Market table

I hope the pic came through. Is there anything you would do to make this better?

Your display looks really nice, you have elevation, I love that display piece you have on the left, your oval labels look nice, I don't see anything there I would change. What I would change.....your display boxes and it looks like your soap boxes (the pic is a bit small, but I think you have soap boxes) and your table covering are all shades of brown. I'd get some color in there by getting a springy, grassy green table covering, (that's just my taste, any nice, lively, vibrant color would work with the brown) and you want it to go all the way to the ground, it looks neater, especially when you have stuff to hide underneath. Some venues actually require it. And get or make a banner to go across the front of your table, the whole length of it with your business name on it in nice big letters!!! Wishing you lots of luck and lots of sales!

Here are some examples of what I mean for a banner. Be noticed. Make yourself memorable.

To buy, or this one would be really easy to make
https://www.etsy.com/listing/128549687/personalized-craft-fair-banner?ref=market

You want it to say "HEY, LOOK AT ME!!!"
http://zween.wordpress.com/2011/09/17/craft-fair-banner-make-it-bold/

Wow, you know you'll remember this banner!
https://www.flickr.com/photos/reincarnations/2693050091/

Hang it high....
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/322148179566377349/

Across the front of a canopy
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/322148179565964279/

Handmade
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/322148179565805761/

If you google something like "craft fair displays" and click on images, you'll get tons of ideas. You have a great product, now you just have to show it off! Yay for you!

I'm not a seller, just a consumer. But I know what intrigues and what distracts me at markets.

I love, love, love the neat, organized, not over-crowded display you have. It makes it easy for me to identify what you have and my eyes aren't bombarded with overwhelming detail. So many booths at markets are stuffed with frilly, over packaged stuff where I have to pick the item up, read the label to find out what it is.

I also love the tall display on the left, and that your products are all elevated, or placed on some kind of display rather than just spread out on the table top.

From what direction will the customers be coming? Approaching straight to the table (like the direction you were taking the picture from)? Color does attract. Too much color distracts. If you have two swaths of fabric, like a nice rich red, about 16 inches wide, vertically starting from a few inches from the pavement (don't want people tripping on it) up and over the table, it would act like an arrow...pointing customer's eyes to your table. For example....if your table is 6 feet long....put your beige cloth on....on top of that, about 1/3 of the way from the left of the table....lay the narrow colored fabric vertically from the back edge of the table down to the "floor".....leave the center of the table beige.....lay the 2nd colored fabric about 1/3 of the way in from the right side.

Did I make any sense at all? Wish I could draw it on the computer.

Use color....but make it work for you. (can you tell I have a marketing expert in the house?)

Of course, if you want to hang a banner across the table...this method won't work.

I wish you the best of the luck; you've got a classy setup.

Building on the good advice you've already received here :-D, let me add my two cent's worth. (And remember, you are ALWAYS free to ignore really bad Good Advice!)

I think your set up looks lovely. Clean, tidy, (implying good things about your manufacturing) easy to see, and accessible. Personally, I prefer a bit more unstructured and happily cluttered, but that is because, despite my best efforts, I don't achieve the level of organized tidy you obviously do!

My question is (and this applies to ALL products, businesses, etc.) what's your hook? What's your theme? Why should I part with my hard earned money to buy YOUR soaps vs. the guy at the other side of the craft fair, whose prices are 25% less than yours? What makes YOU special ??

I don't mean this in a snotty way, so please don't think that. I just wonder what your "theme" is. I am a beekeeper, and I started making soaps, after selling my honey and candles for a few years. Customers would chat about when Granddad had bees, and Grandma making candles, and that led to discussions of other things . . . including home made soap -- which can include beeswax, I discovered.

:idea:

So, ALL my soaps include honey and beeswax in them. Since I live in a small, rural community in TX, all my scents are named after other tiny dots on the TX map. Since TX settlers were creative in naming their hamlets, this is fun. I.e., Skeeterville, Dime Box, Necessity, Kickapoo, Dimple, etc. That's what sets me apart from the others.

I regularly run into a very nice lady who lives not too far away who sells a whole line of fabulous goats milk products from her own goats. She buys honey from me -- and advertises as such -- for her honey & goats milk soap. I refer all queries about goats milk soap (which I don't make) to her. We have a "hand shake" agreement not to overlap too much. Since we're priced comparably, it boils down to customer preferences.

