Showing posts with label Selling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Selling. Show all posts

Wednesday 31 August 2022

Choosing a Name for Your Business



Naming your business requires some thought.  Many people give their activity a name before it really is a business, often while it is a hobby.  At the point of deciding on creating a business, is the time to fully consider the name. It is important to choose the right name for your business. It can create a good first impression for customers and provide a great foundation for building your brand.  You can be creative when choosing the name. However, it needs to be appropriate and work on all types of marketing material, from signage to stationery. There are structured ways of choosing a name.

Personal Name

Many creative sole traders use their own name as their business name. It is easy and often creates the personal connection sought for by buyers.  Using your own name gives your business a more arts oriented and personal touch. Sometimes people are already ‘known’ under their own name prior to beginning the formal business, e.g., Amanda J Simmons.
 


Initials

Some designers use their initials or attach their discipline to their name or initials to add some clarity to what they do, e.g., MJM Ceramics. Others prefer a business name, so that it is less personal and not based around one individual. This can appear as more professional and allows the business to grow beyond the individual.
 
Some people use both - their surname for artistic one-off work, and a business name or brand name if they want to have a more general approach for multiples. You can be self-employed (e.g., using your own name) and run a limited company (with a business name) at the same time.
 
Even though associating your name in these two ways are attractive, more consideration is needed to ensure you are really on the right track.  Naming your business, or even a new collection, can be difficult. There are some practical tips to help you on your way:
 

Reflect on your vision, values, and passions

You have already pulled out these things in looking at your life goals and vision. Now you need to apply them to a name search.  A method that may help is to write down ten important descriptive words about these values, passions, and your vision. This is a starting point for thinking about the best words for the business.  These words will probably not come immediately.  You might want to involve others in a kind of brainstorming to develop a group of key words.  You need to consider how this name will look in the future as your business develops.
 
cREDIT: BUSINESS NAMES

The name needs to reflect you and your market.

“A good business name reflects who you are and which ideal clients you want to attract.”  It is the introduction to the business. It is the first thing they see, even before you. So, what you do and who you do it for is important to selecting the name. The name creates an image in customers’ heads.  Do you want to be factual or do you want to create a bit of mystery?  To help with this selection you need to remember your niche market and what you do and for whom as defined earlier. Review the business specialism - what you want to be known for - and your ideal clients
 

Inspiration sources

You do not have to be factual in the name and you can get inspiration from a number of sources.  Favourite songs, places, people, films, etc., can all be sources.  Brainstorm with others for names around your values, vision, passions, your specialism, your ideal clients.  You can also get ideas from the business names your competitors or role models use.  You need to record these ideas. This can be written, but an image or sketch can be even more useful. A mood board or mind map can be helpful too. A logo idea often comes with considering a name.  You should strive to have about five good, creative names for your business to make a choice. Not all the names will be available.  There are also online business name generators that can help focus your ideas.
 
Credit: Fiverr

Check the potential names

You need to make sure of several things before you settle on the name.
 
Is the name easy to spell? 
This is important in online searches as they are the most commonly used method of finding businesses. You need to avoid quirky expressions, and names with common variations (e.g., is it Mc, Mac or M’)
 
Is it easy to say? 
Almost as important as spelling is being able to pronounce the name in different dialects or languages. This is a worthwhile consideration as exemplified in car model names.
 
Is the name easy to remember? 
This goes together with the verbalisation of the name.  If it is easy to say, it probably is easy to remember and so be searched for without difficulty. 
 
What is it in other languages?
Try to ensure your name does not mean something offensive in another language.  Even if you are not operating internationally (just now), your name will be visible throughout the world.
 
Future proof your name
This is harder than it sounds, but you want the business name to be acceptable in a generation’s time.  This means that you avoid names that are “now”.
 
