Applying for Craft Fairs

The Application

Read the application guidelines

Read them carefully.  Make sure you note the exact requirements given in the guideline notes.  Most craft, design and trade events have very similar requirements - name, contact, background, CV, artist statement and images.

But to complete the information appropriately you need to do exactly as they request.  Complete all the questions. Send only the requested number of images.  Make sure you have sent them in the exact format they ask for.

You need to read between the lines of the application guidelines to understand best what the event is looking for.  They may be looking for production work, designer or lifestyle items, etc.  Reading between the lines will give you an indication of how to steer your application to attract the selectors attention.   This will help you present the written parts of your application in the light of the organiser’s objectives.  This will apply particularly to the CV.  It is here that your story of what, how and why you make glass will distinguish you from other applicants. Importantly, it will also apply to the selection of your images.  If your images fit the objectives of the event, you are more likely to be selected.

Show your best pictures

The most important part of your application is the images you send.  This, more than anything else, will count in your favour during the selection.  Of course, the written material still counts, but the first element is the images.

They need to be of professional standard, ideally taken by a professional photographer. When you are selected, these images will be used in promotional materials, for the press and for the exhibition catalogue. So, great photographs are more likely to get your work into the press for the event.  Conversely, if the images are not of press quality, they are unlikely to be selected.

The images should represent in detail the things you will be showing at the event.  They need to show an overview, with some variety, of what you do.  They should show your skills and quality of production.  Some idea of scale is essential.  This is where props can help.  You can use lifestyle settings which allows more items to be shown, but make sure your work is the focus of the photograph. 

Often it is best to photograph each work as a single item on a white background.  Well-lit studio photographs work well, but daylight settings on an overcast day can provide really good images with indirect light, as any harsh shadows are eliminated. 

The images need to be labelled – often in the file name – with your business name, title and short description. 

When preparing your application and images, make sure you update the website, because the selectors will be looking there for more information and images, especially of any previous shows you have been to and show there.  The freshness of the site’s appearance will have an influence on your selection.

Return your application on time

This is obvious, but not always done.  Take note of the application deadlines, and make notes in your diary as to when things need to be done to get the application to the organisers on time, or even early.

If the event is not a selective one, you need to get in early as applications are often reviewed as they come.  Juried events will have all the applications looked at on the same day, but give the organisers enough time to get the images loaded and co-ordinated with your application.  Remember that organisers get many applications, so you need to make it easy for them to like your work.

Get feedback

If you are not selected, you can review your application to see what you might do better next time.  The rejection letter may give you some information, if it is not a generic one.  It may be that there were just too many applicants, or too many with glass as their medium.  Did your work fit with the ethos of the event – e.g. traditional vs contemporary.

You can contact the organisers - politely – indicating theirs is a show you really want to get into because of its quality or other element that is complimentary to the event.  Your questions should be polite and ask for feedback on specific things, so it is easy for them to respond.  Many of these questions will be centred around what you could do differently to have a better chance of selection next time.

It is just possible a polite professional approach to getting feedback may take you off a waiting list and into the event. In any case, visit the show, if you can, to see how it looks and feels.

https askharriete.typepad.comask_harriete201212responsibilities-of-craft-show-organizers.html

The Organisers’ Views

Research

Show the event has been researched by indicating how your glass work will fit with the organiser’s objectives.  How does your quality of work fit with the other exhibitors?  Give evidence of stands and participation at other shows, especially on your website and social media.

Application

It is most important that the application guidelines have been read and adhered to.  You should include relevant personal information on what inspires you, where you work, the materials and techniques you employ – in short, your story.

Images

Present images showing a confident, original group of work rather than showing all your variety.  The pictures must be in focus, well lit, with clean backgrounds and with detail shots only were necessary.  Many organisers get four or more applications for each available stand, so the photography is essential to show the potential of your glass.

Have good, up to date images of current work on your up to date and professional website and social media.  Often your website will be considered for more information, especially their previous stands at other events.  It is often good to see images of previous stands at previous shows.

Review

Don’t take any rejection personally. Don’t give up.  Review why you were not successful – right fit to the event? Too many of your medium/style applied? Does your glass stand out from others? Perhaps you need more confidence in your work.

Finally

“Fit the criteria of quality, innovation, skill and dedication” [in your application]. Samme Charlesworth, Director of Breeze Art and Makers Fair in Cornwall.

Selectors Views

The administration

The selectors and the organisers work together to create a focused event with originality and quality of work with a combination of established and emerging makers.  They also want diversity of media and styles with a variety of price.  Applications which have not met the application guidelines will have been eliminated by the organisers before the selection process begins. 

