Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

Stan,
I think that although you might start a line of "kid-size" furniture, it ultimately would hinder rather than help your business. It seems as though your main drive it toward legitimate outdoor furnishings, and that speaks to an adult market.

What about having your best work of art as a showpiece (or if you can get two, even better), then using photos and posters, along with giveaway brochures? Could you afford a 1-time run of full-color press printings, with a professionally designed brochure of some sort?

I`m thinking of companies who have booths at similar shows, where their main product is also very large. Or, it might be a company whose product is more intangible, like someone who sells time-shares, camping sites, or resort property. They have one "thing" that grabs attention and draws people to the booth, then focus on their printed handouts to get future business.

Would something like that work?

Homebased,
I think the big problem here is the size of the display area. It`ll be difficult to transform a 15-foot area with a bench, table, and chair.

On the other hand, what you bring up would work if Wtgg could maybe build an environment that`s "evocative" of the leisure fun of a back yard. I`m thinking about this "fishing hole" idea.

An actual fishing hole wouldn`t have lawn furniture and tables, right? BUT!...a fishing hole brings out emotional memories of summer, fun, the sun, leisure, and vacations. It`s eye-catching in itself, and would definitely bring curious folks to the booth to see what the heck it`s about.

At THAT point, there`d be time for a sales pitch, and handouts, right? So how to transform a 10`x10` or 8`x10` area into a fishing hole. I`m thinking there would be a great place for miniatures.

Wtgg, you could build a small-scale dock, gather some fake rushes and plants, and perhaps an imitation tree or two. Use blue cloth or something for the water, and build your booth as a "hidden camera view" of a kid fishing. Get a small statue, perhaps to put on the dock, with a pole, as a prop.

People would see this whole "world," which I`m guessing would be entirely different from the surrounding booths. Right?

I have worked as a marketing director for a couple of home improvment companies in my time and from my experience the best thing you can do at these shows is "man" your booth with engaging, enthusiastic, friendly and sales oriented "demonstrators". People who will approach and "go get" people to talk to.....

• use as a larger piece of furniture in the main space (use some greens to set the atmosphere) and set a scene; the emotional feeling towards being ourdoors, family, relaxing, etc.
• blow up photos of available products that can be hung on the booth walls
• setup a display of woods and finishes for people to see and feel
• children`s furniture can be put on tables
• create photographically strong sales kits that people can pick up
• utilize (or create, if possible) a video of families and individuals using the furniture - again setting up emotional triggers

There was an interesting type of art back somewhere in the 1700s or whatever, that created a sort of optical illusion. There`d be a physical piece or two of something, which then blended right into a painted background. It went on to be used in movie sets in the early days.

What if you were to take a photo of a full set in a nice outdoor setting, then blow it up to a large size. In the photo, leave out the two pieces that would`ve been in the foreground. Then put the blowup on the chipboard, but include the two foreground pieces as real pieces in the booth, with maybe some fake grass and leaves?

It`s crucial that you capture the attention of show-goers in just a couple seconds. As they`re browsing by various booths at the show, attendees look and right, left and right, until something catches their attention. I don`t think a small home show booth is the ideal setting to sell your furniture, but I do think you can have an impact if you be selective about what you show.

In my opinion, you should show your best selling piece in person (or maybe two). What you will want to do is capture attention with those one or two pieces, and hope that some buy or come into your booth to see what else you have. You simply don`t have enough room to show the full breadth of your line, so I think you`ve got to focus, focus, focus. Too many vendors at shows try to do too much in too little space with too little time, and in my experience, that is not a winning strategy.

I agree with Jennifer about showing pictures, but I also think that you should try to sell a hundred adirondack chairs (if that`s your best seller, for example) and hope that you get some spillover into other product areas rather than trying to make your small booth look like a catalog.

Take a cue from those kitchen gadget demo salespeople: they sell the heck out of one item. They do it by capturing the attention of show-goers, and then doing a dynamite presentation that sucks them in. They would all be far less successful if they tried to sell a full catalog of kitchen gadgets at a show like that.

You might want to consider having a drawing for a free adirondack chair (or whatever). This would potentially draw people to your booth, but then you must verbally engage them while they fill out the entry form.

So, here`s my recommendation: (1) have a clear focus; and (2) sell at the show.

The best to you!



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Skip Anderson
Sales Trainer
Founder and President,
Selling to Consumers | Sales Training to Sell More