Should You Stay for the Whole Vendor Fair?

[wadesgirl]

If that's the case then you should say to yourself "Bummer, I probably should have come earlier!"



Beth hasn't been nice to me since I got here... this is not the only thread. She called me rude on page 1 (since I'm the only one here admitting to leaving early). I don't like her approach. My appologies to anyone else it may have been offended.

I will actually stick up for Beth here because she's one of the most well rounded, well adviced consultants on here. Most of the time she gets shunned because she's a very ethical person. She gets a lot of backlash for just stating the truth and the "rules" as they are to be followed. We try to be nice around here and get a long. I doubt she's "picking" on you personally.

 

[JackieB999]

I actually called Beth rude (in return) in a PRIVATE message and she decided to make it public up above in post #23. See how she works it? She wanted you all to know. She brought it here.

I don't like to have conflict but I will respond to people I feel are attacking me. Hopefully she will just not respond to me at all now. That would be the best.

 

[wadesgirl]

I actually called Beth rude (in return) in a PRIVATE message and she decided to make it public up above in post #23. See how she works it? She wanted you all to know. She brought it here.

I don't like to have conflict but I will respond to people I feel are attacking me. Hopefully she will just not respond to me at all now. That would be the best.

She never actually called you rude, she said it was rude to leave early. There's a difference. She wasn't attacking you, you were the one who sent her a personal message telling her she was rude. When in fact I'm the first one who spoke up to say that it's not a good thing to leave events early. I see you are new in this business, hopefully you can learn some good stuff on here to help you. And learn when to let some things go.

 

[lockhartkitchen]

We all have our opinions. I personally, stay for an event until I'm told otherwise. I believe it is unprofessional and inconsiderate to not abide by even a verbal agreement to an event's set time. You never know who may come from work that last 30 minutes. They may be the one needing the extra income from PC. There are times when you may have a slow time. After money has been spent on advertising and signage and to have vendors pull out early, because it's not busy enough for them, is disrespectful. It makes a good event look bad. When you have agreed to a set time, you abide by it! I didn't and won't invite those back that did this. I think this is what the original poster was concerned about. HER PC business being affected by one sour apple.

 

[JackieB999]

She never actually called you rude, she said it was rude to leave early. There's a difference. She wasn't attacking you, you were the one who sent her a personal message telling her she was rude. When in fact I'm the first one who spoke up to say that it's not a good thing to leave events early. I see you are new in this business, hopefully you can learn some good stuff on here to help you. And learn when to let some things go.

Let it go Wadesgirl. Take your own advice. I will run my markets the way I want, thanks.

I think it's disrespectful when event planners do things like invite 2 PC reps or a bunch of other unfair things that I see posted around here. It certainly goes both ways.

I'm polite when I leave. I clean up and say good bye. I make a lot of great contacts while I'm there. Then I go home when I'm ready to go.

 

[BethCooks4U]

We all have our opinions. I personally, stay for an event until I'm told otherwise. I believe it is unprofessional and inconsiderate to not abide by even a verbal agreement to an event's set time. You never know who may come from work that last 30 minutes. They may be the one needing the extra income from PC. There are times when you may have a slow time. After money has been spent on advertising and signage and to have vendors pull out early, because it's not busy enough for them, is disrespectful. It makes a good event look bad. When you have agreed to a set time, you abide by it! I didn't and won't invite those back that did this. I think this is what the original poster was concerned about. HER PC business being affected by one sour apple.

I have been thinking about this thread since last night and came back to say just this, especially the bolded parts. Very well put.

 

[raebates]

I've stayed out of this discussion but decided to add my 2 cents. The original poster asked how to handle the email from the event coordinator. As some others suggested, I'd apologize and assure the coordinator that I'd be the one doing the booth this year and would honor the request to not tear down until the stated ending time. In the future if I gave a booth opportunity to another consultant I'd urge them to honor the request to wait to tear down.When I do an event I am set up well in advance of the opening time and never begin tearing down until the stated end time. As a matter of fact, if there are still a few customers wandering around after the stated end time I'll wait until they've had a chance to come by my booth before tearing down. I have had some great contacts at the very end of events. I once had someone make a very large purchase in the last few minutes. She thanked me for staying. Her purchase more than paid for my booth rental. My personal point of view is this. First of all, when I pay my fee for a booth I have tacitly agreed to the rules, whether I've signed a contract or not. Second, I have already blocked out the full time. If there aren't many customers at any particular time, that's a great opportunity to connect with other nearby vendors. There is no wasted time at a booth. Finally, I believe that the very last person to arrive is just as important as the first person. He or she deserves my full attention and a chance to view my products. I respect other points of view; I'm just sharing my own opinion.