Often the organiser will give the selectors the number of applications and the number of stands available, with an indication of how many per category.  Then the selection begins.  Sometimes a quick pass through the images will be the first stage, followed by a slower showing at which the selectors vote for inclusion, exclusion or possible (waiting list).  The waiting list (of around 20%) provides the organiser with some flexibility to fill gaps where selected people do not take up their place, review the balance between established and emerging makers, the balance of media represented, etc.

This administrative process shows how important images are in the selection process.  Only the people on the waiting list are ever likely to have the other parts of their application viewed by the selectors.  The text you provide in the application gets you to the selection or eliminates you at the first stage.

The Selection

The selectors need to be able to distinguish what the images show.  If you show only detail, it will be difficult to determine what it or its function is. Too many other items in the image make it difficult to determine which are the items for the show. Dark images do not show the glass at it best. Extreme contrast makes for uncomfortable viewing. Material of composition should be apparent in the images. Whether the glass is production or handmade needs to be obvious.  A combination of these failings will be likely to get your work rejected.

Your images should show a coherent group of work. Diverse styles and materials make it difficult for selectors to see a style or brand. A unity of theme for the group of images is needed.

Technically good images are essential.  Focus is absolutely essential.  Any camera shake or unfocused images will not be viewed favourably. Use the same level of resolution and format for all your images so that all you work appears on the same scale to enable the selectors to judge the size of the pieces in the images.

Images must be professional in appearance.  If your work is selected, the images may be used in promotion and  the catalogue.  So, it must be of a quality for reproduction in the news and design press. Busy backgrounds are distracting and not normally suitable for the press.  Lifestyle images must be clearly focused on the glass.  The surroundings cannot intrude on or dominate the piece of glass being shown.

Using models to display your work requires professional photographer to be effective.  Amateur photographs of pieces on models will not get selected.

Show your work at its best.  Close ups will show quality but only a small proportion. Present a few items to focus attention on the group of items you intend to present at the show.

One of the images you present to the selectors might be of you working on one of the glass pieces, or your packaging or branding in the context of a stand.

Emerging makers are more likely to have their website and additional information looked at.  So, it is vitally important that these are up to date with current work, and older work put into a subordinate section.

Selling online

Credit: 48HoursLogo.com

Once you have achieved a lot of visits to your website, you need to convert the visits to sales. 

The first thing you need to do is consider your products.  Craft products are more difficult to sell online than mass manufactured items that are completely standard and so have known quality.

Is your product suitable for online selling?

·        The general case is that lower priced gift items are easier to sell than expensive ones. 

·        Is delivery expensive relative to the cost of the item? 

·        Do the items have to be sized, e.g., rings?

·        Are the items easy to post safely without breakage?

·        How much packaging will be necessary?

If the answers are that what you sell is expensive to buy or deliver, must made to a size, or are difficult to post, you may have difficulties in generating sales.  If you have items that are likely to sell less well online, consider the other ways you can sell them – trade events, galleries, shops, wholesale.  Also think about making items that are easier to sell online, but still fall within your style.  This approach will help support your more difficult to deliver or more expensive items that won’t sell well online.

Then

Online selling techniques are not so different from in-person selling, except that you have to rely on text and images to do the selling.  This puts more emphasis on words and images and getting your personality into those two things.

The basics are:

Get the viewer’s attention

Stimulate their interest

Develop their desire for the object

Convert these elements into the purchase.

There are many things that can create these three pre-requisites for a purchase.  

Images

The quality of images is extremely important.  Photographs must be sharp, focused, and with lots of light.  They must be taken to show the quality of craftsmanship.  Multiple pictures of the item help to give a better feeling of the object.  They should be taken from various angles, including the unseen backs of items to show the craftsmanship and help promote the assurance of quality. Lifestyle images bring items to life, but have to be carefully arranged.  This is often done best by a professional photographer.

Get and maintain interest

What you do must be apparent immediately.  Do you have recognisable work or style? Is your business name memorable?  An explanation of what you do and why it is unique is important to maintain interest.  Links from these explanations to relevant individual items or product groups are appropriate to keeping people engaged.

It is important to maintain interest after the initial contact.  Make it easy to find other relevant items. Use links, buttons, suggestions, etc., liberally.

Keep the site alive with case studies. These can be the background to your workday, or events in your business life.   Inside views of the development of new lines shows how you progress from idea to finished work.  You have interesting ways of working, that many people are interested in knowing about. Show your working practices, tell them the story of making.

