Tag Archives: small business

Ten Tips For A Seller’s Successful Craft & Vendor Event

After several years of being a vendor at festivals, craft shows, and other vendor events, I’ve seen a lot of what makes other vendors successful sellers. Often the coordinator is to blame if selling of goods doesn’t happen. Sometimes it is due to poor advertising and promoting by the coordinator, or whether they brought in shoppers who are different than an individual seller’s ideal customer, or the location was not ideal, or even that there is too much of a certain category of products (jewelry, candles, wood signs, crocheted products, etc). To be fair, the success or failure of a seller’s experience isn’t all on the shoulders of the coordinator, however. Success also depends on the independent seller and the quality of the products that have been made or are being sold, and even how products are priced. I have been in events where the coordinator didn’t advertise, didn’t use grammar or sentence structure in advertising, didn’t draw in crowds of people, or the atmosphere was toxic, and still either sold a good bit of my merchandise, or gained a longstanding faithful customer, even if it is another vendor. After a few unsuccessful events, I’ve had to consider my own methods and whether or not they have contributed to my success or failure. A little self reflection goes a long way!

What are the ways for a seller to set themselves up for a successful craft/vendor selling event?

Here are ten things I consider important to the success of my own events.


tips for craft vendor shows, vendor success

  1. Sellers should set up the booth in a way that allows people to see the vendor or seller’s face, not only the products. Customers need to know who is in charge of a booth, and who to know, like and trust. Craft shows are for a more personal shopping experience! For example, I recently visited a booth that was set up so that there was a solid outer wall of delicate glass items. The rest of the booth was behind the wall. I nearly didn’t walk into the booth b/c I wasn’t sure if only the outer wall was a the booth, and the items inside was extra inventory.  The vendor was set up in the far corner, closed off from the front of the booth, almost like she was hiding. I wasn’t even sure the person was the one in charge of her own booth! It was very unwelcoming and intimidating. I almost didn’t make my purchase.
  2. Stay off your phone, saving to post photos to social media, using it for invoicing, etc.
  3. Face the crowd with a smile. Engage shoppers! Compliment people “I love your shirt.” “What a cute baby.” Offer candy to shoppers, or stickers to children so their adults can shop!
  4. A seller should say THANK YOU! when shoppers make a purchase. “Happy Thanksgiving.”, “Have a great holiday.”, or “I hope you feel better soon.”, etc, also makes the purchase personal. A seller should show evidence of care to their shoppers.
  5. A seller should create an email list with shopper information so that follow up with a thank you for the purchase or sending happy snail mail can occur. A seller can also send exclusive show discounts to email list customers. Customers should be invited to be repeat customers and shoppers!
  6. A craft or direct selling seller should advertise where they are selling next on their own social media outlets.
  7. On social media advertising events, interact with other people’s posts to gain new shoppers. Interact with event posts, do not just like them.
  8. A seller should share their presence, products of what they have to offer, or specials into the coordinator’s social media EVENT first, then share that post to business pages and groups. Events are public but must be shared for visibility. Show coordinators’ groups are not always public, so what is seen is limited to those people in the group only. By sharing from the event to the group, social media algorithms are improved. Engagement on posts increases visibility.Shoppers are watching vendors for who to know, like, and trust. Vendors create verbal referrals this way, so interact a lot. It is part of advertising and supporting a seller’s own show and business.
  9. A seller should be prepared to share with their people where their booth will be! It’s not enough to say “I’m along the wall in xyz room or building.” Know the booth number, the room or building, and share that information. Some shoppers want to know where to find a seller because they have a shopping plan based on what they see in the event and in the group. Shoppers may have limited time. It’s a seller’s job, as the business, to meet the needs of the shopper. Shoppers probably won’t wander aimlessly looking for a seller, or they will forget about the seller. A seller could be losing sales because they can’t find the adorable item they saw posted.
  10. On a seller’s own business pages, groups, and personal timelines, they should share other crafters/vendors names/etc and refer to them! Build each other up that way. Sellers are all in the same boat as they work their businesses. Word of mouth referrals are awesome!

What are some of your top tips for the success of a seller at a craft/vendor show, festival, or event? I’d especially love to hear what shoppers think!

Reflecting On The Every Day Beauty & Every Day Goodness In A Changing Season

It’s been a season for sure, and it’s good to be back! It is vendor show season again, and the busiest time of a retail person’s year. I am thrilled to be back at it, and at shows I had to cancel last November. I’m literally giddy with excitement. Tomorrow morning marks vendor event #3 for November! I spent many hours of my recovery in hopeful expectation that I would be able to face this month as normal! That I’m back at vendor shows is pretty remarkable giving the outcomes that I could have had after last fall’s diagnosis and myriad of other issues our family had in the six weeks leading up to my brain surgery.