Check your name for legality 
Companies House in the UK gives a list of sensitive and prohibited words on its website.  This is most useful even if you do not intend to register with them. It helps you avoid current and future difficulties in a business name. There are equivalents in other countries.  Is the name the same - or nearly so - as a registered trademark? There is more information about registered trademarks on the Intellectual Property Office website (a UK resource).
 
Check to see if the name is already in use
You can use google to check on the existence of the name as a business one.  The Companies House website also has a free facility to check on name conflicts of registered companies. Check to see if your proposed business name is available as a web address. Also check on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites.  It is best to have the same name and address across all the web and social media sites.
 

You may, of course, revert to some form of your name for the business name, but running through these considerations can make sure you have considered all the options for an appealing and flexible business name

Friday 1 July 2022

Increase Your Sales

 I came across this just now and think it might have wider relevance. As Patricia says, make a 10-minute space in your day for some inspiration on selling.


From The Design Trust

Do you want to get more sales, clients or commissions?

Of course you do!

Grab yourself a nice drink or lunch for this 'long read'. Today I want to take you through these 6 questions to help you get more sales, orders & commissions.

See it as a short, unexpected 10 minutes mini-marketing course. Full of ideas & inspiration.

For free in your inbox.

Enjoy!

And feel free to pass it on to other creatives too.

Q1: What are you *really* selling?

You might think that the answer to this question is: “My jewellery” or “My workshops” or ‘My illustrations & prints”.

But … people who buy creative products and services often buy so much more than ‘just a product’!

They buy because they want something really original and unique. A special gift for a special friend or occasion. To celebrate. To treat themselves!

Start to think about your creative products much more in terms of a 'memory' that they are buying, or a gift that reminds them of 'friendship' or 'the freedom of the sea'.

Focus on the feeling that they want to get when they are wearing your colourful necklace or give a beautiful handmade jug with hand-picked wild flowers to a dear friend who is going through hard times.

And even if you are selling to shops and galleries think about what you are selling to them. They want to create wonderful displays of emerging or local creatives. They want to show gorgeous hanging flower pots for the summer and to be 'on trend' and share on their Instagram feed. They want to have 'wow pieces' for their window display to lure visitors back into their shop once again.

And when you are selling your creative products & services you are also selling a little bit of you of course! That doesn't mean we want to know all your secrets or what you had for breakfast. But your clients want to connect with your creative lifestyle, they want to know how your environment looks like and how that inspires you, your values from sustainable gold, or mindfulness, to Black Lives Matter and how that connects with them as 21st century human beings and consumers.

Especially if they love buying from small independents and find it important to spend with small creatives like you!

Take action: Brainstorm around what YOU are really selling.

Go beyond the 'what' of your products and services, and think about the emotions or feelings your ideal clients have … not just when they are looking to buy, but also when they have bought your work, when they use it or give it to somebody else.

WHY do you create the work you do?

Emphasis these stories and occasions much more in your social media, your images, your product descriptions and your emails to really connect with the emotional side of buying, owning and loving creative products & services.

Q2: Have you got a plan?

Did you set a financial goal at the start of 2022? Do you know how many sales you want or need this year? Online, at events, from stockists?

We are big fans of financial goals here at The Design Trust!

Why?

Because without a goal or destination that you are aiming for you will just be running around like a headless chicken or just ‘hoping’ that things will happen and that the universe will listen to you. I personally don’t believe in that working out very well …

Plus … if you don’t have a financial goal for your different income streams then you can’t really create a proper marketing plan either! You will need to know which products or services you want to focus on for sales, who your clients are and how much you will charge. Selling £15,- products on Etsy needs a very different marketing approach than selling £150 necklaces online or at an event.

Of course, this year is very unpredictable.

You might think that there is no point in creating a plan as it will have to change before you have even started.

You might have had to change your financial goal for 2022 (we have!).

That’s actually perfectly normal! And at least you are being realistic about what's happening in the world right now. You are being pro-active. And you will be more in control when you know what you are aiming for.

