No cash and carry at an event where they encouraged it

bferguson · 10-12-2009, 11:39 PM

Kathleen,

Thanks for the flyers. I have something coming up later this month and think they are a great idea.

Thanks for sharing.

Brenda

Quote:

Originally Posted by kam

Yes, all your ideas are very good. That is a great idea about the HWC signup sheet.

We just did a booth and there were several of us splitting the hours. Our Director offered a "Door Prize" (which required them filling out their info on a door prize slip to be entered). This year she offered the Rotary Grater. So, if you have a new item that you don't want, using it as a door prize might be a nice idea. (Use a newer item - last year we used the Food Chopper and many didn't fill out the slips 'since they a;ready had one'.)

I set out all my old Cattys and mini-cattys. I only gave new minis/cattys to people who seemed actually interested. (I didn't want to spend too much on the new cattys).

In addition to the Booth Door Prize, I personally offered 2 things:
1. Book a show with me at the booth that day and they will get the Med Bamboo Bowl free. We had it there on display. $20 Free product is a good idea too.
2. Booking coupon that got attached to all my recipe cards and cattys (old 7 new). If they hold a show by Dec 14th, I give them something free.

I have attached the docs. The Bamboo Bowl one, I just printed in color once and displayed and could point at it.
The booking coupon, I will use as an incentive to all those that I will be calling from the door prize slips. I have attached this year's and last year's.

Good luck.

Oh, one thing I learned at my very first booth:
People are filling out the drawing slips and you start talking to them. And they want you to give them a call, interested, etc. Then what happens is they stick their filled out slip into the drawing pile and I have no idea who they are! So, as people are filling them out, have them hand them to you so you can make notes on the slips so you know who to make sure to call.

So, if someone comes by and is all excited about the Snowman plates, and can't commit to a show, I make a note about Snowman plates in their slip so when I call them, I can mention December's special and how much they adored the Snowman plates...

chefann · 10-13-2009, 07:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jessicanashville

I just did a week long booth at a local fair with cash and carry and I was surprised. None of the bigger stuff sold! I had tons of stones and they were marked 10% off! The biggest thing I sold was a batter bowl and a couple mini bar pans. I sold a few little utensils, cookbooks and spices.

That's another reason I only offer small items. People don't want to haul around big heavy things at events. They want small stuff that they can stash in their tote bag or purse.

AJPratt · 10-13-2009, 08:56 AM

I bring C&C but people never seem to want the stuff I have. I'm considering not doing it anymore.

chefminniemouse · 10-17-2009, 06:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SeeMe4PC

I was actually thinking I might put two flyers up showing the DCB Set and the Single/College Student Set and have the actual items there to see and touch but they have to order them. Advertise them as great gift ideas and maybe give a $15 discount when they purchase 2 sets. Since you can combine all your sales and put them in as a catalog show (or several shows) and use that $15 dollars show credit so you really aren't paying for anything out of pocket.

Just a thought...

Good evening,

I am new to this site and am very happy I found it. I am curious as to what the Single/College Set and DCB Set include.

Thanks!

esavvymom · 10-17-2009, 09:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kam

Yes, all your ideas are very good. That is a great idea about the HWC signup sheet.

We just did a booth and there were several of us splitting the hours. Our Director offered a "Door Prize" (which required them filling out their info on a door prize slip to be entered). This year she offered the Rotary Grater. So, if you have a new item that you don't want, using it as a door prize might be a nice idea. (Use a newer item - last year we used the Food Chopper and many didn't fill out the slips 'since they a;ready had one'.)

I set out all my old Cattys and mini-cattys. I only gave new minis/cattys to people who seemed actually interested. (I didn't want to spend too much on the new cattys).

In addition to the Booth Door Prize, I personally offered 2 things:
1. Book a show with me at the booth that day and they will get the Med Bamboo Bowl free. We had it there on display. $20 Free product is a good idea too.
2. Booking coupon that got attached to all my recipe cards and cattys (old & new). If they hold a show by Dec 14th, I give them something free.

I have attached the docs. The Bamboo Bowl one, I just printed in color once and displayed and could point at it.
The booking coupon, I will use as an incentive to all those that I will be calling from the door prize slips. I have attached this year's and last year's.

Good luck.

Kathleen....how did this all turn out for you as far as the "Book at the booth" incentive? Did you get any takers?

When I've done C&C, it's been my door prize items and Season's Best. I sell very little- not worth the extra $$ spent for me. When I do a booth, it's for leads, not really for sales. I usually get 1 or 2, but usually from other vendors nearby.

babywings76 · 10-18-2009, 08:11 AM

Well, this event got rained out and rescheduled for next Saturday. Bad news is that I can't work it. I e-mailed my clustermates and director to see if anyone else wants the spot.

