Prepare for Your Next Show What To Do After Being Accepted
Photo courtesy of Dash Events/Rio Grande Festivals
After you are accepted into a show as an artist, it is time to organize the event details.
Print out your show information, read through it, and add any mentioned dates or deadlines to your calendar, including cancellation deadlines. After you have looked through it, reach out to the organizers with any unanswered, lingering questions in a timely manner.
If you are a first-time artist at a show, seek clarity before getting to work on your inventory. Consider connecting with another long-standing artist or an event organizer for some perspective.
A simple “what sells well?” question will go a long way in ensuring this is a well-planned, financially successful event for you. It is also nice to arrive at the festival with at least one new friend in tow!
The Date Is Approaching
All shows have different lead times, but as a good rule of thumb, the release of booth assignments should trigger you to double-check your booth type, placement, and rentals. It is your responsibility to look at your assigned booth and cross-check it with what you purchased or requested.
Requests cannot always be accommodated. However, if any major discrepancies are discovered, now is the time organizers can fix them without severe disruption to the layout.
If you need electricity, a chair, or drapes, make sure these arrangements are currently in the pipeline. Do not arrive at the show without knowing your location and what rentals you have arranged — surprises on setup day are plentiful as it is and promoters appreciate when you arrive prepared.
When planning for an outdoor event, look up the historical weather patterns and averages in that city for those particular dates. I recommend weatherspark.com. This information may impact your booth plan and packing list.
Confirm your lodging and parking arrangements. If you have an oversized vehicle, find solutions for parking during setup, on show days, and overnight, especially if you are heading to an urban/downtown setting without ample options.
Double-check your application profile on whichever application portal you used. The way your name appears on your profile is how it will be plastered everywhere: your name badge, the program, a sign, the website.
If someone fills out the application on your behalf, make sure they fill it out exactly as you would. Their name or contact information should not be present.
Self-promotion is challenging, but keep in mind your customers love to hear where you are and what you are creating, and your friends with desk jobs are living vicariously through you! Make sure you are engaging customers through email marketing and by posting on social media regularly.
Keep the content relevant to your entire audience (not just those in the upcoming show area) by focusing on your latest work, with an informative spin on your next whereabouts. Periodically sprinkle in ticket giveaways or prizes to spark audience shares and reward your followers.
My recommended promotional pattern for emails and social media posts is:
- One month out.
- Two weeks out.
- The day before the show opens.
- During the event’s peak hours.
Note: If you do social media “stories,” highlight your journey the week prior to and during the show — highlighting packing, traveling, last-minute touches on your work, your latest customer, etc.
Create a Show Checklist
What do artists most often forget to bring to shows? The things we get asked for the most at our info booth (in addition to coffee) are:
- S hooks, cable ties, or fishing line for hanging banners.
- Duct tape.
- Advil and bandages.
- Change for cash sales.
- Water refills.
Things I cannot recommend enough are:
- Snacks and a packed lunch! Ideally, your booth will be slammed the entire time and you will not be able to break away. Standing in a food truck line can cost you twice as much if you are losing a customer while waiting.
- A spare credit card scanner (such as an extra Square device to plug into a phone). It is worth having a backup in case one gets finicky during an important sale.
- If it is an outdoor show, have more tent weights than you think you will need. Wind is a much greater festival enemy than rain. Even if you do not need them, making sure neighboring booths are weighted appropriately could save your work and theirs in the case of a big gust.
- Large heavy-duty plastic trash bags. They do not take up much room and can be a game changer for protecting your work from weather or morning dew inside a tent.
- A nice notebook for your booth guest list/email collection.
- Mirror, brush, gum, and all your best (and funkiest) show clothes.
- Treats to draw customers into your booth: a candy bowl, puppy treats, and a powerful fan on a hot day.
- Change of comfy shoes, especially on teardown day.