Start here
Choose a wheel when the main goal is a simple prize moment. Consider a custom game when the player action can help explain your product or campaign. Either way, plan staffing, visitor flow and follow-up before you choose the format.
Start with the job the activity needs to do
If you mainly need a familiar way to invite people into a giveaway, a prize wheel may be enough. If visitors need a reason to explore a product idea, a game can make the idea part of the action. The format should support the conversation your booth team can actually have.
Do not choose by spectacle alone. Write down what a visitor should understand, what the team will ask after play and what a useful next step looks like.
Source: Freeman: Exhibitor Guide to Connecting With Attendees ↗
Compare the booth experience
These are planning distinctions, not guarantees about attention, lead quality or sales. The quality of the booth setup, instructions, staff handoff and offer still matters.
Swipe to compare all columns →
| Decision | Prize wheel | Custom game |
|---|---|---|
| Visitor objective | A clear spin or giveaway moment. | A short challenge with an objective connected to the product story. |
| Product message | Usually carried by booth staff and surrounding copy. | Can be expressed through the rules, goals, labels and feedback. |
| Staff role | Explain the giveaway and its terms. | Welcome the player, then use the round as an opening for a relevant conversation. |
| Production scope | Confirm the wheel, prize handling, signage and event rules. | Agree the game format, approved content, devices, controls, hosting and event support. |
| Best fit | A simple participation or prize moment. | A product story that benefits from a visitor taking an action. |
Plan for the full visitor cycle
A custom game can use a short round, often around 60 seconds in the current EventBitZ concepts. Rehearse the whole interaction: invitation, instructions, play, reset and the first staff question. A round timer alone does not tell you how many visitors the booth can serve.
A prize wheel also needs an owner. Decide who explains the rules, replenishes prizes, manages any line and moves the visitor into a product conversation. Test the activity in the same footprint and with the same staff roles you expect at the show.
- Check that the screen and controls are visible without blocking the booth's main path.
- Assign who invites, explains, resets the game and starts the follow-up conversation.
- Rehearse what happens when several people arrive together, not only a single play.
- Confirm the fallback plan for display, power, network and controls with the event team.
Treat lead capture as a separate decision
Neither a spin nor a play is automatically a qualified lead. If you want contact capture, agree what the visitor is asked to provide, what consent language your team approves, who receives the information and how follow-up will work. EventBitZ can scope optional lead capture for applicable game builds; confirm it in the proposal.
Keep participation, opted-in contacts and qualified conversations as separate counts. A prize entry or game score should not be treated as evidence of buying intent.
Use this decision checklist
The EventBitZ starting scopes are about $5,000 for a simple branded game and $15,000 for an original custom game. Hardware, hosting, support and event requirements depend on the agreed scope. See the cost guide before comparing a game proposal with another activation.
- Choose a wheel if a quick, familiar giveaway is the full objective.
- Consider a game if a product idea can be expressed through a meaningful player action.
- Confirm booth space, display, power, connectivity and staff ownership for either format.
- Decide how the activity leads into a useful conversation and follow-up.
- Compare quotes only after the included production and event responsibilities are clear.