One other thing I found out is this was advertised as a "Shopping Emporium". To me, that sounds like people would be expecting products there to buy. I probably wouldn't have been too successful with not having stuff for sale. Although, I like the idea to put a spin on it by saying that this way it's in their name for guarantee purposes, but best of all it'll get shipped to their home and they won't have to lug it around all day.

So we'll see if anyone else takes the spot and if I do it next year.

cheflorraine · 10-18-2009, 05:49 PM

Do you typically find that christmas fairs give you enough orders/sales to make it worth your while? I have 3 fairs coming up in November, and I'm really hoping to actually get some sales from them, not just contacts/bookings.
I have one fair where they have had over 1000 people in the past, and the registration fee was rather steep ($100), so I'm hoping to earn at least some of that back...
I'll try some of the ideas mentioned here to encourage sales in addition to bookings, and hope that works.

pcchefjane · 10-19-2009, 02:30 AM

I just did a two-day Apple Festival here in my town. I had $177 in sales at the booth (others who worked have a little over $100 between them) plus 9 people interested in booking for November!

I also got 3 recruit leads. We offered free shipping if they purchased at the booth. If they were out of area, I gave them $4.25 credit on the direct ship (only one of those). I also had a Christian school next to me that I gave fundraising info for their athletic teams and met a lady who owns a Wedding Chapel and a bridal shop so I am hoping that will pay off with Wedding Registry referrals!

I had NO cash n carry unless they wanted something out of my "goodie basket". I sold one Mini Whipper from it and 1 SB so C&C would have been an expensive waste for me. The "free shipping" helps people buy little items at the booth. You never know who will turn into your "Christmas buyer" that loves the idea of you selling them that Mini Serving Spatula with no shipping that was PC for Christmas! I'm excited about the 20% off the Simple Additions for November!

sunnygirl in nd · 10-19-2009, 10:17 AM

Do you put all the little orders together and then not give them receipts then? Otherwise isn't that expensive for you to pay $4.25 for all of those little orders?

cheflorraine · 10-20-2009, 12:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sunnygirl in nd

Do you put all the little orders together and then not give them receipts then? Otherwise isn't that expensive for you to pay $4.25 for all of those little orders?

That would be my question as well.
At the first booth I did in the summer I offered free shipping as my door prize, and then I submitted the orders separately. There were only 2 orders, but still, I definitely lost money on that fair...
Perhaps if we hand-write out the receipts and give them those, but submit them as one order on the computer???

chefann · 10-20-2009, 06:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sunnygirl in nd

Do you put all the little orders together and then not give them receipts then? Otherwise isn't that expensive for you to pay $4.25 for all of those little orders?

If someone has a small order, I encourage them to make it a bigger one. I rarely offer completely free shipping - I usually offer to pay the difference between show shipping and direct shipping. That can be as little as $2 (small order), or more. But on those large orders, I'm getting a decent amount of career sales and commission so it's not a big deal.

It's not recommended to combine small orders into one, because then HO's customer records are inaccurate, if one of those customers calls with a return/exchange/breakage. Just like customers combining orders at a show.

cheflorraine · 10-20-2009, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chefann

If someone has a small order, I encourage them to make it a bigger one.

What words/phrases do you use to encourage a larger order? Take advantage of our flat-rate shipping and add some more things to your order without increasing the shipping cost??
At the one fair I did in the summer, someone just wanted the pan scrapers, and I didn't the heart to charge her the shipping, so I just covered it. She was using them for cleaning floors, so really was not interested in anything else...

chefann · 10-21-2009, 07:16 AM

I tell them that the shipping is $4.25, plus tax, and they'll get a better value for that charge if they have something else they want to add.

chefann · 10-21-2009, 11:59 AM

I was thinking about this and wanted to give you a more complete answer as regards an order for ONLY pan scrapers. If the customer didn't want additional items, I'd charge them $1 shipping plus the price of the scrapers and send them scrapers from my personal stash, using what they paid to replenish it.

kcmckay · 10-21-2009, 12:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chef Bobby

To keep from going in the red I keep some c & c items like small spatulas and ice cream scoops and a few other things. When someone buys something, I reorder it with my next show.

This is a great idea. My director does something similar with her C&C. She sells whatever she has on hand and always writes out an order form and adds tax but not shipping of course and she submits those orders as a show if she has enough or adds them to another. She started with extras she earned and just replaces them as she sees fit. I haven't done a ton of booths and haven't looked for oppurtunities recently because I just don't have time but I will eventually implement this when I get into doing more.