Next Monday morning 4 July I will be hosting a practical 3-hour Plan The Rest of 2022 online workshop where you will be setting your own smart + juicy goals for 2022. 

·         Juicy goals + do-able actions for yourself and how to make sure you are in the best mental & physical place to create and work.

·         Juicy goals + do-able actions for your finances, your different income stream goals, to keep an eye on your costs.

·         Juicy goals + do-able actions for your marketing – with my expert tips on exactly what marketing activities to do to get more online sales, event sales, wholesale orders this autumn.

·         Juicy goals + do-able actions for your creative production. To stop making without thinking about who your ideal clients are (see below!), your actual costs + what you can charge.

If you want to be less overwhelmed and back in charge then join me for this practical, thought-provoking planning workshop next Monday (the first Monday morning of the 2nd half of 2022!).

Q3: Who are your ideal clients? And do you know why, when & where they buy?

Do you really know who your dream clients are? Why they buy your creative products? When they buy? What’s important to them? What stops them from buying from you?

Many creatives find marketing really difficult and it’s often because they don’t really know who their dream clients are. They try to sell to anybody, but then fail as it doesn’t appeal to anybody either!

Many creatives rarely think about their clients when producing new work.

Some creatives are even scared of their clients!

Getting to know your ideal clients at a deeper psychological level can really help you to create products that people love to buy. It can help you to get more confident to create more innovative, unique and more well paid work too. It will help you to connect with the right people who have similar values and interests as you, boosting your inspiration & confidence, and then selling, marketing and talking to them will be so much easier!

In exactly two weeks’ time on Monday 11 July from 10am – 2pm (UK) I am hosting a 4-hour practical workshop around Dream Clients – to help you to identify, get to know, approach and wow your ideal clients. Step-by-step you will find out and get a lot more confident to reach out to them and get sales and orders.

Q4: Are you just selling or actually building relationships?

If you don’t really know how marketing works then it often feels like you are ‘pushing’ people to target them to become your client.

And especially when you start to get a bit desperate for sales then often it’s very obvious that you are selling the hard way!

Marketing & selling should NOT be pushy!

At The Design Trust we have a marketing mantra: “People only buy from people they know, like & trust”.

Unless people know what you can do for them (see Question 1!) and remember your name (so standing out from the crowd is important!) you will unlikely get any sales. They need to really fall in love with you these days to get their credit card out. And they need to trust that you can deliver.

Marketing that works (=to get sales) is based on two principles:

1. Focus on a niche: What are you good at and who is interested in that? Don’t sell to everybody but really focus and get to know your ideal clients.

2. Build relationships with your clients, especially if you are selling unique or less frequently bought purchases, high end work, or services like craft & design commissions or workshops. People need to think about their purchase, and that's part of the natural process of buying from you. Stay in touch and be helpful.

Marketing & selling is about pulling in the right people that love what you do & what you stand for! Listening to them, taking care of them, creating value for them in their lives.

Get into action: How can you build your profile, credibility & trust with your ideal clients? How can you reach out to them and remind them what you really do? (See Question 1 again!)

How can your marketing become more ‘educating them’ around your values or creative process?

And especially if you are selling to other businesses, galleries or shops how can you be helpful to them right now? How can you promote them and highlight them on your website, emails or social media? Could you offer to do a demonstration or talk? Have you talked to them about the new work you are developing and have they got the best images to promote you?

Q5: Do you encourage clients to spend more? Offer commissions & pre-order!

This might sound counter-intuitive but the creatives that are struggling the most right now are those selling work between £100 - £1,000.

Why?

Because up to £100 is a gift. Either for themselves, or for others. And it’s often a quick purchase that they don’t need to think about too much. There will always be birthdays, weddings or other special occasions that need lovely, unique creative products!

