5 Ways I Lost Money Trying To Make Sales at Craft Shows

It’s important to make as many sales as you can at a craft show and sell the stock you have.

These are ways I lost money when I thought I was doing the right things to make a sale.

1 – Holds

This is obviously my most frustrating lesson as I’ve placed it top of the list and am still thinking about it 10 years after it happened 😉

I had an event organizer ask me to put an item on hold during selling hours, so she could go and grab cash. It was a pair of XS pajama bottoms, my last pair.

I watched her walk away and get distracted.

Not long after, someone came to my table with her daughter, looking for a pair of XS. I said I didn’t have any left but that I could make a pair if they contacted me after the event (they never did).

And the organizer never came back to pay.

I had that pair of XS pajamas for months.

It’s okay to put an item on hold once and a while, but if I were selling one of a kind, I probably would’t allow holds at craft shows. Or if I did, it would be for a very short time period (5 – 10 minutes).

It’s important to make as many sales as you can at the event.

If you’re going to allow hold, set specific time limits or rules.

>> I can hold an item for 30 minutes, and then I must put it back out.

>> I can hold an item with a small deposit (this would be appropriate for higher-priced items, such as original art pieces).

Be sure to communicate your rules clearly so no one is upset if they come back later and the item they thought was on hold is gone.

2 – Custom orders

This was my second most frustrating mistake, and I made it a few times before deciding…never again!

I had someone visit my booth at an outdoor farmers’ market. She loved my travel bags but wanted one slightly smaller, in different colours, and with a few different details.

How much did she really love my bags if she wanted to change every detail?

I agreed to make her a custom bag.

>> I spent hours going back and forth with her through email, trying to get her to choose a material.

>> Then I had to draft a new pattern for a size of bag that was in between my smaller one and larger one. That required more time.

>> And finally, I had to go out of my way to meet up with her, to deliver the bag.

Custom orders can be great if your business is set up for it.

But there are costs you’ll take on when you customize orders to each customer’s specifications.

Those costs need to be worked into product prices.

If you’re not selling items designed to be customized or easily altered, consider saying no to custom orders (e.g. can you make this but in red?).

If you get enough requests, consider altering your business model and creating a price structure that supports customization.

3 – Delivering after the event

I dealt with many people who saw an item they loved during the event but weren’t prepared to buy that day.

When these people would contact me after the event, they were expecting free delivery or to meet up somewhere convenient for them.

That’s not how businesses work. You can either:

Go into their physical store to buy

OR

Visit their website and pay to have the item shipped to you

I was losing money running around the city after an event to deliver orders.

I learned to start charging for my delivery (even if it wasn’t to their door and was meeting somewhere in the middle) or requiring them to come to me to pick it up (at no cost to them).

4 – On-the-spot discounts

Math is not a strength of mine. So when I was put on the spot by a shopper who was bold enough to ask for a discount…just because, or a friend of a friend who thought they should get a discount because they kinda knew me, I panicked and agreed.

Not only do I feel uncomfortable saying no or countering back (my problem, not theirs), but I was also too flustered to think through what that discount meant.

Would I be covering all my costs?

Am I making any profit with this sale?

Although I’m not a fan of handing out discounts just because, I did learn to set a discount I would be happy with offering if someone asked. “Can I get a discount?”…”Sure, I can give you my 10% Friends & Family discount.”

I also worked on a phrase I felt comfortable saying when I felt like I was dealing with someone who didn’t truly appreciate my work (and would never become a repeat customer), but rather was just looking for a bargain.

When you have a phrase such as: “Sorry, I do run sales sometimes, but I can’t discount that item today.”, it will be easier to say no in a polite way.

5 – Losing focus

It’s hard to believe, but some people stole from my craft show booth.

When I was giving all my attention to a legitimate shopper, that left an opening for someone to sneak away with one of my items.

It’s also important not to ignore other shoppers in your booth while you put all your focus on one person you think is going to buy.

That has backfired on me too. I’m sure a big sale is coming, and they decide they need to walk away and think about it. Meanwhile, 3 or 4 shoppers have come and gone whom I didn’t give any attention to.

Try to find a balance.

At a busy show, bring a helper.

When you’re by yourself and are with a shopper who needs a little more help, be sure to acknowledge other shoppers who approach and let them know you’ll be with them in a minute, or to please interrupt you if they have a question.

Use these tips to make your craft show space more theft-proof: 10 Tips to Prevent Theft at a Craft Show