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Hi there,
Speaker:it's Sue and thanks for joining me for Tips and Talk
Speaker:Day. These are bite-sized topics that I pull from community questions
Speaker:and things that I'm observing in the world of handmade small
Speaker:business. If you'd like to submit a topic,
Speaker:DM e over on Instagram at Gift Biz Unwrapped.
Speaker:Before I get into the show today,
Speaker:I have a message for you.
Speaker:If you're just now starting to think of starting a handmade
Speaker:product business,
Speaker:at this point,
Speaker:you may be thinking about your business name and logo.
Speaker:That's what would be natural and what most people would do,
Speaker:but hold on a second.
Speaker:It's not the best initial step.
Speaker:There are other important things to do first to make sure
Speaker:you're set up for success and ensure your product easily attracts
Speaker:buyers. Sometimes it's just a little tweak.
Speaker:That's the difference between a thriving and failing business.
Speaker:Before you spend a lot of time and money,
Speaker:make sure to validate your product and ensure it's positioned and
Speaker:priced so you'll see results right from the beginning.
Speaker:That way you can start your business with confidence.
Speaker:I can help you with that.
Speaker:Go to gift biz unwrap.com/start
Speaker:for all the details.
Speaker:We are so lucky in our industry of handmade to have
Speaker:what feels like endless options for face-to-face selling options that come
Speaker:in all styles and formats too.
Speaker:Craft shows,
Speaker:county fairs,
Speaker:church bazaars,
Speaker:local handmade creator markets,
Speaker:artisan exhibitions,
Speaker:upscale jury shows,
Speaker:special themed events,
Speaker:all different versions offering you so many choices.
Speaker:Coast to coast when considering which shows to do some decisions
Speaker:are easy because of your product,
Speaker:your snack mix is a natural fit for a farmer's market,
Speaker:or if you're a fine artist,
Speaker:our juried art show makes perfect sense and will attract the
Speaker:right customers.
Speaker:Even going outside of your obvious fit can prove fruitful.
Speaker:Many of my handmade coaching students have gone to shows that
Speaker:seem to have been a mismatch but have been highly successful
Speaker:perhaps because it seems so random and therefore attracts attention free
Speaker:of competitors.
Speaker:Testing is always the only way to know if a show
Speaker:will work for you,
Speaker:but there are things to consider to slant the odds in
Speaker:your favor.
Speaker:Today, I wanna talk about the size of a show and
Speaker:how that can affect your success.
Speaker:You may initially think that larger shows will bring greater results,
Speaker:but that's not always the case.
Speaker:Both large and small shows are worth considering.
Speaker:I recently got back from a show that over the years
Speaker:has dramatically shrunken size,
Speaker:but my sales were just as good if not better than
Speaker:some of the shows that were four times the size in
Speaker:the past.
Speaker:Let's talk about each of these types of shows to help
Speaker:you analyze and plan your show participation moving forward.
Speaker:Small shows first,
Speaker:if you're doing your very first show,
Speaker:small is definitely the way to go.
Speaker:It'll be less overwhelming and costly and will allow you to
Speaker:find and perfect your show style.
Speaker:A starter booth display will work just fine as you test
Speaker:and plan and then upgrade from there.
Speaker:Small shows also give you time to learn your most comfortable
Speaker:customer interaction style.
Speaker:I've done quite a few episodes now on how to manage
Speaker:communication at your booth,
Speaker:and I'll add those to the show notes page here for
Speaker:this episode.
Speaker:But smaller shows aren't just for newbies.
Speaker:There are lots of advantages that bode well for businesses of
Speaker:all sizes.
Speaker:If this show is in your local community,
Speaker:you don't have any travel time and can sleep in your
Speaker:own bed at night,
Speaker:which is a huge plus at local shows,
Speaker:you'll also most likely know a lot of the browsers,
Speaker:which brings ease to conversations and potentially new awareness of your
Speaker:business to some of your friends or distant acquaintances.
Speaker:The sense of community and supporting local will play in your
Speaker:favor too with sales and email signups.
Speaker:Smaller shows like farmer's markets usually have a regular schedule the
Speaker:first Saturday of each month,
Speaker:for example,
Speaker:or even weekly during the season.
Speaker:Being seen regularly at a setup like this builds trust,
Speaker:and of course the opportunity for repeat purchases,
Speaker:so even though it's smaller in terms of attendance and draw
Speaker:the quality of customers and weekly sales from the same people
Speaker:is high product dependent.
Speaker:Of course,
Speaker:another advantage is easy in and out parking,
Speaker:no long walks to the venue or dealing with parking garages.
Speaker:This accessibility prompts more last minute decisions on behalf of attendees
Speaker:who can pop in and out quickly.