Above £1,000 is the territory of commissions and higher end unique work. These are often very special and very personal purchases, for special occasions like wedding anniversaries, house extensions and even memorials. And many collectors will keep collecting! (This part of the market has not been impacted that much by the cost-of-living crises as most of us …)

When you are trying to sell work between £100 - £1,000 then often you are both too expensive (for people looking for a gift) and too cheap (for people who want something really unique) at the same time!

We are big fans of using more pre-order options and don’t really understand that not more creatives are using this opportunity to promote new work to their clients who then can purchase it for a selected period only at a very special price.

The big benefit of pre-ordering is that you get a far better idea of how much stock to create, which designs or colours will be more popular and you will be paid upfront! Very useful indeed for your cashflow and to avoid loads of unsold stock later in the year.

We are even bigger fans of commissions!

These are creatively, financially and personally great opportunities for creatives to create amazing and really unique works of art, that push your creative skills, raise your profile, and really are very meaningful for your clients too.

Commissions really can be amazing for both creatives and their clients.

But … we also know that many creatives do not manage their commissions or their clients very well, and have trouble setting boundaries, do not charge properly for their time and expertise, and find it difficult to promote themselves and their commissions.

We recently did some research around commissions and realised that there is very little advice around this important topic and income stream.

So, we created this brand-new online course Creative Commissions to help creatives manage commissions professionally (with loads of templates!), price your commissions properly and promote yourself too.

Creative Commissions is a 2 x half day online course on 14 – 15 July PLUS we have invited 3 creatives and experts for 3 x 1-hour interviews too so you can learn from their expertise and as them questions too. Can’t make this course live? No problem! All the sessions are recorded and you will have access till the end of 2022 to the course.

Q6: Do you encourage repeat business?

And finally … something that’s often overlooked by creatives: your existing or previous clients!

Don’t take them for granted.

They already know you, like you, and trust you! So it's often much easier to sell to them.

Get into action: Have you heard about the Pareto principle or the 20/80 effect? It turns out that about 20% of your sales will come from 80% of your clients! Do you know who your top clients are? Check your bookkeeping system and see who those top clients are.

Can you get to know them better? Do you know where they live, what gender they are, how much they spend and how often they return? If they bought online or at a specific event? Even simple factual data like that can help you to get to know them, and to connect with them better.

Could you let them know that you are working on some new work that’s related to what they purchased before? Hint: Tell them they are the first to know about this new collection you are launching in September!

Have you got an event coming up near them that they might like to get an invite to? What else would this client like to buy?

Could you give them special treatment to show that you appreciate their custom? Can you create exclusive videos showing your creative process, could they get VIP invites for your Summer Sale, or can you give them free postage & packaging next time they buy?

Making your clients less ‘strangers’ and more human beings is really the only way to build your business, your ideas, your creativity and your confidence.

And that’s it!

The end of your unexpected mini-marketing course! 6 questions to help you get more sales this summer.

I hope you found it useful and that you got inspiration to take some action too.

And of course we would love to help you with getting more sales & getting more organised in one of our 3 Summer courses.

Looking forward to seeing you.


Patricia van den Akker

The Design Trust – the online business school for designers, makers & other creative professionals
www.thedesigntrust.co.uk @TheDesignTrust


Wednesday 25 May 2022

Quiet Craft Fairs



“A decade ago or so it was possible to predict sales from a craft fair, but that’s much harder now! It’s an unpredictable market out there right now for crafts and design products! … Even doing a show that was successful in the past might not be so good the next year.
All successful craft exhibitors confirm that they have to work harder to get sales and commissions, do more promotion in advance themselves, and follow up after a craft fair as more people delay their purchase decisions.”
Patricia van den Akker, Crafts Magazine July/August 2014 (page 26)


There are many reasons for quiet fairs. Among them is that the recession and recovery from it has created uncertainty among potential buyers.  House moves, which are big drivers of purchases, are less frequent. On the other hand, there is an increasing awareness of craft and handmade which has led to an increasing number of competing craft fairs.  Online selling such as Etsy creates a new kind of competition for craft fairs.

