Branding is essential to a successful brand and many times, is the client's/shopper's first impression of your creative, small business!

Determining if you want to hire a creative firm to develop your branding with you or do it on your own is your first step. It can be a big, but very much worthwhile, investment to hire a creative marketing firm or individual to create your brand with you. But you can also do it on your own. 

The first step is to determine:

WHAT DO I DO?

WHY DO I DO IT?

WHAT MAKES ME UNIQUE?

Once you have answered those questions, you can dive into the fun stuff, like making a mood board!

WHO IS YOUR CUSTOMER?

Who is your dream customer? Imagine them and what they enjoy. This is your target audience. You need to know who they are so they will connect to your brand. Once you have determined who your dream customer is, you can get started on your Mission Statement.

MISSION STATEMENT

Why do you do what you do? Your Mission Statement is the entire reason your...

It's a new year and with a new year comes a whole new schedule of craft shows you can sign up for! Finding local craft shows is essential for making a living via your creative biz. Selling at shows puts you in front of buyers who want to support you and fellow makers whose community you can join.

But where do you start? How do you find out about craft shows in your town and near you? How do you determine if you want to travel to out-of-state shows? How do you even FIND out of state shows? Here are a few ways:

TALK TO OTHER CRAFTERS

Ask other crafters what events they participate in and which ones they do NOT participate in. Word of mouth is a great way to find new fairs and glean details about existing ones.

GOOGLE

Google is a great way to find fairs in your city, state and in other states. Here is an image from a quick google we did and look at all that popped-up in Kansas City:

And here is a google from Missouri which came up with lots of fairs in the state:

FREE ONLINE...

It's No-Show January. That month between the winter holidays and Valentine's Day and there are NO CRAFT SHOWS! If your business has slowed down this month, DON'T FRET! We have a few tips for how to use this down time to KEEP GOING:

BOOKKEEPING AND NUMBERS

Use January to get your books in order and review the year. Figure out which shows were profitable (see our nifty graphic in our last blog for help in determining your numbers) and which weren't. Get organized for 2020 by sorting your tax documents and creating a profit and loss spreadsheet if you haven't already.

RESEARCH AND PLAN SHOWS

Are you part of any FB groups like Craft Show Success that has other makers in it? Post a question to them or do some research by searching past posts about shows in your city. Look up craft shows and plan your 2020. Mark down when applications close for certain events in your calendar so you don't miss out on applying! Plan for booth fees. Sometimes multiple events will have fees due around the...

It's the age-old question? How much product should I bring to a craft show? 

Ideally, you want to recoup 8 to 10 times the booth fee and bring double the amount of product to make that happen. You also want to make sure you're spreading your inventory across several price points.

A lot of variables exist that can effect the amount of stock makers bring to craft shows and art fairs, but there are some equations that you can use to help you determine how much product to bring.

First, you'll need to determine some very important numbers.  

Once you have determined the numbers from the graphic above, you can use them in this graphic to figure out how much product you should bring to shows to meet your profit goals!

 OF NOTE:

You don't want to bring ONLY the amount of products needed to meet your profit goals or else your booth will be completely bare by show's end! Make sure you bring DOUBLE that amount so you can restock and sell more. Shoppers love browsing full...

As a craft show organizer, I've watched countless vendors 'in their element' and... not in their element. Whether you're a seasoned pro or ready to apply to your first craft show, there is a very important "Code of Craft Show Vendors" that is mostly unspoken, but should be followed in order to make great sales and to make your show run smoothly (for you AND for the organizer).

CODE 1: BE PRESENT AND FRIENDLY

I can't tell you how many times I've watched vendors buried in their phones while customers wait for them to look up, but when the vendor doesn't look up, the customer walks away. Make sure to greet your customers and make them feel welcome to ask you questions or find out more about your product and give them your full attention (or tell them you'll be with them in just a minute because understandably, you could be merchandising or doing a social post). Craft show customers are coming because they want to support and meet YOU, and you can gain some loyal followers by being...