In the past couple of months, as I’ve come up on one year of crisis overload, I’ve spent quite a bit of time reflecting on last fall’s traumatic diagnosis of a brain tumor that created gait imbalance conditions, facial paralysis, and single sided deafness. I’ve reflected also on a myriad of large and small things for which to be grateful since diagnosis day.

The Season is Changing.

seasons of life, changing, opportunity, recovering from trauma, reflection, inspiration

It’s been one year, and the sensations of trauma and fear that the tumor was growing back weren’t far from the back of my mind. Last month it was confirmed that the large cavern in my brain created by the tumor and its eviction is still healing, and I’m going to need much more time to finish healing. What was also confirmed, though, is that the tumor is not growing back at this time. Maybe next fall I’ll be able to face the “trauma anniversaries” with a little less fear and trepidation!

After my surgery last November, I spent a few months using a walker and in therapy re-learning how to be steady on my feet, and adjusting to what being single sided deaf is like. In the months leading up to my “one year trauma date”, though, I’d already been back working at vendor shows, doing online work, had driven to New England to be with family for a wedding, preparing freezer meals for our fall homeschool schedule, and had attended a couple of the Lilla Rose Regional trainings. It felt good to be doing “normal” things again, even if all conditions are not back to full normal. While they may never be, I’m grateful at least for “more normal.”

I love that my youngest daughter can play with my hair again! I missed her gentle touch and her “creations.”

Lilla rose hair accessories, bobby pins, hair styles, every day beauty, momming hard, chronic illness

To distract myself from some of the fear and trepidation of “what ifs,” of my upcoming brain MRI and neurosurgeon follow up appointments, I’ve found myself “testing” what more I can do physically that is like my “old normal”, or to try things I’ve never done before. For instance, over the summer we kayaked and rowed a boat, and i did the paddling. I was so grateful not just to find out I’m still capable and love it, but I’m grateful that I get to do it again!

September rolled around, and we were at the apple farm where there is a zip line. Realizing I’ve been granted a second chance, as a person who has never zip lined, I signed the safety waiver, harnessed up, and zip lined for the first time in my life, even though I myself wondered if that was such a good idea! Feelings of not knowing where your head and body are in space because of an impaired vestibular system might make zip lining an inappropriate activity, and even my neurosurgeon was a bit surprised that I had tried it. But I did, and had fun, and probably would even do it again.

In October, the hubby and I took a weekend away. Sleepy Bear Dunes weren’t too far away, and I’ve never climbed the sand dunes. I chose the longest one, the one we hear is most difficult, and had I not run out of water, I believe i would have conquered those hills and miles of shifting sand. Running out of water and getting dehydrated is a real cause for concern for me, so alas, I was not able to finish, going only half way to the lake, despite my will and perseverance to go further. Sometimes wisdom has to win the day. At least now I can say I have climbed sand dunes, and I’m prepared to try again in the spring with extra water bottles on board, and with stronger physical muscles and well being.

overcomer, peristence, every day beauty, every day goodness, gratitude, nevertheless she persisted, sand dunes, Sleepy Bear Dunes, Lilla Rose hair accessories, because of Lilla Rose, chronic illness, home business with chronic illness

I know this season of my life is changing. My daughters are older, and while they’ve been doing vendor shows and Lilla Rose business with me, they are wanting to pursue other interests. One is graduating this year. Since I am not able to do much lifting and carrying, setting up for shows is going to be more difficult. Expect to see me with a more online presence, working with blogging and influencers. Expect to see me mentoring other women in business who are at home and working moms, who are homeschoolers, who are volunteers, who have chronic illnesses and trauma to overcome, or who are facing seasons of life changes.

I get it. All. I’m walking those seasons, trauma, and chronic illness.

It is all still Every Day Beauty and Every Day Goodness.

One of the most beautiful moments of my recovery, just days after surgery and still in the hospital, obviously not at my best and definitely at the hardest and lowest points of my life, a surprise visitor walked into my room.To say I was stunned would be an understatement.

The owner and CEO of Lilla Rose, developer of the flexi hair clip, flew from warm, sunny California to Chicago, drove 2.5 hours to my hospital room in Michigan in snow and cold to spend a few hours of an afternoon with me and my family. This was during the busiest month of his company’s selling season too. And then he drove back to Chicago to fly back to California. I will always be grateful for this sacrifice of his time and energy and resources. He talked business skills with my children over lunch, visited with my husband, and took their minds off one of the scariest times of their lives too. John Dorsey, owner/CEO of Lilla Rose, is proof of Every Day Beauty and Every Day Goodness. And maybe a little Every Day Crazy too.

