Before you sign up for a booth, table, or display area find out what exactly you will be doing and what you are getting into. Don't go on preconceived ideas but find out all the facts.
As business women our time is very valuable, whether its a home business or store front business our time is valuable. You need to decide if the activity you are participating in is really worth the time and money spent to participate.
Take for instance a holiday show for business women or a business women's seminar with booths. Is this just a social group gathering or is it a sales meeting or a training seminar? Find out who will be in attendance at this function. Look at the time of day it is being hosted and where it is located, and read between the lines. If a show is scheduled during the day during normal business hours and open to they general public realize that the average person is working and that they will not be in attendance so don't count on many sales. Every person in attendance has their own agenda, promoting there own business. So take this in consideration if you want to spend the time to meet the other business women and network or if you really are interested in getting your products sold. If you want to get many sales than this is not the place for you.
A real craft show or even a women's show will be in the evening and or on the weekend when those who are attending are looking to buy and can actually come to buy. The middle of the week between 9-5 is just for those are wanting to connect and network.
I recently went to a business women's seminar thinking that I would get sales but in reality it was more a social group of networking women. There were good speakers but not about what I was interested in. Topics included priorities, getting the most our of your salon, getting physically fit, all of which I already knew about.
The things I was interested in are web marketing, planning and organizing your business, tax deductions, but these were not offered. I was naive to think that this seminar would be a great selling place but it was not.
I will keep looking into where to get the real help for my business. I am looking into my local technology center and my local university co-op too. And not all information is costly to attain, much information is free for the asking, or have a nominal fee. Oh, one more thing, don't join a group who promises to mentor you for a fee and also wants to tap into your knowledge without paying you for your information. Your information is valuable too, and if your not being paid maybe you should be. If you choose to give it away freely then you should be able to get it back freely too.
