Hey everyone! It’s Jack, I’ve been busy hosting and vending at several expos as of late and wanted to share a few tips for those who may already be vending or looking into vending soon. If you are interested I also welcome you to watch the youtube episode linked above, where I talk all about this as well as share with everyone a beautiful Ball Python that I picked up my most recent show!.
As with my channel these posts will be broken down in to chunks of information. However, here I will try to go a bit more in-depth than I may on my channel.
1. Bring Extra Hands
Two-Person Rule: Always bring at least two people to manage your table if you can. If you have multiple tables, consider a third. I have seen many vendors try to man even a single table all by themselves and have a problem trying to address customers properly. Depending on the show, some shows can see hundreds to thousands of people coming through the doors.
Break Time: Having someone else with you allows you to step away for meals or breaks without leaving your table unattended. This is big, as I indicated previously most shows have lots of people coming and going, this can be a huge risk factor for not only loss of sales but someone could potentially walk away with an animal that you worked very hard to produce.
On this same topic, asking one of the vendors on either side of you to watch your stuff can be seen as rude, as quite often they have their own stuff to watch. So you want to be careful, most of the time they will be happy to but as a general rule of thumb, it's not something you want to count on.
Going to shows alone makes it difficult for you to be able to take a look at what others may have available. One of the best parts of going to a show as a breeder is seeing what projects others are working on and maybe having the opportunity to pick up something new. This becomes very difficult if you're going to the show all alone.
2. Customer Engagement
Knowledge is Key: Having multiple people at your tables to help you vend is great for setting up and packing things up, but its even more helpful if they have an idea of what it is you are selling. I know this can be a bit more difficult as many of us breeders do this as a hobby or as a small business, so others being involved outside that of maybe a spouse or other family member can be rare. But consider talking to and working with a friend or perhaps one of your long lasting customers, to see if they may be interested in helping as they may be more likely to know a bit more about the species and projects you work with and can often help answering some customer questions.
Maximize Sales: One of the hardest things in todays economy is sales. With multiple knowledgeable people, you can engage more customers simultaneously, increasing potential sales.
Make it a family affair: If you have a family, get them all involved, teaching and sharing in your passions. This is one of the things that I always enjoy seeing at the shows, is the number of families who all pitch in at the shows, working the tables, showing off some of the beautiful animals their family has created and sharing the passion with others.
Personal Experience
I share these tips, as I have done many shows by myself. And trust me when I tell you it makes for a very long day. Having to do everything by yourself, makes some of it feel more like a chore than something fun and exciting to do. It takes away from the community that these shows are designed to foster. Of course, these types of shows are designed as a place to sell the animals and products that you have produced, but there is nothing wrong with being able to enjoy yourself at the same time. Don't be afraid to ask for some help or look for someone that may be willing to offer assistance when you vend.
Community Engagement
I want to hear from fellow vendors and breeders! Share your thoughts on show strategies in the comments. Let’s learn together!
Final Thoughts
This channel is about sharing my journey in the reptile breeding world, including the ups and downs. If you enjoy this content, please consider subscribing!
Thanks for stopping by! I look forward to sharing more adventures with you.
Love you all!
-Jack
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