Help Your Art or Craft Show Customer Get What They Want

June 18th, 2009

by Shasta McLaughlin
The Extravaganza Craft Productions
copyright 2008

How many times has someone who was trying to help you actually hurt your chances of getting what you wanted? How many times has someone with good intentions tried to help you reach what they saw as your full potential but actually stood in the way of you reaching your dreams? How many times has a pushy salesman stood between you and the car you wanted trying to sell you a different one?

Your job as a business person is to help a customer who already has an idea what they want, find it and then sell it to them. Remember not to stand in the way of them buying your product.

Some Don’ts. Don’t stand in front of your booth (or anyone’s booth) talking to people you haven’t seen in a while catching up. Get their number so you can call later and allow them to move on. Don’t read in your booth. If you work on a project in your booth talk about what you’re doing even when no one is around. Don’t get so caught up in the project that you become unapproachable.

As an art or craft vendor it should be
your goal to discover what every customer
who walks into your booth wants.

First establish a relationship. Smile, say hello, and introduce yourself. Give customers an idea of how things are arranged in your booth. For example say, “Hello, my name is Shasta. Necklaces are here, bracelets over there, and rings are by the checkout stand.” Tell them your special of the day. For example, “Today we’re having a sale on jewelry buy one necklace (valued at $x) and get a free pair of earrings (valued at ($x).” Some show promoters don’t allow sales so be sure that you are not breaking the rules. If you are not allowed to have sales then show the customer the featured item of the day. You don’t always have to run the same special, but if you find one works particularly well for you, use it often.

Narrow the choices. You might allow them to shop a few minutes or you could try to help them narrow their choices. Ask them if they are shopping for themselves or for someone else today. When you know who they are shopping for you narrow down which questions to ask to help make their choice easier.

By asking where a person is from you establish a casual conversation which can give clues to what styles they might be looking for. You can ask them if they like the style most common to their area. For instance people from Montana might like a western or outdoor theme, while people from Florida might like a beach theme. They might like that theme but be looking for something different just because they like to be different. The question is really just meant to give them a way to express what they do and don’t like and what they might be looking for.

You can always ask if they had a specific item in mind, or if they would like you to show them some of your ideas.

Close the sale. When they seem to be stuck ask if they would like to see more options or if you can ring up their selections? They might just be waiting for you to ask for the sale.

Offer an Upsell. Never let a customer who is purchasing just buy the one thing they have picked out. Offer an additional item similar or complimentary to the one they purchased at a small discount. For instance if they decided to buy a platter ask if they would like the matching gravy pitcher for 10% off or offer them two platters for $x.

Keep in contact. Try to collect every customers name, address, phone number, and email address. Ask their permission to add them to your mailing list. Tell them you will be sending relevant product information, specials, notices of where they can find your products. If they will share their birth date with you send them a special discount on their special day. Only mail to customers who give you permission and keep all information relevant. Remember how much you hate junk mail and spam!

Two inexpensive programs for automated email respones are AutoWebBusiness.com and the other is Constant Contact. I highly recommend you check out these two companies if you don’t already have some kind of automated follow up/email system in place.

AutoWebBusiness.com Increase your sales by 100% GUARANTEED! CLICK HERE

Listen carefully for the clues your customers give you, that indicate what they are looking for. Watch your sales increase now that you’re an expert in helping them find what they want.

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After posting this message I found this great resource and wanted to share it with you.
How to Sell: Eliminating Obstacles to Sales
To Making Your Business More Profitable,

Shasta

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