The Indie Craft Show Directory

The weather is finally perking up, and outdoor shows are where it’s at in the summer. While you’re furiously making products for the summer show season, make sure you have a good set of tent weights! If a good storm comes along, the old “gallon of water tied to the tent leg” trick isn’t going to cut it.

EZUP makes some great tent weight bags. They’re made of thick fabric and each bag holds 40 pounds of sand, which you can get at your local lawn and garden shop. And they’re available with free shipping from Amazon.

If you’ve got time for a DIY project, the Etsy Metal team has posted a great tutorial on how to make tent weights using PVC pipe and cement.

As a last-ditch effort, there’s always a last-minute dash to the home improvement store for 4 cinderblocks. The downside of cinderblocks is that they take up a lot of space for the weight, and can be pretty dirty/crumbly. Still, if it’s 8am on Saturday and looking like a windy day, they’re you’re best bet for a quick fix.

What do you use to hold down the fort?

A table cloth is one of the basic necessities of a booth, but why settle for a boring white or black table covering when you can have more? Here are some booths that do a great job using colorful tablecloths.

Share your festive table coverings in the comments!

I have been using dishes of candy to lure people into my booth for a while now, and it really works! I often use brightly colored candies in a cute vintage dish. I put a little pink serving spoon in the dish, and people come back repeatedly to visit for more. Whether they buy something or not, that’s fine – at least they are viewing my work for a second while they munch.

I wanted to feature some candy ideas for you to use, let me know if this works or you have an opinion on the matter

Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared on Craft Friendly Southern Illinois and has been reprinted with permisison.

For some, the accepting credit cards at craft shows can be mysterious and intimiating. For others it’s old hat. But have you considered what exactly happens when you swipe the card or run it through your knucklebuster?

Sara from Girls Can Tell shared this amazingly helpful infographic which breaks down the process. It breaks the charge down into two distinct phases: data and settlement. Follow the source to learn just what happens when your customers hand over the plastic.

Fee Fighters via Girls Can Tell

An incredibly important part of your booth set up at a show is your banner/sign. Name recognition will help people find you at future shows, and look you up online when they get home. Banners come in a dizzying array of styles, we’ll help you choose one that fits your needs.

How much to spend?

Your banner will likely be with you for a long time, so don’t be shy about spending a few extra dollars to get the one you really want, instead of the cheapest one. After a season of craft shows you won’t remember the extra $20, but if your banner is too small / cheaply made, you’ll feel it at every show.

Consider how long you’re likely to use your banner. If you have a consistent style/branding, it’ll be worth it to get something on the nicer, more expensive end of things. If you’re still working things out, don’t go all out quite yet. Get something that fits your needs, but wait on ordering that hand quilted custom printed vintage fabric banner until you’re sure you’re going to use it next year.

Horizontal or Vertical?

Decide how you’ll want to orient your banner. Horizontal banners are more common, and can be stretched across a tent or table. Vertical banners are meant to hang down, and generally hang from the back of your tent or a small flagpole.

Horizontal banners are a bit more versitile, but vertical ones give you a little more space for text. If you plan on hanging your banner from a banner pole sticking out of your tent, check with the show organizers first to make sure its OK.

Pennant Banners are quick and inexpensive to make. They can be made to fit any width table or tent without spending a lot on materials, and fold up tiny for easy transport. They’re better suited for businesses with short names, as each letter is placed on its own scrap of fabric.

Don’t like triangles? Your letters can be any shape. Try to resist the urge to go nuts with fabric colors. You want people to be able to read your name, even at a distance, so stay away from busy patterns and use nice thick lettering.

Fabric Banners

A well made fabric banner can last for years. And if you make it out of a washable material like cotton they’re a snap to clean up after a rainy show.  Fabric banners range from inexpensive appliques you can do at home, to professionally quilted and custom printed masterpeices.

Pick a style and construction method that fits your work. For example, if you make something with a modern, clean style, a traditional quilted banner might not convey that well. And if you want a fabric banner but aren’t in the mood for all the cutting/sewing associated with applique, and aren’t much of a painter, you can have your banner printed by a service like Spoonflower (make sure you select upholstry weight fabric).  Fantastic Toys has a great banner printed by them.

Vinyl Banners

Vinyl is the most common banner material, and with good reason. It’s water proof, can be printed in millions of colors, and rolls up easily for storage.

Most vinyl banners come grommeted (the holes on the corners), making it easy to hang them. If you know you’re going to be using your banner with a tent, you can skip the grommets and instead attach velcro  to the back. Stick the other side of the velcro strips on your tent, and you’ll have an easy to use removable banner.

Keep your vinyl banner design simple, don’t overload it with text. You can order a banner from most local print shops, or online. Some printers, such as Wilson Graphics, cater specifically to the craft show market.

Design and Style

Resist the urge to overload your banner with text and graphics. Too much text becomes hard to read, and busy graphics can detract from what the buyer should be looking at: your booth. In general, avoid putting product photos on your banner, unless you know you’re going to stick with that item for as long as you use your banner.

Consider coordinating your business cards and other materials with your banner. Creating uniform branding can make your booth more memorable, and help sales in the future.

Got more banner tips? Share them in the comments below!

Over on Etsy’s blog one of the directors of the Craft Bastards show in DC has put together a fantastic list of tips for getting into shows, and how to handle rejection gracefully. While most deadlines for the spring/summer season have passed, the info will come in handy for applying to holiday shows this winter.

Most of the suggestions are probably things you’ve heard before (but a reminder is always good). The one which stuck out in my mind as good advice was “know your market.” A show which may be fantastic for a fellow vendor may not be such a good fit for your wares.

Read the full article over at Etsy.com.

[via The Storque]

Ever notice how at fancy restaurants there are no dollar signs or decimals on the prices? Just a plain number 7 (or 12 or 25) at the end of the line?

Aside from going for typographic simplicty some new research indicates it may be an effective way to get people to spend more. Supposedly, removing the dollar sign and standard two-decimal-places formatting helps remove the association with money spent.

While the study refers to restaurants, the same thinking might apply to craft shows. Ditching the dollar sign (or currency symbol) may subconciously lead people into buying more. Or maybe it’s just the latest pop psychology hooey. What do you think?

[via The Consumerist]