Cool Tradeshow Ideas Beyond the Booth: A Mural Health Case Study

For clinical trials to run smoothly, you need a seamless enrollment process that efficiently coordinates:

• Sponsors
• Sites
• Patients

That's where Mural Health's software comes in. And trade shows are one of the most strategic environments where Mural Health can pitch their software solution to clinical research sites and CROs.

Since a trade show floor is often packed with competitors, Mural Health's marketing lead, Gwen [name changed for privacy], was looking for a conversation piece for their sales team to be able to give out and also wear themselves.

"We want to have them wear these fun, branded shoe laces as a conversation starter, a way to stand out in the crowd, and to have some on hand to give to people they speak with." — Gwen

A pair of laces sounds simple. But the harder problem to solve was getting a gradient pattern precise enough to carry Mural Health's actual brand colors, on 200 pairs, in a design detailed enough to double as a giveaway attendees would actually want.

Quick Summary: What Did Mural Health's Trade Show Giveaway Actually Need?

Most trade show items (pens, tote bags, stress balls) end up in a hotel trash can by the end of the day. Mural Health wanted something different: a giveaway compelling enough to draw questions at the booth, then hold up as something their own sales team would actually wear once the show ended.

Here's the shape of the project:

Industry:	Clinical Research Technology / Healthcare SaaS
Problem:	Needed a standout trade show giveaway their prospects and sales team would actually wear, not shelf swag headed for the trash bin	❌
Product Used:	200 pairs of custom flat polyester 8 wide, 54" long gradient shoe laces in Mural Health's brand colors, with a subtle "mural health" mark printed on the aglets
Order Volume/Scope:	200 pairs, split between the sales team & prospect giveaways at trade shows	✅
The Big Win:	A complex color gradient most printers couldn't execute cleanly, packaged for easy handoff on the show floor

Painting the Picture: Mural Health's Mission

In 2022, Sam Whitaker announced that he was launching Mural Health, along with co-founders Jason Dong and Shawn Milochik. The vision was to create a patient-first technology primarily designed to benefit the study participant while also improving site operations and driving value to study sponsors.

The platform, Mural Link, operates like a general contractor for clinical trial logistics. It can remind participants to:

• Check in with a study nurse
• Take scheduled medication
• Log into a telehealth appointment

Mural Link also integrates directly with Uber and Lyft, allowing participants to book a ride to their next appointment without leaving the app. When trial-related expenses come up, the platform tracks them and reimburses participants directly, through Zelle, a bank transfer, or a prepaid debit card.

This pitch did not take long to generate momentum. According to a 2023 PRNewswire announcement, Mural Health raised $8 million in seed funding led by Bessemer Venture Partners, with participation from several additional investors, and as of that release, the company counted three of the top 15 pharmaceutical companies in the world as customers, along with several biotechs and research sites. Axios's coverage of the same raise noted that the vast majority of U.S. patients and providers never participate in a clinical trial at all, which is why easier enrollment is so critical for the sponsors Mural Health sells to.

That customer base is exactly who shows up at the trade shows Mural Health's sales team attends: pharma companies, CROs, and research sites, all in one room, all being pitched by a dozen vendors at once.

It's all the more reason why their trade show display engagement had to defy the average and give attendees something worth noticing.

The Real Challenge: A Gradient Precise Enough to Wear, Not Just Photograph

Gwen's vision was more than a logo dropped onto a stock lace. Instead, her primary goal was to achieve a smooth color gradient built from Mural Health's actual brand palette, and a logomark printed on the tip, meant to complement the white Nikes her sales team already wore to conferences and trade shows.

Longevity and durability were key considerations, too, since Mural Health's sales team attends roughly 20 conferences and trade shows a year. A cheap lace that looked sharp for one event and faded, cracked, or shifted color by the third one wasn't going to cut it.

That kind of gradient is also a harder print job than it looks. A flat logo or a simple two-tone split is straightforward for most vendors. A continuous color transition that has to hold true, without banding, drift, or an unexpected stretch of the wrong hue, against a clean white sneaker and across 200 individual pairs, is a different level of precision, and it's exactly where a lot of printers cut corners or fall short.

We also had to design these laces with a dual audience in mind: they would be worn by Mural Health's own sales team on the show floor, and also handed out as a giveaway to the potential customers they spoke with. In other words, the laces would be seen from both far away and up close, and had to look impressive in both contexts.

Inside the Build: How Laced Up Delivered for Mural Health's Marketing Needs

Based on the initial consultation, Laced Up mocked up two gradient options for Mural Health to choose between. Either option delivered the same continuous color transition the design called for, just anchored by a different end color.

During the design process, the question of which shoe to use also came to light. Gwen knew she wanted white Nikes for the sales team but hadn't settled on a specific model yet, so Laced Up put together a side-by-side comparison, complete with pricing and visuals: the Nike Court Legacy, Court Vision, Killshot, and Air Force 1, each with its correct lace length so the laces would actually fit once the shoes arrived. This level of detail and thoughtful guidance helped Joanna decide on both the shoes and the shoelaces with confidence.

Packaging was also integral. Each pair shipped in a custom poly bag with an open window on the front so the gradient was visible on a table or at the booth, and Mural Health's logo & a QR code linking straight to muralhealth.com printed on the back. The inclusion of the custom packaging not only elevated the feel of the laces, but also turned them into a measurable lead gen tool (rather than a generic "awareness" promo item).

The full order, 200 pairs, landed well within the client budget and arrived ahead of their October 22 conference date, giving the sales team laces in hand for the main event they needed them for most.

2 More Health Companies That Leveraged Laces for Memorable Gifts

Mural Health isn't an outlier in companies seeking branded laces that get more use, attention, and ROI than the unremarkable majority of corporate swag. Here some similar projects we've worked on for other clients:

1. Averitas Pharma

   worked with event partner Houndstooth Collective to build a sneaker gifting suite for a corporate conference. The full order came together in just over four weeks, faster than Laced Up's standard lead time, and still landed with time to spare before the event… with a quality product that exceed expectations for both the attendees and the event planner.

   Read the full Averitas case study here.

2. Weave

   also needed branded laces, but for a recurring monthly employee rewards program instead of a single event. Working from Weave's brand guide, Laced Up presented multiple iterations for settling on a set of four colorways ideal for pairing with custom Nike By You sneakers. With 200 pairs ordered complete with branded aglets, this unique gift keeps the program thriving for months to come.

   Read the full Weave case study here.

Cool Tradeshow Ideas Become Easier to Implement with Laced Up

Mural Health's approach proves that the best cool tradeshow ideas don't always require a bigger booth or more elaborate tech. Sometimes, all you need is a detail small enough to fit in someone's hand, done well enough that they actually keep it.

Is a pair of laces going to replace a great pitch? Definitely not.

But it gave Mural Health's sales team a reason to spark a conversation before the pitch even started, and it gave every attendee who walked away with a pair a small, physical reminder of that conversation (QR code included) long after the show floor closed.

Many traditional giveaways miss this. A tote bag or a pen can't earn you a conversation once it's handed over. But a giveaway built with intention, tied to a real brand identity and packaged to keep working after the fact, extends the interaction and increases your odds of winning the sale.

If your team is exhibiting at trade shows and wants a giveaway your booth visitors will actually wear instead of toss, contact us today. Together, let's build something that fits your brand, your budget, and your next event on the calendar.