These and other developments are outside your control.  You can’t affect this. You need to concentrate on the things you can do to make things more successful.  

This is about some of the things you can do.

What Can I Do During the Event?

You will have done your research in choosing this event, which lead you to think it would be successful for you.  During the show you can do some things to help inform you about what to do now.

·        Is there good footfall?  What are the numbers to date compared to previous years? The organisers should be able to tell you how many visitors have come so far. You can make the comparison from your research on previous years.  Don’t panic.

·        Consider the composition of the people who are present.  Are the visitors the right people prepared to buy? What does the visitor profile seem to be?  Are there retail and wholesale buyers present? This is a good opportunity to engage with them for future orders if not present ones.  Networking is important and this is a time and place where you can meet a lot of people and discover reactions to your work, even if they are not buying.  Remember that your fellow stallholders can be part of that supportive network, and even sometimes be future customers.

·        Have you put out enough publicity?  Is there anything you can do now to get people to come before the close?  If you have a quiet time, you can use your social media outlets to tell people about your participation in the event.  Possibly you can offer an incentive for people to come to this show.

·        What does your interaction with the visitors that are at the event tell you? What interest and feedback are you getting? What questions are being asked? Which piece was is most popular? Think about rearranging the placing of your work to better reflect the interests of the visitors.  Can you follow up with the visitors after the show? Are you collecting their contact details?

·        Is your display right for the venue? Can you adjust your display to attract more visitors to the stand? Think about a white board for people to post their reactions to your work.  Which is most popular, for example?  Possibly a special offer is in order. 

·        Are the other exhibitors of a similar price level and quality?  If not, think of ways for your products to appear a better fit for the rest of the event.

·        Are the other stall holders having a quiet time too?  If they are, it may be a general problem with the event.  If you are performing less well than other stall holders, perhaps you have the wrong pricing, or glass products with perceived difficulties for transport.  Lots of packaging is necessary.  Offer a delivery or postal service, if appropriate.

Review the Event

Research – how good was your investigation of the event before you signed up?  
it’s crucial that you research craft fairs before you apply. Choosing the right events to suit your work can be difficult and there are no guarantees of instant return. Don’t be afraid to ask some probing questions of the organisers and past exhibitors.   Patricia van den Akker, Crafts Magazine July/August 2014, p.26.

There are a number of things you should look at to determine if this was the right event for your glass work. 

Organisers

Who organises the event? Look at their track record for this and any other events they organise.  There are sites for rating events that you can use such as Folksy’s.  You can look at Trip Advisor show reviews  for the visitor reactions.

Exhibitors

Who the other exhibitors are, or have been, is important in judging your fit within the group of exhibitors.  This information should be available from the organisers.  Are these your peers in price and quality?  Think about how you will both fit with them and stand out from them.

A good craft fair curator should make sure there’s a wide mix of things and not too many of the same.  David Andrews, And at What Cost

Visitor numbers and average sales

The organisers should be able to tell you of the number of visitors to previous events and at least the average sales of the event.

Visitor profile

Does the proposed event seem to be oriented to buyers?  If the craft fair is in support of a main event, you need to determine if your glass work will fit the apparent interests of visitors to the main event.  You may be able to make items that will interest them.  If the craft fair is the main event, you have a greater chance of the visitors being buyers.

The publicity may be oriented toward individuals, or to buyers for businesses and wholesalers.  These will each need different approaches.  The organiser should be able to tell you about the composition of the visitors for previous event.

Publicity for the event

Look at the publicity issued for previous events.  The organisers often give you this information.  This will provide an idea of what they produced and maybe how it was distributed.  Look at what local, and if appropriate, regional and national, press was obtained.  Did they get into lifestyle publications? What business and trade press was received?