PamperedSD · 10-22-2009, 10:41 PM

Joy - I love the idea of a $5 grab-n-go gift bag! Has anyone does this? I'm wondering what type of bag do you use? The S/B does not seem to fit in any goodie bag I've looked at. I thought about doing a brown lunch sack bag and putting a PC sticker on it with my info. Kinda like a suprise bag - put in a coupon for $$ or % off and tell them each bag has at least xx amount of products for only 5 bucks each.

10-13-2009, 08:56 AM	#23
AJPratt Location: NJ Posts: 6,343 Best Show: 2500 Experience: 4 # of Shows: 100 My Mood:	Re: No cash and carry at an event where they encouraged it I bring C&C but people never seem to want the stuff I have. I'm considering not doing it anymore.

10-18-2009, 08:11 AM	#26
babywings76 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 3,651 Best Show: 1392 Experience: 1 # of Shows: 45	Re: No cash and carry at an event where they encouraged it Well, this event got rained out and rescheduled for next Saturday. Bad news is that I can't work it. I e-mailed my clustermates and director to see if anyone else wants the spot. One other thing I found out is this was advertised as a "Shopping Emporium". To me, that sounds like people would be expecting products there to buy. I probably wouldn't have been too successful with not having stuff for sale. Although, I like the idea to put a spin on it by saying that this way it's in their name for guarantee purposes, but best of all it'll get shipped to their home and they won't have to lug it around all day. So we'll see if anyone else takes the spot and if I do it next year.

10-18-2009, 05:49 PM	#27
cheflorraine Location: Edmonton, Alberta Posts: 96 Best Show: 1363 Experience: 6m # of Shows: 11	Re: No cash and carry at an event where they encouraged it Do you typically find that christmas fairs give you enough orders/sales to make it worth your while? I have 3 fairs coming up in November, and I'm really hoping to actually get some sales from them, not just contacts/bookings. I have one fair where they have had over 1000 people in the past, and the registration fee was rather steep ($100), so I'm hoping to earn at least some of that back... I'll try some of the ideas mentioned here to encourage sales in addition to bookings, and hope that works.

10-19-2009, 02:30 AM	#28
pcchefjane Location: SE Tennessee Posts: 2,431 Best Show: 1202! Experience: 2 # of Shows: 56 My Mood:	Re: No cash and carry at an event where they encouraged it I just did a two-day Apple Festival here in my town. I had $177 in sales at the booth (others who worked have a little over $100 between them) plus 9 people interested in booking for November! I also got 3 recruit leads. We offered free shipping if they purchased at the booth. If they were out of area, I gave them $4.25 credit on the direct ship (only one of those). I also had a Christian school next to me that I gave fundraising info for their athletic teams and met a lady who owns a Wedding Chapel and a bridal shop so I am hoping that will pay off with Wedding Registry referrals! I had NO cash n carry unless they wanted something out of my "goodie basket". I sold one Mini Whipper from it and 1 SB so C&C would have been an expensive waste for me. The "free shipping" helps people buy little items at the booth. You never know who will turn into your "Christmas buyer" that loves the idea of you selling them that Mini Serving Spatula with no shipping that was PC for Christmas! I'm excited about the 20% off the Simple Additions for November!

10-19-2009, 10:17 AM	#29
sunnygirl in nd Location: North Dakota Posts: 51 Best Show: $1500 Experience: 1 # of Shows: 37	Re: No cash and carry at an event where they encouraged it Do you put all the little orders together and then not give them receipts then? Otherwise isn't that expensive for you to pay $4.25 for all of those little orders?

10-21-2009, 07:16 AM	#33
chefann Location: praying for Paige (in MI) Posts: 22,454 Best Show: 1300 Experience: 8 # of Shows: 272	Re: No cash and carry at an event where they encouraged it I tell them that the shipping is $4.25, plus tax, and they'll get a better value for that charge if they have something else they want to add.

10-21-2009, 11:59 AM	#34
chefann Location: praying for Paige (in MI) Posts: 22,454 Best Show: 1300 Experience: 8 # of Shows: 272	Re: No cash and carry at an event where they encouraged it I was thinking about this and wanted to give you a more complete answer as regards an order for ONLY pan scrapers. If the customer didn't want additional items, I'd charge them $1 shipping plus the price of the scrapers and send them scrapers from my personal stash, using what they paid to replenish it.

10-22-2009, 10:41 PM	#36
PamperedSD Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 165 Best Show: $730 Experience: >1 # of Shows: 6 My Mood:	Re: No cash and carry at an event where they encouraged it Joy - I love the idea of a $5 grab-n-go gift bag! Has anyone does this? I'm wondering what type of bag do you use? The S/B does not seem to fit in any goodie bag I've looked at. I thought about doing a brown lunch sack bag and putting a PC sticker on it with my info. Kinda like a suprise bag - put in a coupon for $$ or % off and tell them each bag has at least xx amount of products for only 5 bucks each.

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