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Trade show checklist: 10 things to do before your show

The answer, first

Before a trade show, set one goal with a number, read the exhibitor manual for every deadline, book travel inside the hotel block, order graphics with one clear message, arrange shipping, decide how you will capture and rank leads, invite customers to your booth, train whoever is working it, pack a booth kit, and write your follow-up emails before you leave. The full printable checklist is below.

10 must-dos·33-item printable checklist·Download for Excel or Sheets

The 10 things to do before your show

1
Write one goal with a number. Forty qualified conversations, ten booked demos — something you can check on the drive home.
2
Read the exhibitor manual the day you book. Put every deadline in one calendar: furniture, electrical, internet, shipping, badges, graphics. Early-order prices are usually much lower.
3
Book travel and hotel inside the show's block. Rooms near the venue go first, and some shows require exhibitors to stay in the block.
4
Order booth graphics with one message that reads from across the aisle: what you do and who it is for. Allow time for a reprint.
5
Arrange shipping. Choose advance warehouse or direct-to-show, label every crate with the booth number, and keep the tracking numbers on your phone.
6
Decide how you will capture and rank leads — and test it on a hard business card, with your phone in airplane mode, before you leave.
7
Tell customers and prospects you will be there. Email your list with your booth number and book meetings in advance; a booked meeting is worth ten passers-by.
8
Train whoever works the booth: a 30-second opener, three qualifying questions, who covers which shift, and what a good lead looks like.
9
Pack a booth kit (list below) so a missing extension cord does not cost you the first morning.
10
Write your follow-up before you leave. Have the first message ready so it can go out minutes after each good conversation, while they are still on the floor — not two weeks later.

The printable trade show checklist

Every task in order, from booking to the week after. Tick as you go, print it, or download it as a spreadsheet for Excel or Google Sheets.

Download as a spreadsheet (CSV)

3+ months before

6–8 weeks before

2–4 weeks before

The week before

Show days

After the show

What to pack in a booth kit

  • Packing tape, scissors, a box cutter, zip ties, Velcro
  • Extension cords, a power strip, phone and laptop chargers
  • Business cards, printed material, samples, the giveaway
  • A table cover, cleaning wipes, a small trash bag
  • Water, snacks, painkillers, mints, comfortable shoes
  • A printed copy of the exhibitor manual's contacts and your shipping tracking numbers

Item 6, done in a minute. MeetDrop captures each conversation by voice and card, works with no signal, and drafts the follow-up for item 10.

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Related questions

When should you start preparing for a trade show?

Three months or more ahead for an established show, because booth space, hotels and the cheaper early deadlines for furniture, power and shipping go first. A small regional or vendor show can be prepared in a few weeks with the same checklist, compressed.

Is there a trade show checklist template or PDF?

Yes. The checklist on this page prints on its own with the Print button, which you can save as a PDF, and it downloads as a CSV spreadsheet that opens in Excel or Google Sheets.

What is the most forgotten item on a trade show checklist?

The follow-up. Most checklists end when the booth is packed, but the leads are worth nothing until someone contacts them. Writing the first email before the show is what gets it sent within two days.

What should be in a trade show booth kit?

Tape, scissors, zip ties, extension cords, a power strip, chargers, business cards, printed material, samples, a table cover, cleaning wipes, water and snacks — and the exhibitor manual's contacts with your shipping tracking numbers.

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Last reviewed 5 October 2026 by the MeetDrop team.