Steps to Take for Trade Show Freight Shipping

You have spent hours on your branding, booth design, marketing materials, and your team’s transportation.  Now it is time to get all the items to the trade show with trade show freight shipping.

Getting your trade show or convention materials needs to have extra time for planning and execution.

Plan ahead your Trade Show Freight Shipping

Trade show shipments have longer timelines than regular shipments.  Carriers that specialize in trade show freight shipping understand the specifics and the details, but they also book ahead so planning is critical.

Trade shows send detailed instructions and timelines, be sure to get the warehouse location, date and time window, any restriction and guidelines so that you and the freight carrier are on the same page.

Paperwork

Having your paperwork set and ready to go is an important step. There are going to be tons of other exhibitors and crates arriving there, so the more organized you are, the better off you and your team will be at arrival.

Provide the name of the trade show and your booth number on the Bill of Lading (BOL).  Include your company name in the address of the convention center.  Also listed out should be the point of contact name and phone number.

Be sure to number all the pieces that are going to be in transit (1 of 4, 2 of 4, and so on), no one wants to have a box missing.  Make sure you are clear on the arrival date.

Holding Fee

Be sure to check if they charge a holding fee at the warehouse and any added delivery charges to get it to your booth.  Having the items go to the warehouse secures that they will be there with plenty of time.

Holding fees are the charge for storage, transfer, and delivery of material to and from the warehouse or venue to your booth.

Delivery to the Venue

If you don’t have time to get your freight to the warehouse, there is the option of having it go straight to the venue.  They will give you a specific window of when you can unload there.

The driver will go to an offsite waiting area to wait until their allotted time.  The venue setups the offsite location so that the loading dock isn’t congested.

If there is no specified delivery time, the venue will treat the deliveries on a first come first serve basis which means the wait times are long.  It will affect you as the shipper with longer wait times and larger fees.

Return Shipment

Once you have the arrival of your freight, be sure to set up a return plan for shipping it back.

In many situations, it is best to have your freight return to the warehouse and then coordinate the freight pick up from there.  The other option that you can coordinate is to have the shipment picked up from the venue.  However, you will need to give the carrier detailed information including where to find your shipment and the time that they can pick up your order.  The second choice is often more difficult and more costly to do.

Temperature Sensitive Freight

If you are in the food and beverage industry, then logistics may not include sending your freight to the holding warehouse.  Most times, the venue will set up a time and a specific location that will be either temperature sensitive, cooler, or a kitchen refrigerator for food or beverages being brought in.

While trade show freight shipping may seem complicated, working with an experienced shipping and logistics company will make your experience stress free and your shipment will get there on time.