Visit the event

If at all possible, visit the event.  This will give you a first-hand feel of the style of the event.  You will be able to see the range of exhibitors, the various styles of stands.  This will help you determine if this is an event you would fit into.  It also will  give you ideas to help design your exhibit. 

You can engage with exhibitors that appear to have a business of a similar size to yours to get the benefit of their experiences. You must be careful about this.  Be honest.  State that you are a potential exhibitor and ask if they have the time to give their experience about this event.  Approach them only when they are quiet.  Be aware of the need to avoid blocking other visitors from the stand.  Do not engage in long conversations.

If you can’t visit, look at the social media of the organisers and any exhibitors you know attended.  This will give some feel of the previous event. 

Location

This is about where the event is being held in relation to your location.  Do you need to travel and stay somewhere to attend, or is it near enough to avoid overnights?

It is also about where the event is located.  Venues range from dedicated events arenas to school gyms.  How easy is it to find? Is it signposted well? What are the parking facilities?  Look at the venue as though you were a visitor and decide on the suitability of the place.

Consider the timing

Craft fairs are held throughout the year, but those in the months leading up to Christmas most often get greater footfall and have a higher proportion of buyers.  Summer shows are influenced by the weather – a sunny day can take everyone to the beach or lakeside, but a stormy, rainy day can keep everyone inside.

Try to make your products relevant to the existing season or the coming one.  Think about opportunities people want for securing gifts relating to celebrations or awareness days.  Trade shows are often working 6 to 9 months in advance so the buyers can get the products into stock for the relevant season.

Promotion

This is not about what the organisers do, although that is important.  It is about what you do to generate interest.  There are going to be a lot of competing products.  You need to generate interest in people coming to your stand. 

My bugbear is exhibitors who expect footfall and sales and rely too much on the organisers. YOU need to do marketing & social media to get sales. – Patricia van den Akken, The Design Trust on Twitter.

You should be prepared to do a lot of social media work in the months and weeks leading up to the event.  You need to be telling people about your participation and preparation for the show.  You should make up a press release about the show and your participation in it.  Even if this is not taken up by the press, the material in it can be used for all the other marketing  you do.

You need to ensure that you provide the organisers with text and excellent photographs well before the deadline they impose.  If you have good images of your glass work and send them in plenty of time, you have a greater chance of being featured in one way or another.

After the Show

You need to consider what lessons can be taken from a quiet show.

Display
Review the layout of your stand.  Does it do justice to the quality of your glass work?  Think about what you can do to make the glass more eye catching – lighting, space for each item to breathe, clear pricing, arrangement, etc.  Make it clear what you do, what you make and why.

Product range

“When planning which products to sell at a craft fair, think 1) affordable, 2) achievable, 3) aspirational, and try to bring a range of products so you have all three covered.”  Folksy

This is applicable to all shows, perhaps with the exception of trade shows, where you need to concentrate on glass work that you can produce in quantity.  If you can produce a variety of glass with a group of price points, you will make it easier for buyers to choose.  Of course, you will need more items in group one, with a moderate amount of group two and only one or two of group three.

After a quiet fair you need to reflect on whether the glass range you brought was a fit for the event.  Were they relevant to location, suitable for the season, relevant to the event, suitable for a range of ages, etc. You need bring only the relevant products, not your full range of glass work.

Engagement

You need to review your performance at the show too.  Look at how you interacted with the people who did stop by.  You need to be sure you maintain a friendly appearance throughout.  Did you enjoy your conversations with visitors?  If not, you need to work on picking up on their cues.  You need to get them talking about themselves and their interests to be able to direct them to the appropriate glass.  Are you approachable?  Being at the front of your stand is important to drawing people in.  Showing your enthusiasm for doing your glass is important, because people like a story about the maker and her glass.  This helps engage people with your work and may lead to purchases.

