When it comes to selling your handmade products, having a display that sets the visual standard for your work is part of what determines how your products sell. You can spend loads of time preparing, planning, and organizing inventory, but when the day itself comes around, the overall display is what will convince others to buy what you’ve made. As craft events pick up across the globe and holiday shopping soars once again, it’s time to analyze how your configure your booth, and see what can be modified or improved this season.
Here are a few important tips for having the perfect custom display at any craft event.
1. Don’t put everything at the front of the booth.
It might be hard to refrain from this, particularly if your booth is centered around one table; but varying where you position your items makes a huge difference. Your ‘craft instinct’ will likely tell you to put your best products right at the front, but try to balance the display a bit, so customers don’t have sensory overload when they first see your booth.
2. Make sure your table, walls, and booth are not cluttered, and everything can be seen.
As mentioned above, resist the urge to put everything right up front. Displays are meant to be creative. Try hanging up some items instead, or using the classic clothespin-line across the top or sides or your booth. Most customers like displays that are creative and interactive, with different things in every corner. It’s refreshing to the eye and mind, whereas a cluttered booth space is not.
3. Before the event, determine how far in front you want your items displayed, and whether your booth is walk-in or walk-by; it really makes a difference.
Now let’s talk about what you should have up front. Most people will only spend a few seconds glancing at your booth, to get an impression of what’s there. Those few moments determine whether or not they see something they want to stop and look at, or potentially buy. So make sure your booth display is at its best. Choose the products that customers should associate with you, and put those at the front. It’s fine to have items displayed to the side as well, to be discovered as customers enter the booth (if it’s walk-in) — but those should be the ones secondary to what you intend to sell the most.
4. Determine the ‘flow’ of your items throughout the booth.
Not only do displays have to be visually appealing to customers, they also have to make sense. By this, I mean don’t place two or more items together for no reason; there has to be some sort of aesthetic transition that ‘flows’ throughout your booth. For instance, if you’re selling an assortment of wood furniture for different parts of the household, you’ll want to lay out in such a way that when customers walk through your booth, it simulates them walking through their home. Put kitchen furniture next to living room furniture, followed by library or office furniture, and so on. Having kitchen furniture next to bathroom furniture doesn’t create the same effect. Another way to think about this is what message or story your booth conveys. When customers walk through, they should be immersed in the correct sequences of events.
5. Put yourself in your customer’s perspective.
Stand on the outer side of the booth and try to visualize how customers will see your products. Analyze in terms of visibility and likeability: What is visible and what isn’t? Do the right items stand out, for the right crowd (i.e., parents shopping for their kids, spouses looking for anniversary gifts, etc.)? Going from personal experience, sometimes I pass by a booth five times before something catches my attention, because it isn’t obvious enough, or doesn’t relate to what I’m looking for (even if there are actually products I would buy, but can’t be seen at first glance). If you have larger products for sale, such as porch swings, it may be better to place them in an interactive arrangement; that is, if you intend your customers to try them out. It all depends on the size, use and other specifics of your product.
The Bottom Line…
Remember that customers will be attracted to your booth in different ways — most of the time, it’s something unique that catches their eye. Think of what will appeal to the vast majority, and arrange your display accordingly.
Good luck, have fun, and enjoy the holiday season! 😀