You need a niche, a hook, something that makes you stand out. Are you Mennonite? Are these your Grandmother's recipes (originally)? Do you grow the herbs you infuse in the oils? Is this an Ohio theme? Are you a Victoriana aficionado? Push it. Every person who comes to the table to ask what (the heck) you are about, is a potential customer. Talk, talk, talk.

My first customers (and guinea pigs) were my honey customers. Now I have people who come to me just for my soaps.

You are doing great! Keep up with what works, and pitch what doesn't. Good Luck!

~HoneyLady~

As others have said you definitely need colour to attract and I would add a lot more stock and fill the table, there doesn't seem to be much there, the more the better. Here is a previous link http://www.soapmakingforum.com/showthread.php?t=28263 with lots of advice and the one I like is - *Keep lots of product out, customers like to see a large selection. My old saying, "pile it high, kiss it goodbye."

I agree with most of the above:

More color, this is pretty monochrome. Don't get too busy with color, pick one bright color for the cloth on the table to balance out the brown of the boxes and the soap colors. Do have that cloth go down close to the ground and have it opaque enough to hide the stuff underneath. Maybe use one of those tubs I see under the table for some additional elevation in the back, but under the cloth. Then put the lowest box on top of that to draw more attention. Also, use all of the space on top of the boxes to display soap or other products. I would think about putting some of the bottles that might be similar scented products next to the soap on one side.

I agree with the need more product statement. Not more different products, just really put a lot of what you do have on there. When I see a sparsely filled table that is neatly arranged, I think that someone does not have many sales. I like to see full tables. Makes me think that product is more in demand.

I absolutely adore whatever that tiered thing is!

And I need to know who you are, and what you are selling. Maybe a banner, maybe take one of your labels to a sign making company to have them make you one that will cover at least 2/3 of the front of the table and velcro it to the cloth. Or you can try making one from some of the corrugated plastic you can get at craft stores.

On thing that I would change - have a thicker, longer piece of fabric that goes down to the ground. Magic is all about illusion, and seeing the table workings and the plastic boxes is like seeing Mickey at Disney World with his head off, smoking a roll-up and scratching his patchy 3-day stubble.

The display itself is fab-u-lous! I just found myself drawn to the 'warehouse' rather than the 'shop front'

You've received some great advice here, and these changes don't all have to be made at once. Craft fair/market displays are a work in progress. No matter how long you've done them, you'll still be changing and improving on your design.

I've never taken a business course in my life, but when I started selling, I began to read as much as I could on line. I had never heard of the concept of "branding", but now I realize how important that can be when you sell. A consistent color theme, a logo, a particular "look". It helps to identify who you and your product are. And again, this is something that you can develop over time, but something you can think about along the way.

You have been given some great advice. I agree with having a table cover to the ground to hide what's stored under the table. I'm also in with having a lot of product on display. Make it look plentiful and not like it's been picked over. I generally try to keep my shelves full and bring backups to look plentiful. And adding some color will help as wel. It's a continuous project for me to keep tweaking my display.

Thanks all! Great advice from all.

The soaps are actually not in boxes. They are wrapped with kraft paper then labeled. Everything was brown because it is all natural. I have gotten several compliments from customers on my display. I sell at a farmers market and everyone has totes you can see under their tables hahaha, but I will see what I can to do hide that all with more fabric. I agree with more color. My business colors are lime green and brown. I do have a sign actually. It is not pictured here, but it is behind the display at eye level and is a banner type that is secured with straps.

The table is fuller now that I have more stock. I was running low. Thanks for all the tips!

If your colours are lime green and brown I would put a lime green cloth under your hessian to the ground and definitely hem the edges of the hessian as it looks messy - it will get worse.

In several of my markets we have to have all containers, ice chests etc hidden. My table coverings and elevation boards are all black finished covers but my labels, soaps and packaging add in the color.

I thought I'd give an updated pic of my display table I had several compliments on it at the market. Simple.

I was just swapping from the first pic to this one, and the difference is HUGE! This one is intriguing and inviting, looks professional. Awesome job!

Nice addition of color, great banner, good looking soaps and good amount of product displayed. Looks like a success to me! It would make me stop and take a look.

Very nice, the addition of the green cloth makes it pop and catch your eye.

Just wanted to say great job on the new display! Your banner is nicely done and the butterfly adds a nice pop of color!

That is a lovely display. I would definitely visit your booth.

Thanks all! I had a lot of people stop by it.