STGCC, IAF, SWF, CF, CAFKL, PopCon, AFA… initialisms that mean yearly celebrations for the geek community. Now that you finally landed a booth, you’re excited to peddle your wares. However, while these events - independent or commercial - can be great platforms to put your works out, there might be a few pointers one should take note of to make your event experience that much easier: Pre-Con Preparation Stock Take Simple - know what you want to sell during the event, and know how much stock you have left. Before you do any publicity for your booth (so do this way in advance), please ensure that what you advertise will be available or at least on the table on the day of the festival. Keep your stock amount in check, and let your audience know what’s low in stock. Booth Administration Get your documents ready - if you only get your passes on the day of collection, then you’re going to make your life a whole lot easier by having your necessary documentation (confirmation emails, forms etc…) ready in case the event organizers need them. Regardless of the event size, your event organizers will be busy - best be on their good side. Personal Booth Maintenance Chances are, your booth is going to boast a bare bones set up - a table, maybe a backing board (if it’s stated in your application), a seat (or two, again depending). That being said, you don’t have to have your booth “interior-designed” before the event. However, it’ll be wise to keep key components of your booth setup - table cloth, display platforms, easels etc… - both to catch the passing eye and spread your brand’s message to the world. Change & Float Money Many veteran con-goers know better than to go to an artist alley without small change. That being said, there are just as many, if not more, non-con-goers who only walk around with $50 bills in their wallet, or regular con-goers who got unlucky at the ATMs. Make sure you have enough change and float money for your sales. Note: A quick tip about how much float money or the kind of change to prepare - take a look at how you’re pricing your product and arrange accordingly to common cash denominations (E.g. If your comic is going to be selling at $8, prepare a whole bunch of $2s because you will be getting multiple $10 notes.) Inter- and Intra-Group Communications HIGHLY IMPORTANT - especially if your booth consists of works by different artists. Get your stocklists, retail prices, and float information ready in advance as much as possible. Nothing is more annoying that surprise group members showing up on the day itself and dumping a good amount of stock on you when your booth and administration are already set up. Booth Exhibition / Aesthetics Product Features One of the more effective ways to help potential customers with buyers’ paralysis (too many choices) is to position your latest (or most popular) product either at the front of the table, or propped up instead of just lying flat on the table. Having one or two points of focus per artist or table will help customers help you. Browsing Another popular move is to include browsing copies in your administration - people like samples, play with that point. Just remember to indicate that the browsing copy is just for browsing, we’ve had too many cases of people “running off” with browsing copy because of the ‘no price tag on table, so it must be free’ assumption. Prices Going to make this section simple:
Safety & Booth Owner Responsibility Health & Mindset Take care of yourself during the time leading to and during the event - Conventions and Festivals are incredibly draining, even if you are behind your booth most of the time. Stock plenty of water, get someone to get food for you, pack, take note of the nearby places that sell economically-priced food so that you don’t have to survive on chips. At the same time, do keep in mind that many conventions, markets, and festivals are also spaces for you to communicate and meet other people in the community. So beyond doing your best to push your products, do take this time to learn from other creators from the industry as well. Belongings & Safety All festivals will remind booth owners to take care of their own belongings. That being said, do ensure that your documents, valuables, and your booth money are within sight, reach, and safe boundaries at all times. # For Con-Goers, you can take a look at how to make your con-going life a whole lot easier here.
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