges per booth, directory listing | Base rate |
| Corner | 10x10 ft | 2 | Same as inline | Often a premium over inline for the extra open side |
| Double inline | 10x20 ft | 1 | Drape, sign, more badges | Usually priced as two booths, sometimes at a multi-booth rate |
| Peninsula | 20x20 ft | 3 | Badges, listing; drape usually only on the back | Higher rate; may have height and sightline rules |
| Island | 20x20 ft or larger | 4 | Badges, listing; no drape | Premium rate; may have height and rigging rules |
| Tabletop | 6 or 8 ft table | 1 | Table, chairs, sign | Lower entry price for small exhibitors and nonprofits |
Then explain the pricing rules once, in plain words, rather than scattering them across footnotes.
- Member and non-member rates, and how a company proves membership
- Early pricing: the rate, the exact deadline and the time zone it ends in
- Premiums for corners, peninsulas, islands or locations near entrances
- Multi-booth pricing, if buying more booths lowers the price per booth
- Deposit amount and when the balance is due
- Fees, such as card processing fees, so the total at checkout matches the prospectus
If you are still setting prices, our trade show booth pricing guide and the exhibitor pricing calculator help you test rates against your costs. Trade show booth sizes covers standard dimensions if you need to explain them.
Booth Selection, Payment and Cancellation Terms
Tell exhibitors exactly how booth selection works, because the order of selection is often what decides whether they commit early. Then state the commercial terms in a short, readable form, with a link to the full contract.
- 1
Selection Order
Say who chooses first and when, for example returning exhibitors in a priority window, then sponsors, then everyone. If you use a points system based on years exhibited or spend, explain how points are counted.
- 2
How Booths Are Chosen
Explain whether exhibitors pick a booth themselves on an online floor plan, submit ranked choices for you to assign, or are assigned by the sales team.
- 3
Payment Schedule
State the deposit, the balance due date and the accepted payment methods. Say what happens to a booth if the balance is not paid on time.
- 4
Cancellation and Refunds
Summarize the cancellation and refund terms, including any dates after which no refund applies, and link the full policy. Our event refund policy guide covers how to structure it.
- 5
Rules That Affect What Can Be Built
Include only the rules that affect a buying decision, such as height limits, open-side rules for peninsulas and islands, and whether the venue requires certain services. The rest goes in the exhibitor manual.
Sponsorship Add-Ons for Exhibitors
Exhibitors are your easiest sponsorship prospects, because they have already decided to be at the show. A short add-on menu in the exhibitor prospectus lets them upgrade without opening a second document. Keep it to items that make the booth more visible or bring more traffic to it, and send readers to the full sponsorship prospectus for the larger packages.
- Enhanced directory or app listing with logo, products and videos
- Floor plan logo on the booth or a highlighted booth on the map
- Aisle signs or floor decals pointing to the booth
- Booth stop on a passport or scavenger hunt game
- Product showcase or new product display near the entrance
- Sponsored session or demo slot in a theater on the show floor
For pricing and packaging the larger items, see event sponsorship levels and event sponsorship packages and pricing examples.
Exhibitor Prospectus Template
Copy this outline into your design tool or document and replace every bracket. It is written for an exhibitor-only prospectus; drop sections that don't apply and keep the order, since exhibitors expect the audience first and the booking steps last.
