Your mileage may vary
Jul. 8th, 2019 02:46 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
offcntrOne of the hardest questions I get from other artists is, I see you just got back from [show]. Is it a good show?
The short answer is, it is for me. The long answer is... complicated.
You see, implicit in their question is, Should I try to get in [show]? Would I sell well there?
Quite apart from the fact that I have no idea how to sell anything but pottery--specifically my pottery--there are other circumstances to consider.
I do a number of small, regional shows, second- or third-tier art fairs, because when I first started to venture out of Eugene, I was cautious. I did shows with a low booth fee, shows where I could commute from home (or, in the case of my first Seattle shows, stay with family, literally across the street). Shows where the jury competition wasn't so stiff, that I actually could get into. (Later, as my work got better, my jury slides more professional, my confidence greater, I added a few bigger ticket shows--this post isn't about them as much.)
The returns on these small shows weren't huge, but neither was the investment. I stuck with them, though, grew my audience, and now, 15 or 20 years later, they're worth doing. ( A few weren't, of course. I don't go to Bend, anymore, or Coupeville, and I'm definitely never gonna do Best of the Northwest again.)
So I guess my answer is, Try it and see. Give it at least two years, three would be better. If the second isn't better than the first, or the third better than the second--first year numbers can skew high just from novelty. Second and third will show if customers are coming back--go somewhere else. Try to factor in mitigating circumstances, like rain, or 100° heat, but the bottom line is, is your bottom line growing? If so, keep coming back. (Or not; only you can be the judge of your own success.)
There was just a guest on a recent Productivity Alchemy who summed it up nicely. Talking about their experience selling at conventions, they said, I wasn't always where I am now; it takes time. don't expect instant success.
The short answer is, it is for me. The long answer is... complicated.
You see, implicit in their question is, Should I try to get in [show]? Would I sell well there?
Quite apart from the fact that I have no idea how to sell anything but pottery--specifically my pottery--there are other circumstances to consider.
I do a number of small, regional shows, second- or third-tier art fairs, because when I first started to venture out of Eugene, I was cautious. I did shows with a low booth fee, shows where I could commute from home (or, in the case of my first Seattle shows, stay with family, literally across the street). Shows where the jury competition wasn't so stiff, that I actually could get into. (Later, as my work got better, my jury slides more professional, my confidence greater, I added a few bigger ticket shows--this post isn't about them as much.)
The returns on these small shows weren't huge, but neither was the investment. I stuck with them, though, grew my audience, and now, 15 or 20 years later, they're worth doing. ( A few weren't, of course. I don't go to Bend, anymore, or Coupeville, and I'm definitely never gonna do Best of the Northwest again.)
So I guess my answer is, Try it and see. Give it at least two years, three would be better. If the second isn't better than the first, or the third better than the second--first year numbers can skew high just from novelty. Second and third will show if customers are coming back--go somewhere else. Try to factor in mitigating circumstances, like rain, or 100° heat, but the bottom line is, is your bottom line growing? If so, keep coming back. (Or not; only you can be the judge of your own success.)
There was just a guest on a recent Productivity Alchemy who summed it up nicely. Talking about their experience selling at conventions, they said, I wasn't always where I am now; it takes time. don't expect instant success.