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If you’re a stallholder at craft fairs, food fairs or other events, it’s possible that how your stall looks could affect the sales you make.
If you have any craft fairs coming up and are keen on new ideas on how to boost sales and make your stall stand out, follow these tips to boost your stall at the next craft fair.
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Here at Protectivity, we provide Event Insurance as well as Crafters Insurance for those either organising a craft fair or attending one to sell crafter items or similar.
1. Make an impression
This is a great opportunity to make a good impression with potential customers. You need to showcase your work so make sure that your branding is strong and reflects your style of work e.g. vintage, rustic, retro or modern.
This branding should be consistent, from the style of your stall to the type of tablecloth and signs that you use.
2. Consider your audience
You might not always be able to follow the same format for your stall at each of the fairs that you attend. Consider the type of event you are at and what will appeal to the people visiting the fair. For example, if you are at a school fete then you might focus on items for children but at a wedding fair you might look to focus on items which would work well as favours or as placecards.
It is easy to get carried away at Christmas and so set a budget for your props and decorations and then make sure that you stick to it. If you can reuse props every year, this will obviously be a much more cost-efficient solution!
3. Consider the venue
Find out as much as you can ahead of the craft fair to avoid surprises when you arrive to set up. Have an idea of the dimensions of the space that you will have for your stall, whether your stall will be inside or outside and If you need powerpoints for lighting for example, then make the venue aware of this as far in advance as possible.
If you can get a floorplan showing the other stallholders then this will help you to see who will be located next to you and might help you in planning how your stall is displayed.
4. Have a plan
The way that your stall is laid out is so important, you want to make a good impression to potential customers and make sure that your stall will showcase the products that you make.
Don’t leave the layout of the stall to chance and make sure that you practice how it will look at home. Make sure that props are not likely to fall over, that any wires for lighting etc are hidden and that all your products can be seen clearly.
It might take a bit of playing around with the layout before you are happy with it but once you are, this will make setting up at the fair itself a lot easier.
5. Demonstrations
Why not take along one of your items to be working on at the stall? This not only creates a bit of theatre, allowing you to showcase your work, but also provides a talking point. So, for example, if you make jewellery, take along some unfinished pieces so that people can see your work in action.
This will not only provide a point of interest but will also enable potential customers to see how bespoke the items that you make can be.
6. Make an impact
Craft fairs can be busy places so how do you make your stall be as impactful as possible? For indoor stalls, find something that you will encourage people to stop at your stall. This might be a quirky signpost or an item which is likely to be a talking point.
If you are at a big event outside, it can be even harder different to stand out from the crowd. Consider investing in a gazebo to help you to be easy to spot. This should of course match the colours and style of your business and the products that you make.
7. Avoid crowding the stall
A busy stall can mean that customers struggle to find products to buy. Pick out some best sellers and some unique items and display them well, but if you have lots of products then potential customers will quite quickly get overwhelmed and move on to the next stall.
8. Don’t use too many props
You want props to complement your products and help them to stand out, not to distract customers from the items that you are trying to sell. The right props can display your products in a unique way, helping them to stand out, but don’t make them the focus at the expense of your own products.
9. Sell yourself (as well as your products)
When talking to people who stop at your stall, make sure that they know that your items are handmade, tell them which items you made yourself, how you made them and how you get inspired.
Some little snippets about you and your business can heighten a customers interest as they learn more about the time (and effort) that has gone into making your products.
10. Increase your chance of future sales
You might find that people who visit your stall will like your work but might not purchase anything on the day. Make sure that your business cards are highly visible or your stand so that potential customers can take a card with them so that they easily find your website or Facebook page if they would like to buy from you in the future.
So, follow these tips at your next craft fair to make your stall and your products stand out from the crowd!
Remember, before you head to your next fair, ensure you have suitable Stallholder Insurance in place to protect yourself if things go wrong.
Alternatively, if you’re looking for event cancellation cover you can get a quote for event cancellation insurance here or get a quote for craft fair insurance here.
Get Stallholder Insurance from Protectivity
*Disclaimer – This blog has been created as general information and should not be taken as advice. Make sure you have the correct level of insurance for your requirements and always review policy documentation. Information is factually accurate at the time of publishing but may have become out of date.
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