You need to keep in touch with potential and existing clients.  Direct posts to those you have contact details for, with information on developments keeps you and what you do in customers’ minds.  These must not be direct sales pitches.  You can ask questions of these people to keep them engaged. They may also tell others about you and your work.  General posts to targeted audiences can help spread the word too.  Some paid promotion on social media can help, if targeted to the right people.

Provide information

Explain the potential questions about each item that client may have.  Think about the kinds of questions you ask about non-glass craft products. Use those approaches in stating and answering these questions.

Make the explanations personal and consistent with your site and the glass products you are offering.  In many cases, it is desirable to establish a FAQ section, including terms and conditions.  This can help maintain confidence of the buyer in your ability to make and supply the work.

Purchase

What’s for sale

You need to overcome any difficulties that the client might face in coming to the buying decision.  The website should be immediately clear about what you do and for whom.  Price levels need to be clear, possibly by grouping or sorting. Images need to connect with client desires.  This is where lifestyle images are useful.  Do remember that first impressions are all important.

Develop trust

Development of, or appearance of trustworthiness is essential to buying.  People buy from those they know, like and trust.  Development of this is essential for consistent online sales, as well as anywhere else.  This can be promoted by your presence on a group of platforms that you link between. Good descriptions of products and about yourself are important to maintaining the trust of the client.  Testimonials, if you have them, are useful. 

The website must appear professional.  Knowledge of your location is important to developing confidence in your work. Knowing where else your work is available is also important in validating confidence in your business.  Knowledge of where else your work can be purchased gives creditability to your standing within the craft  buying community. This can include your attendance at craft and trade fairs, as well as any awards or press mentions.

Buying and delivery

Make it easy to purchase.  One-click links can help ease the customer into buying. Use of a known payment provider increases confidence that the purchased item will be delivered and that there is a mechanism to get money back if not.  Make sure you explain about postage and packaging, unless you have included it in the in price.  If P&P is included, make sure that you are clear in the text accompanying the image and description.  If you don’t do that, the price comparisons with those that don’t include P&P are skewed against you.  Include plain English terms and conditions, to engender trust if something were to go wrong.

But

Don’t rely exclusively on online sales. There is enormous competition online, even though it is a means to get your work known to a wide range of people Importantly, it is a way to get year-round sales rather than the summer and autumn craft circuit.  Other sources for consistent sales - without you being present all the time - are galleries, shops and wholesalers.

Think about combining online sales with craft fairs and other selling events.  These face to face events give you the opportunity of getting direct feedback on your work, which will help develop what you do.  Promote your attendance at events on the website and tell about your website at events.  Blog about the events before and after their occurrence on your website and social media.  Tell stories from the events on your social media and in the website, too.

Selling online requires getting attention, stimulating interest and promoting desire to buy.  Some of the things you can do are noted.  But do not put all your effort into online.  You can gain a lot of information by attending face to face selling events.

Instagram as a place to sell

What it is

Instagram is a place to show work and get followers.  It is a photo and video sharing site owned by Facebook.  It is a place to tell visual stories that lead to direct message conversations that can lead to sales.  But it is not a direct selling site.

Developing a body of followers is a slow process requiring continued commitment.  Audiences tend to focus on the Instagram stories and videos. Talking to camera, showing your workspace, showing and telling about favourite products are some of the things you can do to make stories for Instagram.  Posting these images and videos is way to get feedback on new products by inviting people to react.

Using it

Instagram’s value is largely as a marketing tool.  It is not a place to do frequent or blatant selling.  There is a general lack of response to posts with an overt selling message.  But occasional on-line sales to a group of committed followers seem to work. Beware of the effort and cost of packaging and posting, though.

What to post?

Frequent posting is essential to developing and maintaining your group of followers.  Remember the title - Instagram.  Instant reporting of developments is important.  It develops the connection between what you are doing and your followers.  The things to concentrate on are such things as how the day has gone, stories, new venues and products.  Ask questions of followers to get feedback and conversations developing.

Some use Instagram as their main social media source.  Share anything in your life that you are comfortable with everyone knowing, and of course, how the business is developing.  In all this sharing be yourself, have your own voice.  Your postings need to be when there is news rather than at set times.  Your account becomes livelier and more personal when spontaneous.

Images

Good photographs are essential.  Photos and videos are the essence of Instagram.  Your photos need to have clear captions. The captions need to provide the context for each image. Some suggest that concentration should be on the captions, and then finding a photo to fit.  The captions and hashtags are the ways people find their way to your postings.  You need to think about the terms potential customers may use to find out about your kind of work.  There is no need to overload the images with hashtags.  A few well thought out terms will give better results.  Look at the kind of tags you would use to find items of interest outside your craft. The really important element is an emphasis on providing a story in all the postings.