Seasons change. Life is hard.

We can choose to live in fear, in failure, in staying stuck, or, we can choose overcoming in Hope and in pressing on. We can choose every day gratitude and goodness in seasonal changes and hardships. We can choose community and collaboration rather than isolation. We can choose celebration of accomplishment in reaching small goals. We can choose a different path or the other fork in the road.

I’d love for you to choose the Lilla Rose fork with me.

Until November 21st. Every Day Beauty with Lilla Rose is proof of more Every Day Goodness with Lilla Rose. There is added bonus to signing up this weekend, so if you’d like to chat with me about that benefit, leave me a comment or a message below.

This is not just a low risk opportunity.

It’s a high benefit, every day beautiful, every day good one, of which I’m grateful to be a part. I’m grateful for continued long range vision and plan with Lilla Rose.

Even as my seasons change, the road is long, the hill is steep, and the sands shift, I’m thankful for the second chances to continue moving forward.

goals, opportunity, enrollment special, never the less she persisted, reaching goals, overcomer, every day beauty with lilla rose, loveleavinglegacy

I wonder what we’ll conquer next! I hope you’ll consider joining and growing with me!

Blessings,

Deb

9 Nutrients For Growing Healthy Hair

As most of my readers know, in October, 2018, I was diagnosed with a benign vestibular schwannoma, or acoustic neuroma as it is also called. It is a tumor that arises off of the vestibular nerve that controls gait, balance, and the main nerve for hearing that connects to the brain. My tumor was a big larger than large, displacing my brain stem, causing shortness of breath, temperature control issues, some hydrocephalus, and necrosis of the tumor. At diagnosis, my situation was deemed critical enough to report to the ER, as it could have been life threatening. There’s a phone call you hate making to your parents, let me tell you.

On November 29th, 2018 my tumor was removed after being on decadron, a steroid, to relieve brain inflammation all that time. My shortness of breath and temperature control issues were managed, but my dizziness, facial numbness, tinnitus, massive fatigue, and hearing loss were not. In fact, the only thing that is not permanent, even after surgery, is facial numbness. I have facial paralysis turned facial synkinesis, but most facial function is returning through time, soft tissue mobilization therapy and neuromuscular retraining. I am permanently deaf in my right ear as the nerve was severed. My tinnitus is permanent because my brain thinks it can still hear. It’s trying to make sense of the sounds it can feel. I do still have occasional dizziness because I worked hard in vestibular therapy, but I’m no longer a fall risk. I have fatigue and brain fog, especially after being around noise. Single sided hearing is a challenge, as sound discernment is often not possible. That may be playing a part in the fatigue and brain fog.

All that being said, while I was recovering from surgery, and after my fabulous not so fashionable neuro-surgical hair cut, I needed to know what I needed to eat and be nutritionally sound to heal well, and to grow my hair back as quickly as I could. I sell hair clips as my business, after all, and hair is needed for demonstrating that.

health, healthy hair, nutrition, hair growth

9 Nutrients for Growing Healthy Hair

In the course of that nutrition research, this e-book, 9 Nutrients for Growing Healthy Hair got written, and it is has literally been how I eat. What else did I have to do, besides lots of vestibular therapy, but focus on writing an e-book and my nutritional status?

I’d love to share it with you. Let me know in the comments if this helps you! I hope it does. You can access it free here.

The good news is that i stayed healthy all the time I’ve been recovering from surgery. My muscles have grown stronger through exercise and therapy. My head where my incision was made healed nicely with no infection. My physical/vestibular therapists have been working on myofascia release in order to prevent cervicogenic dizziness, no scar adhering to my scalp, and to relieve scalp and craniotomy tenderness. My brain mri shows only continued brain stem healing and only scar tissue and a small piece of tumor left to preserve my facial nerve. My facial paralysis is healing.

Diet is not a cure all, nor does it necessarily mean someone will never be sick. Exercise is not a cure all, and maybe it will help in the prevention of future illness.  Good nutritional status does give the best shot at best healing.

I do hope good nutrition continues to help my hair grow! The shaved sections of my head now have hair that is at my ear lobe. My goal is to have grown out my surgical hair cut by November, a full year since surgery. My hair styling technique is very boring while I wait for that to happen.

Goals are good. Good nutrition is good. Exercise is good. Keeping it all in balance-that’s good too.

Blessings,

Deb