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I’ve Spent Thousands on Tradeshows and Markets – Here’s What I’ve Learned | Craft Market Inspiration
This is a follow up to our Craft Market Display Series. See Part 1 here, Part 2 and Part 3 here!
I’ve been in the maker business world for just over 6 years now. I’ve done private pop-ups, school fairs, multi-day holiday shows and large scale trade shows.
I’ve spent a LOT of money on booth fees.
Want to know what I’ve learned? Here’s a cole’s notes version of my favourite lessons. If you have any questions or want to know more about any of these points, slide into my inbox or comment below!
- Get yo’self an essentials box
I don’t care how organized you are, if it’s your first show or your 100th show, your life will be a million times easier if you build yourself an essentials box. Make a list of all the things you might need over the course of set up, working the market and the take down, and get started on putting it together. Purchase duplicates of the items that you could see yourself taking out of the box in the future (like scissors!). That way, you know they are always there when you go for them during set up. Need some ideas to get you started? Mine includes business cards, chalk, S hooks, double sided tape, chap stick and an emergency granola bar (among other things!) - Just because a show is juried and difficult to get into, does NOT mean it will be profitable for you
I have fallen victim to this one more than once. I repeatedly apply to certain markets, only to get denied every time. It becomes my white whale. It must be good because it’s so difficult to get into – and when I finally get accepted, I have high expectations, baby. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. There could be many reasons why the show is so difficult to get into, and your success once accepted is in no way correlated with the acceptance rate. - Pay attention to how much advertising the market/show has done in previous years
Pay attention to how you originally heard about the show, and what type of people they are targeting in their marketing (if any at all). Some shows including advertising as part of their budget for the show, some have expectations that their vendors will be spreading the word for them. Unfortunately, as a maker preparing for a show, I don’t often have time to prepare marketing material to promote the upcoming show – and I know many other makers who also feel this way. Some of the smaller shows have incredible marketing and expect very little from their vendors, whereas some larger shows with high booth fees, do very little. Pay attention to this. - Weigh the pros and cons of the price of your booth fee.
Most makers will have an average cost that they are willing to spend on booth fees (the least I have spent on a market booth was $50 and the most I have spent was $650). I have super smart friends who calculate out the hours of a show, to breakdown the overall cost per hour to determine if the fee is within their range or not – so this could also be a good method for you as well. Some shows are 6 hour days, and some are 12, so that is something to factor in. For me, I like to keep things very simple. I like to stay between the $150 – $200/day range regardless of the hours. Of course, this will vary depending on your type of business, how long you’ve been doing it, etc. Don’t feel like you need to spend this much just starting out! - Be realistic about your revenue goals – especially when deciding to come back the following year
Just like above, my revenue goal is set per day as well (regardless of the hours). This is also something that will vary with you and your business, but for me to consider signing up for a market (or coming back the following year) I have to be able to anticipate sales of at least $1000 per day. Take a look at your product supply, and ensure you have enough product to reach your revenue goal as well – set yourself up for success! Remember: higher entrance fees do not necessarily mean high sales. - The types of shoppers vary drastically depending on the show’s vibe
I have often shopped a market prior to applying as a vendor, to scope out the overall feel of the show. In the past, I’ve paid attention mostly to the booth displays, quality of vendors, whether there was a good mixture, etc. I am looking to see if I am among peers who take their businesses as seriously as I do.
However, lately I’ve been making a point to pay attention to the types of shoppers as well. At the end of the day, they are the ones that will determine if you are successful or not. Are the types of people that you see your target market?! Are they carrying shopping bags, are they chatting with the vendors, etc. Obviously shows are not exactly the same year after year, but you can generally get a good feel of the show as you walk throughout the room. - Adjust your display based on the vibe of the show shoppers
When I was starting out, I did primarily vintage markets. They are honestly the most fun for me to do, and I still do them every year. People drive hours to come out of the city, to a big barn venue to look for unique and beautiful finds to add to their home. Over the years, other vendors (like clothing, etc) have been added, but they all have this great hip vibe and together we create the most amazing shopping experience for people who are consistently there to shop. I’ve also learned that these people like a treasure. Like when you find a great bowl at Winners/Homesense/Marshalls. You had to dig for it, and you found it, and you loved it. So, you bought.
These markets feel like that – so I can fill my 10×10 booth with so many goodies and people will come in and browse and flip through and it’s a really cool experience. They want to come in and check out what you got. - Tradeshow shoppers want to see everything as they walk by.
When I did my larger tradeshow in the city – nobody would come in the booth! I worked so hard to make it inviting, with enough space to browse, but I learned pretty quickly that was not going to work. In my experience, creating a beautiful ‘store-like’ experience where you want to encourage people to stick around, does not work in tradeshow environments.
Tradeshows are busy, there is a lot to see, and many of the vendors are there year after year (sometimes in the exact same spots). People generally know what they are coming for and often aren’t there to slowly browse through everything there is to offer. They want to see your goods, without having to do too much work. - Trying to catch the shoppers’ eye? Try one of these adjustments:
I learned this one very quickly at my most recent show. If you are fairly new, and none of these people are familiar with your brand yet, you’re going to need to work extra hard to catch their eye.
– I moved my funniest desk blocks out to the front so passerbyer’s could read them. It worked, they stopped to take in a bit more of my booth, even if it was just for a few seconds, while their friend read a sign.
– I pushed my entire display closer to the walkway, leaving less of a gap between them and my shelves.
– I stood behind the table, greeted them, but kept myself busy. It allowed me to show them I was happy they were there, but they were under no obligation to talk to me while they looked.
– I added larger signage with market deals ($28 each or 2/$50). I found that shoppers at larger shows appreciate deals slightly more than at smaller shows. - Finally, always be on the lookout for great display pieces
You never know when you’ll find something that will totally change how you display your goods! I’ve found my favourite display pieces at Homesense/Winners, Ikea, Amazon and Etsy. I’ve even posted an article just about awesome display pieces, which you can catch right here.
Well that’s the end of my list for now. I’m sure I’ll be back with more soon! If you’re interested in reading more, click here to see all of my articles about craft markets and craft market displays!
Till next time,