[SHOW NAME] [YEAR]: EXHIBITOR PROSPECTUS [DATES] | [VENUE], [CITY] Exhibit hall hours: [DAY, TIMES] / [DAY, TIMES] Book your booth: [FLOOR PLAN LINK] 1. WHY EXHIBIT [ONE PARAGRAPH: who the show is for and what exhibitors get out of it] - [REASON 1, e.g. Meet NUMBER buyers from SEGMENT in two days] - [REASON 2] - [REASON 3] 2. WHO ATTENDS Source: [YEAR] registration data, [NUMBER] registered attendees Job function: [BREAKDOWN] Seniority: [BREAKDOWN] Industry / organization type: [BREAKDOWN] Region: [BREAKDOWN] Purchasing role: [BREAKDOWN] Returning exhibitors: [PERCENT, IF TRACKED] 3. FLOOR PLAN [FLOOR PLAN IMAGE with booth numbers, entrances, food, stages and sessions marked] Live availability: [FLOOR PLAN LINK] Availability shown in this document as of [DATE] 4. BOOTH PACKAGES Booth type | Size | Open sides | Member price | Non-member price | Includes [INLINE] | [10x10] | [1] | [PRICE] | [PRICE] | [e.g. drape, ID sign, NUMBER badges, directory listing] [CORNER] | [10x10] | [2] | [PRICE] | [PRICE] | [INCLUDES] [ISLAND] | [20x20] | [4] | [PRICE] | [PRICE] | [INCLUDES] Not included: [e.g. carpet, furniture, electrical, internet, material handling] 5. PRICING RULES Early pricing: [RATE OR DISCOUNT] until [DATE, TIME, TIME ZONE] Multi-booth pricing: [TERMS] Deposit: [AMOUNT OR PERCENT] at booking; balance due [DATE] Fees: [e.g. card processing fee] 6. EVERY EXHIBITOR GETS - [NUMBER] exhibitor badges per [BOOTH SIZE] - Listing in the online directory and event app - [LEAD RETRIEVAL, IF INCLUDED] - [OTHER INCLUDED ITEMS] 7. ADD-ONS FOR EXHIBITORS [ITEM] | [PRICE] | [QUANTITY AVAILABLE] | [ONE-LINE DESCRIPTION] [ITEM] | [PRICE] | [QUANTITY AVAILABLE] | [ONE-LINE DESCRIPTION] Full sponsorship prospectus: [LINK] 8. HOW BOOTH SELECTION WORKS [DATE]: Priority selection for returning exhibitors [DATE]: Selection opens to [SPONSORS / MEMBERS] [DATE]: Selection opens to all How to choose: [e.g. pick your booth on the online floor plan and check out] 9. KEY DATES Early pricing ends: [DATE] Balance due: [DATE] Exhibitor manual released: [DATE] Move-in: [DATES AND TIMES] Show days: [DATES] Move-out: [DATE AND TIME] 10. TERMS IN BRIEF Payment: [SUMMARY] Cancellation: [SUMMARY, with dates] Booth rules that affect your build: [e.g. height limits, open-side rules] Full terms and conditions: [LINK] 11. HOW TO BOOK 1. Go to [FLOOR PLAN LINK] 2. Choose an available booth and review what is included 3. Add any add-ons, enter billing details and pay or request an invoice Questions: [NAME], [TITLE] | [EMAIL] | [PHONE]
Format, Timing and Distribution
A prospectus is usually a PDF of eight to twelve pages, a web page, or both. The PDF gets forwarded to the person who signs off the budget; the web page gets found in search and shared in a link. Use the same prices, names and dates in each.
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| During or just after the last edition | Publish the prospectus and open priority rebooking for returning exhibitors |
| Weeks after the show | Open selection to new exhibitors; send the prospectus to your prospect list |
| Before the early price deadline | Remind prospects of the deadline with current availability |
| Monthly while selling | Re-issue the PDF with a new as-of date, at the same link |
| After booking | Send the exhibitor manual and the onboarding steps |
Finding prospects to send it to is its own job. Our guide on how to get exhibitors covers lists, outreach and follow-up.
Exhibitor Prospectus Mistakes to Avoid
- Listing booth prices without saying what is included, or what is not
- Quoting attendance without a year or a source
- A floor plan image with no link to live availability, so prospects ask about sold booths
- Early pricing deadlines without a time and time zone
- Burying the booking link on the last page instead of repeating it at the top
- Loading the prospectus with move-in and shipping rules that belong in the manual
- Different prices in the PDF, on the website and at checkout