Sharing

In addition to creating content, reciprocation of likes and comments is important.  This means you need to spend some time on the platform to help develop followers.  Instagram does assist in creating a community of followers and makers, especially if you connect with makers of similar things and exchange supportive chat.

Time commitment

There are suggestions that 80% of your time on Instagram should be building your brand, and partaking in the community. The rest of the time you can tell about new products, promotions, and answering questions that will help people in deciding on the purchase.  But, generating sales is difficult by use of only Instagram.

Location of Outlets

Galleries use Instagram too.  But it is mostly about raising awareness of their businesses, so sales on Instagram are incidental to them.  They use it to let people know about news of the gallery and artists, their interests, and promote their exhibitions.  For them it is about publicity. 

Their secondary use is by browsing and getting a sense of potential exhibiting artists as persons and what their expertise and audience may be.  This means that getting galleries as followers can be a way to maintain contact with galleries and get invitations to participate in events.

How Can Glass Enthusiasts use Instagram?

It may seem the emphasis of this post is on full time craft artists, but these things are applicable to any craftsperson who wants their work to be more widely known and purchased.

Anyone who is going to craft fairs needs to do a lot more than turn up with product.  Many times, I hear of people lamenting the poor attendance at an event.  Or, the concern that people don’t seem interested in buying your work.

The organiser of the craft event can do only a limited amount of promotion.  Their promotion will be largely general and untargeted.  Your promotion will be much more targeted, because it will be directed at your followers – an already interested audience.  If you can get your followers to attend the event, or spread knowledge of your attendance at an event, you have a greater chance of having a good event.

In summary, Instagram can be an element in building an audience for your glass work.  This can increase attendance of interested people at the events you are involved in, if you put effort into getting followers who appreciate your work.

Why Sell Online?

"Why not? Everyone else is doing it."

The more interesting question and response is:

“Why do it at all? There are lots of other ways to sell.”

The first thing you need to help you decide whether online is for you, is a plan for selling.  You need to think about how you sell. Selling needs to part of whole strategy that can involve multiple ways and avenues of selling. The ways you sell your goods needs to be integrated into social media - whatever platforms you decide to use to sell.  One platform will not be enough.  You need to look at where the main effort will have most return.

Planning a selling strategy

Initially:

Even before you have a whole selling strategy worked out, you need to be using social media to promote your work.  A blog about you and your work is a good place to start.  It gives you a presence, a personality, a brand. Write regularly about your craft life.  Share it with your friends on Facebook, Twitter, etc., and ask them to share it with their friends to get it known.

Linking to and from that blog using Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and other social media platforms help to spread the knowledge of who you are and what you do. These are the things you need to do whether you decide to join an online marketplace, a stand-alone shop, or stay with physical sales points.

Making an online selling plan:

The first part of the planning is to decide why you are going to sell online, rather than stick with just bricks and mortar sales locations. These physical locations include galleries, museum shops, gift shops, craft fairs and exhibitions, etc. Some questions to ask yourself are:

• What do you gain by interacting with shop owners and direct customers? 
• What might you lose by going online?
• How does online fit your products?
• Will you need to put in more, or less, effort online rather than selling in physical locations – shops, craft fairs, etc.?
• Where is your market located? Local? Dispersed?
• Is your market a specialised or a general one?
• Will your products stand up to delivery company handling?

The answers to these questions will help you decide if online will help sell your products.  It may of course throw up ambiguous answers – on one hand, on the other hand kind of answers.  This would indicate a mixed platform approach is desirable.

       

But, just a minute!

Don’t sign up to an online marketplace just yet.  There are some things you need to prepare before searching out the appropriate site or sites for your work.

Products:

Yes, you have a lot of different things you could sell. Think about where you want to concentrate your efforts.  A few key products will help to give your work an identity.  It will help you define, and so reach your customers.  It will focus your marketing and build your experience and reputation. 

Online enables you to concentrate on niche marketing more successfully than bricks and mortar can.  It is one of the main advantages of online selling. Once you have identified your products and therefore your market, communicate with them.  Think about their interests, needs and desires as you write.

Work on describing a strong identity – often called a brand. This should be accomplished in a short sentence. Know who and what you are. Tell your values, your story to the world. But especially to your potential customers.  Follow this description up and re-enforce it with photos and descriptions in all areas of social media. This will then be a style to carry over to the online shop, if you decide to set one up. And even if you don’t it will improve your selling at physical locations.