Speaker:An ease of access can also prompt repeat visits on both
Speaker:Saturday and Sunday because it's a social setting to hang out
Speaker:in as well.
Speaker:I talk about this more in next week's tips and talk
Speaker:show. Smaller shows can attract large or small crowds.
Speaker:Relatively speaking.
Speaker:You can have a huge convention hall and no traffic as
Speaker:easily as you can.
Speaker:Have a craft show that's a couple of blocks long that's
Speaker:packed with people doesn't correlate.
Speaker:In other words,
Speaker:a small show can bring in a large crowd and vice
Speaker:versa. It depends on a lot of things including weather,
Speaker:but don't be dismayed if the number of people walking a
Speaker:show is low when there are fewer people.
Speaker:It gives you and your booth visitors more time to talk.
Speaker:It's less rushed and does have the potential to bring in
Speaker:just as many dollars as a busy show because you have
Speaker:more time to interact and that leads to bigger ticket orders.
Speaker:A smaller show may also mean you're the only one there
Speaker:selling the product in your particular category.
Speaker:Less lesser note competition can be a big plus for obvious
Speaker:reasons. Let's move on to the larger shows now.
Speaker:They're typically put on in a city or a county and
Speaker:have more structure to them by necessity.
Speaker:In my area,
Speaker:we have the one of a kind show in the Chicago
Speaker:Merchandise Mart that occurs twice a year,
Speaker:and by contrast,
Speaker:the Cain County Flea Market,
Speaker:which is a monthly event from March through December.
Speaker:One is more formal and the other is super casual.
Speaker:Both attract large crowds and need an organized parking system.
Speaker:It's definitely an investment of time and energy to attend one
Speaker:of these shows,
Speaker:which is part of the appeal.
Speaker:It's pretty much a full day of activity and entertainment at
Speaker:these shows.
Speaker:There's a lot of opportunity to get visibility you wouldn't have
Speaker:otherwise. People drive from all around pulling from as far as
Speaker:50 miles in any direction.
Speaker:Having new people find you and learn about your company is
Speaker:huge. Many times you're able to keep your booth location from
Speaker:show to show so people who wanna purchase again can easily
Speaker:find you.
Speaker:Even with so many vendors,
Speaker:there's also more competition at large shows,
Speaker:but this can be a good thing.
Speaker:Someone who's looking for new earrings won't necessarily buy just one
Speaker:pair. Having your products stand side by side with others can
Speaker:actually bring you in more sales with the superior product quality
Speaker:I know you have and a unique design style and display,
Speaker:you have the opportunity to stand out and since you've listened
Speaker:to this podcast,
Speaker:you know how to interact with people to make them feel
Speaker:special and enjoy their time with you.
Speaker:That all leads to sales with or without competition.
Speaker:People also spend more time at large shows.
Speaker:There's entertainment,
Speaker:sitting areas,
Speaker:bathrooms, because there's always that need when you spend a lot
Speaker:of time at a show,
Speaker:and this offers a couple of things.
Speaker:First, someone who's already visited your booth may pass by several
Speaker:times over the course of the day.
Speaker:While they may have liked but not purchased from you the
Speaker:first time,
Speaker:they might a second or the third.
Speaker:It also gives someone time to think about your products for
Speaker:a bit and still take action while they're at the show.
Speaker:They fell in love with your leather bags,
Speaker:but it's more than they wanted to spend,
Speaker:so they walked away and decided they were gonna think about
Speaker:it, but they can't get it out of their their mind
Speaker:and eventually decide it's now or never,
Speaker:and they return to purchase.
Speaker:The chances of them seeking you out after they leave a
Speaker:show are dramatically reduced even if they have a card with
Speaker:your website on it.
Speaker:Larger shows where people spend a lot more time allows this
Speaker:to happen.
Speaker:There are definite advantages and disadvantages to both large and small
Speaker:shows. How much publicity does a show get to attract people
Speaker:or even let them know it's happening?
Speaker:What is your cost to attend?
Speaker:How does it attract customers who would normally buy your items?
Speaker:These are all things to consider when making a show plan.
Speaker:Ideally, as I mentioned earlier,
Speaker:if you're starting out a small local show is the way
Speaker:to go.
Speaker:Once you have a couple of shows under your belt,
Speaker:expand out and try others.
Speaker:You'll find some smaller shows,
Speaker:produce better results than others,
Speaker:and the same with comparing one larger show against another experiment.
Speaker:Analyze afterwards and you're sure to land on the right mix
Speaker:for you.
Speaker:That's a wrap.
Speaker:I'm a get to the point kind of girl,
Speaker:and this is what you can expect from these quick midweek
Speaker:sessions. Now it's your turn.
Speaker:Go out and fulfill that dream of yours.
Speaker:Share your handmade products with us.
