Why Going Green Matters at Your Next Tradeshow

March 6, 2014

Shane Shirley

Shane Shirley is CMO for SBS Brands, a 90-year-old global brand leader focused on creating digital and print business solutions that offers traditional and eco-friendly customized promotional products to accelerate trade show marketing.

Tradeshows generate a ton of waste each year with an incredible 600,000 tons of trash turned out every year by the 60 million people who attend tradeshows. This is a staggering amount that has a huge environmental impact, and we are all looking for ways to lessen this impact.

Utilizing green practices can help us wrangle the trash situation under control and make tradeshows a greener experience.

While it is impossible to completely eliminate all waste, it is totally within our reach to drastically reduce the amount of trash generated by tradeshows by taking note of the following tips.

Encourage Exhibitors to Go Reusable Every Chance Possible

Urge the folks attending your show to look for ways to replace single-use items with durable options that can be used again and again. Canvas makes a great alternative to one-and-done wall coverings since exhibitors can get several years out of it and it fits the green bill since it’s made from sustainable plant fibers. Canvas can even be painted to keep it looking fresh and switch things up after a while.

Advise and make it easy for your exhibitors to opt for customized reusable takeaways like reusable bags, stainless-steel water bottles and pens made from recycled content. Reusable items will be used by attendees long after the convention is over instead of tossing them in the trash as they exit the convention hall. Just switching to durable booth materials and reusable takeaways will reduce a lot of the trash cranked out by your event.

Use Digital Versions Instead of Handouts to Green Things Up

Offer to post digital versions of your exhibitor’s catalogs on your website. Attendees can be directed to the site to view the digital collection, so they can flip through catalogs ahead of time if they’d like or after the show is over and your exhibitors can print fewer catalogs so less paper is used. Encourage exhibitors to use interactive displays or take orders via tablets or smartphones. Going digital reduces paper consumption, allows you to feature more of your line than would fit in your booth and engages your customers.

Make It Easy for Those in Attendance to Recycle

In addition to efforts to minimize waste, make it easy to handle garbage and have your exhibitors and attendees sort the trash for you - throughout the convention center place bins to collect paper, cans and bottles and waste. Make sure the bins are color-coded and clearly labeled, so people know where to deposit items. Most folks are very receptive to dropping their items in the proper bin and this improved management of the waste stream will ensure items are disposed of properly. Many venues will work with you to make it easy for attendees to recycle.

Recruit Help to Make Your Tradeshow Green

By reducing the amount of trash generated and improving how waste is sorted and handled you can significantly lessen the environmental impact of your tradeshow. The key to going green and reducing waste at your next event is to enlist the help of your exhibitors and attendees. Ask your exhibitors to do their part to reduce the trash they produce and make it easy to responsibly manage waste with labeled bins. These small steps will have a big impact on the amount of waste produced and ultimately will make your tradeshow a more eco-friendly experience.

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Partner Voices
Less than six months ago, Lisa Messina joined the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) as the first-ever chief sales officer after leading the sales team at Caesars Entertainment. A 12-year Las Vegas resident, Messina is a graduate of Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration and serves on MPI International’s board of directors. TSNN had a chance to catch up with this dynamic leader and talk to her about her vision for the new role, current shifts in the trade show industry, creating more diversity and equity within the organization, and advice to future female leaders. Lisa Messina, Chief Sales Officer, LVCVA With Las Vegas becoming The Greatest Arena on EarthTM, what are some of the things you’re most excited about in your role? Our team was at The Big Game’s handoff ceremony earlier this month, and I couldn’t help but think, “We’re going to crush it next year!”  These high-profile events and venues not only drive excitement, but also provide unmatched opportunities for event planners. Allegiant Stadium hosts events from 10 to 65,000 people and offers on-field experiences. Formula 1 Grand Prix will take place in Las Vegas in November, after the year-one F1 race, the four-story paddock building will be available for buyouts and will also offer daily ride-along experiences that will be available for groups. And, of course, the MSG Sphere officially announced that it will open in September, ahead of schedule, with a U2 residency. It’s going to be the most technologically advanced venue as far as lighting, sound, feel, and even scent, and it will be available for buyouts and next-level sponsorships inside and outside. There’s no ceiling to what you can do when you’re doing events in Las Vegas.  Allegiant Stadium As the trade show and convention business returns to the pre-pandemic levels, what shifts are you noticing and how do you think they will impact the industry going forward? Our trade show organizers are very focused on driving customer experience. Most of our organizers are reporting stronger exhibitor numbers and increased numbers of new exhibitors, with trade shows proving to be almost or above 2019 levels. Now our organizers are really doubling down on driving attendance and focusing on the data to provide that individualized, customized experience to help attendees meet their goals and get the best value. Some companies continue to be cautiously optimistic with their organizational spend when it comes to sending attendees, but I think it will continue to improve. As the U.S. Travel Association makes more progress on the U.S. visa situation, we also expect a growing influx of international attendees. What are some innovative ways the LVCVA helps trade show and convention organizers deliver the most value for their events? We focus on customer experience in the same way that trade show organizers are thinking about it. We got rave reviews with the West Hall Expansion of the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC), so over the next two years, we will be renovating the North and the Central halls, which will include not just the same look and feel, but also the digital experiences that can be leveraged for branding and sponsorship opportunities.  Vegas Loop, the underground transportation system designed by The Boring Company, is also a way we have enhanced the customer experience. Vegas Loop at the LVCC has transported more than 900,000 convention attendees across the campus since its 2021 launch. Last summer, Resorts World and The Boring Company opened the first resort stop at the Resorts World Las Vegas , with plans to expand throughout the resort corridor, including downtown Las Vegas, Allegiant Stadium and Harry Reid International Airport. The LVCVA also purchased the Las Vegas Monorail in 2020, the 3.9-mile-long elevated transportation system that connects eight resorts directly to the convention center campus. This is the only rail system in the world that integrates fares directly into show badges and registration. For trade show organizers, these transportation options mean saving time, money and effort when it comes to moving groups from the hotels to LVCC and around the city. Also, the more we can focus on building the infrastructure around the convention center, the more it supports the customer experience and ultimately supports our trade show organizers. Scheduled to debut in Q4, Fontainebleau Las Vegas will offer 3,700 hotel rooms and 550,000 square feet of meeting and convention space next to LVCC.  What are some of the plans for advancing DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) within your organization? We’re currently partnering with instead of working with a leading consulting firm, to lay the foundation and create a solid DEI plan and be the leader when it comes to DEI initiatives. The heart of that journey with the consulting firm is also talking to our customers about their strategic approaches to DEI and driving innovation in this space.  What are your favorite ways to recharge? My husband and I have an RV and we’re outdoorsy people. So, while we have over 150,000 world-class hotel rooms and renowned restaurants right outside our doorstep, one of my favorite things to do is get out to Red Rock Canyon, the Valley of Fire, and Lake Mead. Five of the top national parks are within a three-hour drive from Las Vegas, so there’s a lot you can do. We love balancing the energy of Las Vegas with nature, and we’re noticing that a lot of attendees add activities off the Strip when they come here.  Valley of Fire What advice would you give to women following leadership paths in destination marketing? I think it’s about being laser-focused on what you want to accomplish; building a team around you that lifts you and helps you achieve your goals; and being humble and realizing that you do it as a group. No one gets this done alone. Thankfully, there are a lot of women in leadership in this organization, in our customers’ organizations, and in this city that we can be really proud of. We’re a formidable force that is making things happen.   This interview has been edited and condensed. This article is exclusively sponsored by the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority. For more information, visit HERE.