In the competitive world of conferences and expo booths, your biggest competitor isn’t necessarily the booths around you but the attention span of those passing by. In 2026, the traditional booth offering brochures or showcasing videos of your product and service is now obsolete.
To truly grab the attention of potential clients and customers, conference and expo partners need to offer an interactive and engaging experience that involves the user. Here at Sentient we’ve compiled a list of 10 different experiences, from mini-games to Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR), that will turn your booth from boring to the most talked about experience at the show!
1. VR Product Deep Dive
Space at expos and conferences can be expensive, and shipping heavy machinery can be a logistical nightmare. A virtual reality experience allows you to show your product or service off to the industry in a 3×3 m space, whilst saving on external costs associated with bringing equipment to showcase.
The team at Sentient doesn’t just build “pretty” models; we use your actual CAD and engineering specs. This allows visitors to see your equipment in a completely unique way. Break apart the equipment, allow customers to see an X-Ray version of it, or place the equipment in a fully immersive environment to show exactly how it will be used.
2. Using AR to Discover How a Product Works
AR can be a great way of turning the event floor or booth into an engaging experience. It allows the customer to see the 3D object overlaid in the real expo environment (a popular example of AR is Pokémon Go). This is a great way to give the product spatial context. It can also be used by attendees to explore the inner workings of a 3D model, helping them better understand your product or equipment and how it works.
As they move their device (headset or mobile device), they can explore a 3D model in real time. It’s a powerful tool for explaining complex fluid flows, electrical currents, or mechanical movements that are otherwise “invisible”.
3. A Digital Twin
Instead of presenting users with a video of your workplace, an interactive 3D representation of your minesite (or outdoor environment) utilising our Digital Twin (INDI) technology is a great solution to allow visitors to better understand what your business does. The team at Sentient can tie real-time data to a visualisation of your site or equipment.
Visitors can fly through a 3D environment of a plant or stockyard. Because INDI is a Digital Twin, you can demonstrate how live data overlays on physical assets, proving your operational transparency and technical sophistication right on the expo floor.
4. 3D Animations
Traditional brochures that are handed out at conferences and expos are often discarded, while visual experiences are remembered. Utilising 3D animations, you can showcase step-by-step complex processes, scenario simulations or time-based visualisations across screens of all sizes.
5. Collaborative VR Experience
Why not ‘break the ice’ and offer a Virtual Reality Experience your visitors will never forget? A collaborative VR Training experience where two or more users put on headsets and work together to tackle a certain scenario can be extremely engaging. The scenario itself can be whatever you like; perhaps they must solve a logistics bottleneck or use safety equipment. The options are literally endless.
6. Real-Time VR Training ‘Leaderboards’
If you don’t want to manage two users at one time in a VR training experience, you can alternatively offer a similar VR Training experience through a game or ‘safety challenge’ which puts visitors against each other with a live scoreboard.
For example, you could set up a safety challenge or ‘game’ where attendees must identify five site hazards in under 60 seconds, displaying a live scoreboard on a large screen to spark a competitive edge. This doesn’t just draw a crowd; it demonstrates how your business uses gamification to ensure safety compliance and information retention.
7. Interactive Stakeholder Maps
If your main goal at an expo or conference is to obtain funding or investment, Interactive Stakeholder Maps are a great asset.
Our MAVI – Stakeholder Engagement Tool allows visitors to see the life of a project, allowing them to toggle between different site conditions and future stages. This turns technical data into stakeholder engagement.
8. Live Operational Dashboards
Better showcase your operational reliability by bringing it to life through live (or simulated if required) data that can be displayed on your stand.
Our Macroview product is a SCADA/HMI system that is used by many industries (including gas, oil, mining, production, environmental and more) to present and analyse live plant data and events. By displaying this at an event, you can showcase how technically advanced your operation is.
9. Custom Branded Gaming Experience
Sometimes the best way to explain a complex industry is through a game. Imagine having a fully branded gaming experience that attendees can play at your booth!
Whether a 2D side-scroller or a 3D industrial challenge, a game is a great way to grab passers-by’s attention. The game itself can also double as a training experience for future stakeholders or be released publicly to attract brand awareness.
As official Unity Partners, Sentient has the gaming and industry experience to create a memorable game that doesn’t just look great but plays great!
10. Give them a ‘Take-Home’ Experience
Engagement shouldn’t just be at your booth. Why not utilise WebAR to give visitors an experience they can take home with them instead of a traditional business card or product flyer? A QR code can be added to your stand, inviting users to scan it using their phone camera. This can open up a WebAR experience of your choosing, should it be a 3D render of your product or a showcase of what you do.
The Sentient Difference
Here at Sentient, we have spent nearly two decades providing digital experiences that aren’t just for show but actually provide those using them with clarity and an interactive experience. Whether that be a VR experience, a Digital Twin of your operations or showcasing your training material, we focus on bridging the gap between what you provide and those that visit your booth.
Are you ready to stand out at your next show? Contact the team at Sentient to discuss how our technology can help you be the talk of the show!