 

[JackieB999]

I have been thinking about this thread since last night and came back to say just this, especially the bolded parts. Very well put.

I knew you would come back! You can agree with whatever you like Beth... it does not change the fact that myself, and many others, will leave an event that has died out. If you do not like it, that's your perogative, but it will NOT change me from doing it.

Many event planners will try to get one over on us too. There's many posts here about them inviting two PC consultants and expecting food, etc at the last moment. I'm sure you've seen the multiple threads complaining about event planners.

They're there to do their job and I'm there to do mine. If their end of the bargain falls short (low turn out) then I feel I am released from mine.

I have done 5 booths now and I left early from one, that I HAVE been invited back too next month. I left an hour early and so did about 5 others. Again, I paid to rent that space, they did not hire me to sit for X amount of hours.

So while you may think you're being all ethical and rigtheous, it's not the way things go down in the real world. And most of you know that. Many of you have left early as well.... I'm just the only one brave enough here to discuss it.

 

[BethCooks4U]

Jackie, I think you need to let this go. You obviously have a problem with me. But this is doing nothing for you - in fact (I'll hear about this too I know) it's getting childish "I knew you'd be back " - really??

There are a lot of people who have said the same things on this thread as I have but you insist on attacking me (and while I realize it is an inflammatory word, I wasn't the first to use the word rude by the way). I did not call YOU rude, I said the practice you are doing is rude but YOU did call ME rude. I believe you owe me an apology.

You obviously disagree with the rest of those posting right along with me. Maybe it is a difference in value definitions. Whatever, you have stated your opinion, now move on.

One there comment directed back to you, then onto important things: PMing is for personal conversations. Using the PM system to attack someone is not acceptable practice and is an abuse of the system. If you can't say something in front of others it should not be said.

 

[Laura4]

I am one of those that stay until the end too. So many times those last few minutes count. Sometimes people make up their minds at the end, decide to purchase something last minute, decide to come back and book that party, etc., etc.,

 

[Cathy Boucher]

As the original poster, I must apologize for the trouble the post has caused. I was venting cause I almost lost a good show because another consultant did not follow through on a committment. My thoughts is that, if you are the original contact for an affair, and you offer it to someone else to save their month of sales, they should follow the committment in order not to loose the fair for the originator. Long winded sentence but I hope everyone understands what I mean. I really appreciate all of the responses Thanks again

 

[BethCooks4U]

As the original poster, I must apologize for the trouble the post has caused. I was venting cause I almost lost a good show because another consultant did not follow through on a committment. My thoughts is that, if you are the original contact for an affair, and you offer it to someone else to save their month of sales, they should follow the committment in order not to loose the fair for the originator. Long winded sentence but I hope everyone understands what I mean. I really appreciate all of the responses Thanks again

Cathy you were very clear on what you were saying and it was very valid.

Many times threads go off in all directions and it has nothing to do with what the OP meant it to be - don't feel bad!

 

[shelly.nurse]

I've stayed out of this discussion but decided to add my 2 cents.

The original poster asked how to handle the email from the event coordinator. As some others suggested, I'd apologize and assure the coordinator that I'd be the one doing the booth this year and would honor the request to not tear down until the stated ending time.

In the future if I gave a booth opportunity to another consultant I'd urge them to honor the request to wait to tear down.

When I do an event I am set up well in advance of the opening time and never begin tearing down until the stated end time. As a matter of fact, if there are still a few customers wandering around after the stated end time I'll wait until they've had a chance to come by my booth before tearing down. I have had some great contacts at the very end of events. I once had someone make a very large purchase in the last few minutes. She thanked me for staying. Her purchase more than paid for my booth rental.

My personal point of view is this. First of all, when I pay my fee for a booth I have tacitly agreed to the rules, whether I've signed a contract or not. Second, I have already blocked out the full time. If there aren't many customers at any particular time, that's a great opportunity to connect with other nearby vendors. There is no wasted time at a booth. Finally, I believe that the very last person to arrive is just as important as the first person. He or she deserves my full attention and a chance to view my products. I respect other points of view; I'm just sharing my own opinion.