Prepare product titles and descriptions:

Clear titles and descriptions are needed for each item. These should be direct using simple language making it possible for the viewer to understand immediately what is in front of them. These titles and descriptions should include specific words - terms, tags, keywords - that the prospective buyers might use to search for your products.  You should include lots of tags for the photos and descriptions, but they must be relevant.

Include all the detailed information – size, colour, materials, price, delivery mechanisms and costs, projected arrival time, etc. – in the description, but toward the end when they have probably already almost made up their mind. 

Excellent photos are required.

The main descriptive element when the buyer gets to your page or listing is the pictures.  They must be descriptive of all the elements of the piece – several images per item is a good idea.  Consider a professional photographer to make these images.  They have an independent eye and can see things from the buyers’ viewpoint.  In addition, they can take better pictures.

Share these descriptions and images on social media.  This all needs be done before you join a marketplace website.  It helps to test your abilities to present your products successfully before you commit to online.  It will help you in your presentations of your work where ever you place it.

Costing and pricing:

Of course, there is the boring bit – deciding on the price.

These include factual elements:

Costs of production - materials and time, overheads, administration of the materials buying and the object’s selling processes.

Applying this cost information to each item will give you your break-even price.

You then need to consider what profit you want to make for your effort. This might be done as a margin on each piece, or as a part of your desired annual income.

The break-even plus the income or profit factor will give you the wholesale price.  The retail price is at least twice the wholesale.

Will the market bear that price?  Compare similar products and test your pricing with potential customers. If your price is too high, return to the design of the item and consider how it could be simplified. Alternatively, consider how it could be enhanced to achieve an even higher price for little more effort.

If your product is the kind where purchase of multiples is possible or likely, give yourself enough margin so that you can offer discounts for quantity purchases.

Also think about whether yours is a luxury product. If it is, the price needs to be higher than for general work.  E.g., if your jewellery is set in silver, it needs an extra margin for the luxury element of the item.

Cost of delivery – packaging, time, delivery charges. You need to decide if you are you including this in the price, or is it separate?  This will need to be reflected in the price, or the cost of delivery must be stated in the description.

Benefits

This process of preparing for online selling will benefit your selling, even if you decide against online selling.  It will clarify your offering to the potential customers.  It will help to define you as a producer and develop the awareness of your products. It will assist the customer to understand your story and your work, so encouraging them to buy.

A discussion of choices about choosing a website is here.

Approaching a Gallery

Images of WorkMake sure that you have good quality images taken of your work (35mm transparencies, digital images for CDs or email), after all, you will be competing with practitioners that have been in business for years and are firmly established as leading national and international designers. Sending poor images/presentations reflects very badly on your approach and your work.

Invest in a professional portfolio filled to the brim with beautifully laid out colour photography on a black background. Don’t walk into the gallery with a handful of snapshots.

Sending Biography and VisualsSend general descriptive information about yourself and your work to the gallery first. Then follow this up with a telephone call. Find out the contact name you need for the relevant department within the gallery. If you send something with no contact name your presentation can sit in a pending tray for months! Contact as many galleries as you can handle, rather than waiting for a reply from the first one on your list.

Research and Make Appointments
Don’t just turn up at a gallery with your work. Galleries plan their exhibition schedule at least two years in advance. They are busy most days with artists and dealing with clients so it is always best to make an appointment first.

Pop in regularly to your local galleries, or research on the internet, to get an idea of the kind of designers they display, and the style and quality of work on show.

Keep in TouchContemporary galleries are always looking for new original designers for their exhibition programme, so update the gallery regularly by sending emails, transparencies and CD (with images).

It is especially important that the gallery can see how serious you are about your work, how it develops in style and that you are still exhibiting and producing work 2-5 years later. Make sure your work is unique and difficult to duplicate. Keep your own designs and patterns dated and own the copyright to them.

Don’t give up. There's someone out there who will like your work. When you find gallery owners who are crazy about your work, stick with them.

When you have an offer of a show
Watch the papers for announcements of other openings at the gallery to see how well each opening is advertised. Ask around the arts community to see how well known the gallery and its owner are.

Check on the gallery/artist percentage agreement when calling each gallery. Your price to the public must be calculated based on this. Charge what the work is worth!

Check around with other artists represented by the gallery, asking them about promptness of payment by the gallery.

Be businesslike in all dealings.Prepare a contract, if the gallery does not have one, to cover mutual expectations. It should include who does what, e.g., mounting of the work, invitations to the opening, opening night, payment terms, artist’s residual and resale rights, etc.

Don’t be a pain to the gallery owner. Don’t pester. If you have to be anxious about the show, do it privately.

Enjoy the opening night!