Invite Guests to Your Trade Show Lounge

If you think about the time and effort attendees go to in order to attend your event or trade show, from traveling to your location to spending at least a day and often several at the venue, it can be an exhausting experience. While hard data on direct increases in engagement or attendance varies by event, research and industry trends strongly support that trade show lounges enhance the overall experience, which in turn leads to higher satisfaction and longer engagement. In several ways, lounges at trade shows can provide multiple benefits, both for attendees and exhibitors.

Longer Stays and Engagement Encouraged

Lounges give attendees a place to rest, recharge, and network comfortably, which can extend the time they spend at the event. The Center for Exhibition Industry Research reports that trade show attendees tend to stay longer when they have access to comfortable spaces. According to Bizzabo, 72% of attendees agree that in-person conferences provide the best opportunities to build meaningful connections.

Social Media Engagement Increased

Attendees are more likely to share their experiences if they have aesthetically pleasing and comfortable areas in which to take photos, relax, and connect online. The presence of branded lounges has been linked to a greater number of social media mentions at events.

Wellbeing and Sustainability Trends Supported

Trade show fatigue is real. Offering spaces for relaxation aligns with trends in attendee wellbeing. Eco-friendly or wellness-themed lounges resonate with today’s sustainability-conscious audience. A lounge can also provide your event a way to be more inclusive of people who are neurodivergent or have physical disabilities.

Do Lounges Increase Attendance?

Offering a lounge can give your attendees a place to recharge themselves and their devices; it can give them some respite from the chaos of the trade floor; it can even offer them a moment to network with other attendees. Whether your trade show attendance increases as a result of the lounge will largely depend on marketing. If you make the lounge a feature of your trade show and put effort into making it a place where people want to gather when they’re not exploring exhibitor booths, you’re likely to attract people who are looking for a total experience at the events they attend.

Events with Lounges to Inspire

CES 2024

CES 2024 in Vegas offered a VIP lounge hosted by the Female Quotient, billed as “the place for conscious leaders changing the equation and closing the gender gap – for transformative conversations, relationship building, and experiential activations.”

G2E 2024

At the G2E convention, AGA members had access to a private lounge hosted outside the exposition hall to host meetings and connect in a quiet space.

ASD Market Week

During ASD Market Week in Las Vegas, an Alternative Lifestyle lounge was available for attendees to take a break, network, or purchase a drink at the cash bar. SourceDirect also sponsored a longe where attendee could “take a break, network, or catch up on work while discovering international suppliers in SourceDirect.