Selling At Craft Fairs: What To Bring And How To Impress
Topics: craft fairs, craft shows, craft to-do list, sewing, embroidery, selling, 1st impressions
Your items are all made. You have done your research on how to price these treasures you have been working on for so long. Now it is time to get packed up and go! There are some essential and not-so-essential items that you should remember to take with you on the big day.
A Friend: First and foremost, bring help with you! Do not think for a minute that this is something you can do entirely on your own. Running a booth is a constant juggling act, so having a right-hand man is not only your key to success, but everything is more enjoyable when you can share it with others! Having a second person to take payments helps you be fully available to answer questions and show your products. Having a backup is also valuable for transporting items, being able to take a restroom break, or even grab a lunchtime meal. This person also becomes your cheerleader to help support your efforts throughout the day! I promise, you will be so grateful if you can find that special friend or family member to help you on the big day.
Your Products: How many you ask? That is a good question. Bring what you can, but make sure you have a sign-up list available for those who would like to special order for later delivery, in case you run out.
Bags for Customers: Shoppers need bags! There are a number of resources online with ideas on obtaining bags, but one of the best resources may be in your very own area! Before doing a show several years back, I went to our local drugstore, as I knew their bags did not carry the individual store’s name. Instead there was a rose and I figured if I could get them at a good price. It really did not matter what was on the bag! So I went in and asked the manager if I could purchase some bags from them and indeed they did let me! The cost was unbelievably cheap and I was ready to take my bags with me to the booth!
A Possible Credit Card Machine: If this is doable, you may want to seriously consider opening up this method of paying to customers. By doing so, you are offering a convenient service to them. If you don’t, you may lose some potential buyers. I say this not to scare you, but perhaps intrigue you into looking into this option more seriously. It not only makes your booth look even more professional, but it is also a much safer route to go than accepting personal checks. You must obtain a merchant account in order to offer this, so be sure to check with your bank on how to do this. Taking credit and debit cards can really boost your sales!
Your Money Center : Some craft fair organizers provide these for you and some do not, so be sure to check into your options. The small table is a great place to set up your money center. Some ideas of what to include are your calculator, a receipt book, a sales tax chart, cash box or machine, and the credit card machine if you go that route. And while you’re at it, don’t forget to bring change! A copy of your sales tax certificate and your business license to hang up in your booth is also a nice touch.
A Small Cooler: Bring some snacks and bottles of water to keep you at your peak performance all day. You may easily get worn down if you wait too long before taking a break. Sometimes a small snack provides the right energy boost you need!
Office Supplies & Other Misc.: These include: pens, stapler, tape, a garbage bag, sales tax chart for your area, extra price tags, markers, business cards and brochures, tape, your cell phone, a camera so you can document this fun day, and possibly some candy in a bowl. Don’t believe for a second that the candy is just for the children! The grown-ups love it just as well!
Any Hang Tags or Care Instructions: If you are offering any item for sale that requires special instructions, be sure to attach those to your products. Your customers will truly appreciate your efforts.
Tissue or Newspaper: If you have any items that are fragile, you will want to be sure to have these on hand to help package the items in the customers’ bags.
Shelves: If possible, see if you can find some shelves that you can put onto your tables. Keeping items at different levels is more pleasing to the eye. So lift! Keep the booth interesting by doing this. Crates and stacks of blocks also work well with linen cloths draped over.
Company Name Sign: Make sure it is big and make it something special. If you have a website, be sure to include that on your banner as well.
Now, let’s talk about that first impression! We all know the saying, “You never get a second chance to make a good first impression”, right? Well, it rings true in selling, as well! First of all, if you follow the checklist items mentioned above, you are already half-way there because you are ORGANIZED. Have your booth set up well in advance before the show begins. That way you are not scrambling at the last minute while customers are beginning to just walk on by.
Keep your prices clearly marked. Remember my “car sales” approach? Trust me, customers want to see the price immediately and not have to guess. If they do, some will simply just not inquire.
If possible, you may want to consider making some of your items right in front of the customers. If you are selling jewelry for example, demonstrate the process you go through to make a particular piece. This method can work in many different areas of crafting and others may truly enjoy watching! And just think, you will be able to get something done at the same time! But be carefully not to ignore the customer while working on your project. Be flexible enough to pause the project to answer questions, visit with the customer and showcase some of your best-sellers. This is also where your helper can come in handy.
Be positive! There is no doubt that you will get some who may come into your booth and you will hear whisperings such as, “Oh, I bet I could make that myself” or “That’s nice, but she’s asking WAY too much for it. I could get that cheaper somewhere else!” Staying positive and upbeat will create a great feeling in your booth. Both you and the customer win when you can maintain a pleasant and courteous demeanor no matter what. Be a professional. You will always get the naysayers, but more often than not, you will find customers who are just excited to be a part of this whole experience. They will appreciate the extra effort you go to being genuine in your approach to each of them. And smile!
Cover tables with floor-length tablecloths. This makes great storage space for your extra items and keeps the booth area look nice and neat. A solid color works best so it does not distract from your hand-made items.