Transport

Glass is heavy, and perceived to be fragile.  You need to find ways to overcome these resistances to buying.  Some things you can do are:
  • excellent packaging (bring lots);
  • a pick-up service (after they have paid and given their contact details) before they leave the event;
  • after show delivery by post or courier. 
There will be others that you can think of too.  Signpost these services, so people know while they consider their purchase.

Payment

It is essential that you are able to take card payments.  You can use PayPal.  There are a number of companies that either have short term hire of terminals, or do not have monthly charges (although their percentage take is a bit higher).  Without electronic payment facilities, you will lose many sales.

Reflect on the Benefits of Attending Events

Feedback

You get direct feedback on your work, its pricing, and how it fits with people’s lifestyle.  You can learn of misunderstandings about your glass and so correct or anticipate them in the future.  Conversations at shows can be vital in guiding the direction of your work.

Networking 

Communicating with other stall holders makes a community of interest and support.  Also, potential customers can be discovered at shows and some of them may be the fellow stallholders. Making good relations with them has the potential to get write-ups about you from them in their discussion of the fair on social media, just as you may and should write about them even though they don’t do glass.

Meeting people that can promote your work

There is a great variety of people who are not buyers but are looking for things and people to write about.  This is great publicity.  The craft press attends shows looking for items of interest to their readers. Bloggers increasingly are writing about people they discover at events. Stylists, interior designers and influencers are also milling about.  You will not always recognise them from their badges, but treating everyone with enthusiasm for your glass work will include them.  They may give you feedback at the show or be available afterwards to contact and learn of their views.

Stockists

Shows are good places to meet stockists, who may be retailers, shops, galleries, wholesalers and others who want to stock your glass.  Take details and follow up all of these contacts.  You should be prepared for these people by having price lists and  professionally produced publicity material under the counter to give to them.  Business cards are essential.  If you offer one, you will get theirs in return.

Future sales 
It is not only stockists that you need to keep a list of contacts.  Get the details of all the interested people and contact them after the show and in the future when appropriate.

I do believe that craft fairs and events are still one of the best marketing tools for creative businesses. They help you to build your profile, to reach many potential clients in a short period of time who can get to know you a lot better, and events can really boost your confidence too.

But … you do need to … promote yourself! Even if your contacts are unable to attend the event it’s crucial that you let them know through a series of emails, blog posts and social media. Events are one of the best ways to stay in touch with your potential clients!

An event invite can be a great tool to drive more traffic to your website and get online sales instead.

Selling events aren’t there just to get sales but are also a way to stay in touch with potential clients, to increase your profile, and to get new contact details for your database. Start a database and stay in touch. And by following up you can often turn a quiet craft fair into a pretty successful one!
Patricia van den Akker, Crafts Magazine July/August 2014 (page 26)



Take advantage of quiet events to reflect on what you can do during the show and after the show to make for better outcomes in the future.  Reflect on your research of the event.  Consider location, timing, relation to a main event or awareness week or month.  Look at your promotional effort leading up to the show.  Consider how to improve your marketing.  Remember that even a quiet show can provide great contacts and that follow-up with the people you have met can garner purchases.  Not everything is about the immediate monetary returns.

Wednesday 11 May 2022

Engaging Visitors



The main point of attending craft fairs and other events is to sell your glass.  The way to sell is to engage with the visitors to the show.  They have come to view, and have an interest in buying.  Your job is to get them to stop, look and buy (or at least leave their details in anticipation of a future purchase).  There are some things that are necessary to think about before attending the event so that you get the best opportunity to sell your glass by talking with the visitors.

Sit or stand - where?

Where should you place yourself at your stand?  If you place yourself behind the display of your glass, you will find it difficult to talk with your customers - especially if you have built upwards.  Additionally, there is a barrier between the two of you that is as much psychological as physical. 

I recommend you stand at the side or in the front of your stand.  This enables you to move about and hand things to the customer for their appreciation.  It is much more welcoming than seeking refuge behind the display.  If the stand is deep enough, you can build in a “U” shape and you don’t have to stand in the aisle.

