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Vendor Event Mistakes

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Not all vendor events are good for your business.

Direct Sales vendor events expo fairYesterday I manned a booth for a charity event at a local festival. Across the street from me was a direct sales vendor. I had all afternoon to reflect on the mistakes this consultant made.

I’m not criticizing, but rather pointing out some of the mistakes so that you don’t make them in the future.

Target Market – This was the biggest mistake. The average attendee for this event was younger (some not even 18) and lower income. The visitors to the booths were mainly there for the service information and freebies. There was only one other direct seller there. It just wasn’t the right market for DS.

Weather – It was 90 degrees in the bright sunshine. Vendors were under canopies but it was still sweltering. It was not conducive for soft candle wax.

Set Up -The candle bars that were for sale were on the side of the booth space. The vendors were placed very close together and I saw no others who used the side to display anything, but rather all faced forward. Point being, wax is Scentsy’s biggest seller.  Even if most attendees were there for freebies, someone may have easily spent $5 to get more wax – but it was almost hidden, until you got right on top of the booth. [Read more…] about Vendor Event Mistakes

She Lost Money on That Vendor Event

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As I have discussed many times, vendor events can be worthwhile.   They can also be a huge waste of time and a vacuum for your hard earned money if you are not wise in selecting the right ones and then not optimizing your space once you get there.

I recently attended a vendor event as a customer. I am fairly certain the consultant lost her shirt by participating in this one.   What do you think?

  • It was a first time event. It was advertised mildly on Facebook and there were yard signs dotted around town.
  • It was $7 just to get in the door as a customer.
  • Vendors were charged $750.00 booth rental for this three day event.
  • The consultant had quite a bit of marketing collateral that she liberally handed out, at least $300 worth.
  • She also had a medium size amount of inventory (medium meaning not spectacular and not nearly enough for a show of this caliber, but at least a showing.   It wasn’t a totally pathetic display; I’ve seen worse.)   She had approximately $1,000 or more in inventory. [Read more…] about She Lost Money on That Vendor Event

5 Tips to Bring More Success to Your Vendor Events

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Vendor event, craft show, state/county fair, expo or shopping days – doesn’t matter what you call it, it’s an event where your direct sales business is represented. In many cases, direct sellers are permitted to have inventory on hand for cash and carry. If you’re going to invest the time in setting up and manning a booth, make wise business decisions to make your time spent worthwhile.

The five tips below are extra steps you can take to help ensure more traffic and more sales to your table or booth.

1.   Free: Have lots of FREE signs.   People love the word FREE. Many will take something just because it’s free, even if they don’t initially think they are interested in it.   This can work both for and against you. It can work against you if you are far too liberal with costly marketing collateral and product samples.   But it can also work in your favor if you have a take-away that they can put in their hands and later visit your website.   Most customers won’t ask “Is this free?” No one wants to look like a cheapskate. So if you have samples that you want them to take, make sure you have signage on your table that reads FREE samples, please help yourself. [Read more…] about 5 Tips to Bring More Success to Your Vendor Events

Surviving an Outdoor Vendor Event

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Ah, the good old summertime.   It sure is nice to be outside, especially after a long, cold winter. With so many festivals, state fairs and vendor events, one doesn’t need to look terribly hard to find a place to set up your wares to sell or display your direct selling products.

However, working an outdoor event in the heat presents some interesting challenges if you sell a product that could melt or discolor – such as candles. Below are a handful of tips to help you survive the doldrums of summer and still work your business in the warm open air.

  1. Make sure you have a system, such as coolers and zip lock bags, to keep the wax (or other product that could also get soft) from melting. Without the ziplock bags the labels will get soggy as the ice melts.
  2. If you have access to a generator or other power source, bring a fan, it’ll help keep you cool and customers will love it and want to stick around your booth longer.
  3. Bring plenty of water for you and any helpers. Don’t underestimate how dehydrated you can get working in the sun all day.

    4. [Read more…] about Surviving an Outdoor Vendor Event

7 Common Vendor Event Blunders

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“˜Tis the season for vendor events. I went to a couple of craft shows this weekend. It’s always good to keep up on what the competition is doing; plus I might see some treasures I have to have.   Some of the vendors stated that things were “a little slow” (translate: they weren’t selling much of anything).   Sure we can blame the economy and I will acknowledge that may have some bearing on it, but I venture to guess that those most affected by the current economic situation likely just stay away from craft bazaars. So if there were people and they weren’t buying, it’s time to take a deep look at the root cause.

I didn’t have to look far to find a number of common vendor mistakes that were likely the culprit for their low or no sales. If you’re going to participate in a vendor show, avoid these seven costly errors:

1.             Little or no inventory for sale. Facts are most people go to vendor events to buy things. They want to take it home on the spot. They don’t want to order it. If they wanted to order they’d likely just stay home and order online.   Most people are not (or shouldn’t be) comfortable giving money or a credit card to a complete stranger in hopes they will receive their product in three weeks.   If you don’t have ample supply and variety of inventory to sell, don’t plan on any sales during the event.

2.             No signage.   I walked up to more than a few tables that didn’t have the company logo anywhere. I should have known before I even reached the table what vendor was at that booth.   Then once I reached the table there was no price list to be found anywhere and none of the products had any price tags.   Do I assume those were all display items? Or were those vendors just waiting for me to ask “How much?”   You know the saying – “˜if you have to ask, you can’t afford it’. [Read more…] about 7 Common Vendor Event Blunders