Dress professionally. As mentioned before, you are a professional. Wear comfortable shoes. If you have a company name on a shirt or jacket, wear it! If not, just keeping a modest and higher end casual style in your clothing choices will make you feel even more confident and approachable.
Kim Christopherson is the owner and creator of www.YouCanMakeThis.com. Find hundreds of downloadable patterns and “how-to” eBooks for your home and family. Sign up for the YCMT newsletter and receive a $75 ebook bundle package for FREE!
Previous Articles Highlighter:
Semi Truck Driving Job Requirements, Endorsements, And Restrictions (1)
Whether you choose to buy or lease depends upon your creditworthiness and your long-term goals. Leasing can be a less expensive option and is often an easier way to begin for individuals who want to jump start their own business.
How To Repair A Clogged Drain In Your Kitchen Or Bathroom Before You Call Your Plumber (2)
Again, use caution with any of these methods. If your kitchen drains are clogged, natural living enzyme culture drain cleaners will work well. These enzymes break down any organic matter that is clogging up your drains.
List Building Tools Will Help Your Online Business (3)
Excite Your Customer Everyone likes to feel like they're part of something so create a contest and present a prize to the winner. This will be a big boost for your business because of the hype surrounding the big day when a winner is announced.
The Litmus Test: Don't Lie, Cheat, Or Steal (4)
But having this knowledge isn't enough. You also need to have an instinct for what is right and what is wrong. If you ever have that niggling sense that something isn't right, stop and ask someone you trust and admire to help you think through the situation.
Article Marketing, Quick Start Ways To Earn Money (5)
To create action articles take a 350-500 word article you have written and add action questions at the end. These questions are designed to get the reader to take action on what they have read.
House Painting: What It Can Do For Your Home (6)
If the paint on the outside of your home is beginning to crack or peel, it is a good idea to call a paint contractor to get rid of the cracking paint and to apply a new paint job.
Answering Services Provide A Valuable Service To Society (7)
Somebody live is always available to you no matter when you call. If a doctor is required to return the call immediately, then he or she can be called on their cell phone.
Optimizing Your Wholesale Video Games Script: Answered! (8)
Know that when someone refers to optimization it refers to structuring your website in order to rank better in the search engines. As you know if it comes to the best quality and it happens to be free, nobody should be able beat it.
What Are The Best Baby Blankets? (9)
By contrast, the Wamsutta chenille got a "disappointed thumbs down" from mothers because "you just can't wash it without causing noticeable damage." Apparently, the Wamsutta Cable Baby Blanket had material that shed in the dryer, as reported by some mothers.
How Do You Get Traffic? (10)
You can have a great looking page, or it can be a jigsaw puzzle of words that has no meaning. The bottom line is, if no one ever sees your web page you will never accomplish the goal you had when you designed the page.
Newer Articles Highlighter:
Can You Really Buy Pets Online? (1)
That's if the person doing the selling is willing to meet you at a halfway point. Something like that is rare unless that person selling the animal is that passionate about placing that animal in your home.
Wholesale Liquidations, Does The Retail And Closeouts Market Place Need Them? (2)
This ensures that the market prices remain the same; increase in supply would mean decrease in prices in a free market economy. Liquidators are without limits. They operate in wholesale; by all means-literally.
JavaScript Errors - What They Are And Why They Can Be The Cause Of Poor PC Performance (3)
Check it routinely to make sure that your registry hasn't become clogged with wrong information that slows down performance. There's a lot of registry cleaning software out there that can help you take care of this unfortunate side effect of JavaScript errors.
Effective SEO Comes Cheap (4)
Registering your domain name is not for free. But creativity is. 4. Organize your site navigation Providing easy steps in navigating your site is one way to make your visitors become at ease with your site.
Winterize Your Wild Birds (5)
What's a sure way to attract birds to your feeders? Provide a source of water, especially in winter! Accessible water in freezing weather will attract at least as many birds as a well stocked feeder.
Become A Millionaire While You Sleep! My Kind Of Work! (6)
Most of them said the same thing with a little different hook from each one. If I had been lonely and without a friend in the world, I would have enjoyed the attention I was getting.
The Role Of Technology In Wholesale Trading (7)
These businesses, especially online ones, look forward to the Internet to offer them with the capacity to engage in wholesale trading. The development of drip shipping, the eBay in particular, has formed a niche for small businessmen to operate and receive profits.
Keep Autoresponder Messages Neat And Clean (8)
How do you know what you message looks like? Make sure you send the first series to yourself so that you are sure you got it right. If it doesn't look professional to you, there is no way that it will look professional to your client base.
What Business Travelers Should Know About A Multiple Entry China Travel Visa (9)
A multiple, double, and single visa are all three very different things. You can only get into the country once with a single visa and twice with a double entry.
Article Marketing; Your Key To Success, Keep On Writing! (10)
And because they have already learned something from your article you can be sure that they are at your website looking for more of what you have to offer. That means that you will see an increase in sales because of the increase in traffic that is visiting with a purpose.
Permalink to Selling At Craft Fairs: What To Bring And How To Impress