Should you sit or stand? If you are sitting - whether in front or behind the display – you are much less likely to catch the visitors’ attention, and less likely to see the interest of the visitor.  At an all-day show, you will need sit sometimes.  I recommend a high stool or folding bar style chair.  This elevates you more toward standing height and shows you as more alert.

Should you bring something to do? My response is that your job while at a show is to sell.  You do this through engaging with the visitors.  That is very difficult to do if you are doing something, even if it is demonstrating a technique relevant to your glass.  Any use of the phone should be minimised.


 

When to talk and what to say

One of the most difficult things for makers to do is to make the conversation that will lead to a sale begin.

Greeting

The first part of engaging a visitor is to smile say hello. This provokes a response in the other person and often they come to the stall.

Often these people have a question or comment that initiates the conversation.  That gives an indication of what their interest is.  If they don’t start the conversation, observe what glass pieces take their interest.  That gives the cue to talk about those items – inspiration, benefits, good locations for display in their house, etc. You will be able to gauge people’s interest, and if it is small, a conversation will not start.  But when people are interested, there will be a back and forth exchange.

Initiating the conversation

You can practice the beginnings of a conversation by placing a few of your glass pieces in front of you.  Look at them as much as you can as customer.  What will they miss by just looking at the piece?  That is what you need to start talking about your glass work – materials, methods, origins, inspiration.  If they can see it, you don’t need to say it.  Ideally, you want to put the work into the customer’s hands so they can get the feel of it while you talk about it.  You will be able to judge the interest by the way they view and handle it.

Engage one customer and more will come

People are attracted to a crowd.  If you can get some people stopping and engaging with you and your stand for a while, it will attract others.  The job then is to pay attention to the others who you are not actively speaking to.  Eye contact and acknowledgement of their interest goes a long way.  You can’t afford to spend long with any one person in this situation.  You will quickly learn the cues the really interested give, and the ones the “time wasters” give out.  The casual browser can be left with something to look at or to do while you move on to the other people, with a promise to come back to the first person.


Selling

“But I’m a maker not a salesperson…”  The point to make here is that you do not need to do a hard sell.  Your approach should be more about presenting and describing the work.  You and your stand need to be attractive.  You have a well-presented stall.  Now you need to complement that in your dress which may reflect the colour theme, or your style of working – both of which need to be neat.

There are a number of elements that can be used in selling which are not of the “salesperson” variety.

Descriptive approach

This is about the conversation again.  You know your glass and the field.  You can talk about it knowledgeably. That is the best element in selling. To that you add being enthusiastic, honest, empathetic and good at listening and understanding what might be causing any resistance to a purchase.

Use your knowledge

As a maker skilled in your craft, you already have knowledge – after all no one knows your product better than you. So, approach ‘selling’ as an artist explaining the thoughts and processes that have moulded your designs. Remember that one of the reasons people enjoy buying handmade at craft fairs is the experience of meeting the person who made it. By engaging with customers, you are adding even more value to your products.

Confidence in your work

Of course, selling is a lot easier if you’re confident. You do have confidence in your glass even if not in selling. Use that confidence and enthusiasm for your work and allow it to communicate to the visitors.  Of course, if you are uncomfortable talking about yourself, you can make up a poster giving your story – your inspirations, your business, your methods.  This will often provoke questions based on what you have written. 

After all, the visitors might be shy too, and need a peg for starting the conversation. You will need to make text brief and in a large font to be easily read.

Hearing what the visitor wants

Much of selling is about listening and having a genuine interest in the customer.  You can ask about their experience of craft – do they perform any, wear any, own any craft? Maybe ask about who they are buying for.  Always listen to them, don’t interrupt.  Build on their contributions to the conversation.



Selling may not be your forte, but there are a number of simple approaches that will improve your engagement with visitors to your event.  Using these, and others that you will develop, will improve your enjoyment and your sales at the craft fair.