I have been that last person at many events, and fully appreciate (by spending more dollars at their tables/taking their cards for future contacts) those that do stay until the very end. Many people work and may not be able to come earlier, or have other commitments (especially marching band moms in the fall on Saturdays when most of these fairs tend to be held). If invited as a vendor, I too, would stay until the posted end of the show. If I PAID for a table, you bet I will stay until the very end, to get my money's worth out of the event.

 

[vanscootin]

I knew you would come back! They're there to do their job and I'm there to do mine. If their end of the bargain falls short (low turn out) then I feel I am released from mine.

I have done 5 booths now and I left early from one, that I HAVE been invited back too next month. I left an hour early and so did about 5 others. Again, I paid to rent that space, they did not hire me to sit for X amount of hours.

So while you may think you're being all ethical and rigtheous, it's not the way things go down in the real world. And most of you know that. Many of you have left early as well.... I'm just the only one brave enough here to discuss it.

Get real and grow up. We all live in the real world. If we didn't we would all be making six figure incomes and have shows every night we wanted.

You got lucky being invited back to a booth your left early from. Because it is rather rude. Not only are you doing potential customers a diservice but also yourself. You will be hard pressed to find anyone in the business community who would support leaving an event early. It's not about being ethical or righteous it's about commitment. You are free to run your buisness the way you want but keep leaving events early and eventually you will gain a poor reputation. To me, (MY OPINION) it makes you look bad a person as well as a PC consultant and also looks bad for the company we all represent.

You are most certainly entitled to your opinions, as is everyone else, but when it comes to ethics and good business practice there isn't too much wiggle room.

 

[JackieB999]

Most of you have a much bigger problem with me leaving an hour early than the event planner actually did! She said "Thanks for coming, see you in October!".

I'm done typing in here... I've said what I wanted to say (even to Beth) and that's about it. I'm fine with my own ethics and business practices. You all can stay until the bitter end of a slow market if you want... but I'm more of an "outside the box" kind of person. I have my own part time business so I can be my own boss... and that's what I am

 

[lockhartkitchen]

Get real and grow up. We all live in the real world. If we didn't we would all be making six figure incomes and have shows every night we wanted.

You got lucky being invited back to a booth your left early from. Because it is rather rude. Not only are you doing potential customers a diservice but also yourself. You will be hard pressed to find anyone in the business community who would support leaving an event early. It's not about being ethical or righteous it's about commitment. You are free to run your buisness the way you want but keep leaving events early and eventually you will gain a poor reputation. To me, (MY OPINION) it makes you look bad a person as well as a PC consultant and also looks bad for the company we all represent.

You are most certainly entitled to your opinions, as is everyone else, but when it comes to ethics and good business practice there isn't too much wiggle room.

Perfectly said!! It's not a question of "the way the real world is". That's bull. As a teacher, when open house is from 6:30-8:00 I don't leave when it's slow and no one is there at 7:50 PM. There may be a parent that gets off work and arrives at 7:55. That's my job and respectful. It's unacceptable to just leave when a commitment is expected. No question there. Some people will continue to run ethical and professional businesses and some just won't. Period.

 

[Zsu]

When we do a booth in this area, most organizers make us sign that we cannot leave early, or we have to man the booth at all times. Smaller church fairs usually do not, but i would not leave even if it is slow since i had some great business in the last hour before. If not i hooked up with the Tupperware lady and did some "training". She's in the TW business for over 25 years, manages a big team in this area and has a lot of experience in the DS. I sometimes ask her those questions that i have no chance to ask my upline, because there is no upline here.
So States fair, zonta fair, and so on, if we left early we would have not been able to do it the next year, because they do remember. This year at the central states fair a new consultant form another team was helping out and took a few shifts. It would have been her 2nd day out on monday when she decided to not show up. She did not realize that she actually had to pay for the time she was out there. My friend who organized the different shifts showed up 40 minutes late, by plain accident when she got the call from the office. They told her that if she was not there, they would have made us all go home immediatey, and was not allowed back for 5 years to the event. And possibly for other connecting events too that the same organizers do. That means 2 different 10 day event that brings in thousands of people and a lot of nice business for us too. I am furious at this girl, who will not participate in any other booth vendor event we do because her carelessness. She could have screwed this opportunity for about 10-15 people in this area.
So if someone here posting that is ok to leave early, keep this in mind, i do not think so.

As for the tread starting person. I would also apologize to the organizer and make sure that you or anyone else will stay for the whole time next time. If they let you come back this year they will be ok now, but there might not be a 2nd chance for you.