I've been directing or helping to direct a craft show for our church for many years. We have around 80 vendor spaces and use the money we make for scholarships for kids to go to camp and mission trips. So, if you are looking for a way to make some money for your group or organization, this is an idea. I'm developing this series of how-to posts so others can do this without the trial and error we've endured.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Tutorial - Using Google Form Builder to make your craft show application.
And this is part 5. Today let me cover paperwork. There are certain types of information you need to keep and certain things you do not need to keep. There are all kinds of regulations on people's personal information. So the less of it you keep, the better. And if you have paper applications, they need to be in a locked file cabinet or paper safe. (I STRONGLY suggest NOT keeping paper. I suggest you use the Cloud to store your databases. If you MUST do paper, invest in a shredder!)
VENDOR INFORMATION - THE WHAT
Hopefully you sat down with your committee and figured out what information you needed for your application. You need to have their name and what they sell. (Make sure they give you lots of details for what they sell. It is hard enough to place vendors when you know what they will have!)
Here is a link to a short vendor application (not an online form) for you-- the 2014 Welch OK Harvest Days show (let me know if this link becomes inactive -- I expect it will when they put up 2015's application). And this is a link to my application (online form).
Unless you plan to use regular mail, you don't need to keep a vendor's address, but it is useful to collect. For one thing, if a vendor won't give you an address, they may not be the quality you need for your show. And if they give you an address out of state, or more than an hour away, they are a big risk for a no-show. Also, this gives you an idea where your advertising money should go. If 20 vendors are from a nearby city, you will do well to put some flyers up in that community or an ad in that local paper.
The biggest piece of information you need, though, is what they sell. We have never required photos of booths, and never had a juried show, but it might be good to start. Seems every year we have vendors try to intentionally or not sneak stuff in their booths. Like their aunt Sue's Scentsy candles or brochures for their other side business. Not a big deal unless you already have a vendor selling that brand of stuff. Most (ALL) brand companies (MLM's and home party businesses) only allow one seller of their goods per show. If a director of a show allows more than one, it can make a big stink, or worse a cat-fight at the show. One of the WORST things you can have happen is two vendors fighting. IN. FRONT. OF. SHOPPERS. Bad, bad, bad! Even in front of other vendors -- it is just bad.
You MUST be willing to enforce the rules. If it isn't listed on their application, They don't display it without permission.
Everyone must describe in detail what they are selling. This is a big help when determining who goes where. There are two chains of thought on this issue. One says all like items together so you have a jewelry section, a hair bows section, home decor section, etc. We don't do this. When I imagine them right next to each other, comparing products and prices and who applied first, etc. Nightmare!
We loosely organize ours by when vendors applied and their requirements/requests, and we do our best to separate vendors of like items. We try to keep people away from their direct competition. That means we don't put two jewelry vendors next to each other if we can help it even though the jewelry is usually unique in each booth and it might not be a big deal. This is hard with those vendors who list "hair bows, crochet items, homemade candles and jewelry" on their application. They usually end up near someone with similar items, but they have such a wide variety, I never feel like they are in direct competition.
That reminds me. Organizers have to have thick skin. You WILL be griped at and criticized. Some vendors will not do well, and will blame the show. They will compare you to every show they've ever been to, real or imagined. Especially in your first few shows, they will complain -- because you are going to make some mistakes and it will FEEL less organized than it is just because you will be more nervous. Even when the vendors stop complaining (like at our shows -- we hardly ever have them complain any more), YOU will know ever mistake you made.
Plan to go out after the show and process or scream or laugh or cry. You will be exhausted, and beat up and thrilled -- its a crazy time emotionally. Maybe have a drink at a friends' or a quiet dinner at home with your hubby -- surround yourself with a person or two who wholly support you. Plan to meet with your committee a few days later. DON'T let your church schedule you to interview a preacher candidate after the show... (He's great -- it all worked out -- but his first impression of me must have been a bit strange.)
OK, true story--- I once had a vendor have a conniption because we gave out the tax information from the local government's website and it disagreed with her phone app's tax information. She talked to everyone who would listen all day long and the whole flock of vendors where she sat had a little trash-the-organizers party. She even made a point to tell her customers... For some reason she didn't have good sales and has never been back... hmmm... go figure!
VENDOR INFORMATION - STORAGE
If you used my earlier tutorial to make an application, you already have a spreadsheet for vendor information that is being collected each time a person applies for your show from your website. You need to add a column for "paid" and a column for notes. To do that, open the responses spreadsheet and type in the header name (i.e.: "paid" and "notes") in the next two blank rectangles to the right of your existing data headings. This will not change anything else, and you can add information at any time. However, do not change the order of the columns. (Don't insert a column.) Just add them at the end. This is where your administrative data goes.
Feel free to skip on down now if you have used my tutorial. If you did not use my earlier tutorial, you need a place to capture and store vendor information.
We maintain a database of vendor information on a spreadsheet. We have used Excel and Open Office spreadsheets in the past. Currently we use one on Google Docs, which allows us to share information as needed but still easily limit who sees the information. Having the information in a spreadsheet is an essential time saver which allows us to sort easily and do an electronic search when we are trying to find something.
If you are not familiar with a spreadsheet, do not be concerned. Anyone can use one. To find out which, if any, spreadsheet software you have on your computer, click on the start icon. On Windows PC's it looks like a blue marble with the Windows icon in the center. It is usually on the lower left hand corner of your screen. It is what you click on to start any program.
Just above the search bar you will see "All Programs." Clicking on that will bring up a list of all the programs on your computer.
* If you have Microsoft Office, you will click on the folder labelled Microsoft Office, and a submenu will show the various programs. Microsoft's spreadsheet program is called Excel.
* If you have Open Office, you will click on the folder labelled Open Office, and a submenu will show the various programs. The Open Office spreadsheet program is called Calc.
* If you are going all online and use Google Docs, open your Google Docs account. You will use Google Sheets.
Click on your program to open it. (On Google Docs, click on new then Google Sheets.) You will notice its simply a page of boxes.
Columns go up and down, rows go across the page.
Type the column names (also called headers) across the first row. Make them bold. You can change the column width by clicking on the line between columns and moving it right or left as desired. You can also change the size of the font. To change it for the entire spreadsheet, click on the box to the left of the "A" column and above the "1" row. That should highlight the entire sheet. Then change the font size as normal (format, font or whatever it is for your program)
Type in your vendor information as you get it. Name under the name column, phone number under the phone under the phone column etc. Be sure to stay on the correct row. ONE row for each vendor. If they have more information than will fit in your box, like a second vendor name, just add it. You can change the width or change the font size if you need to later. Hitting Control/Enter together or Alt/Enter together will often make a new line in a single box.
FINANCIAL INFORMATION
We USED to make a copy of all checks and staple them to the application. We did it to show that the vendor had paid. We do not do that any more. We do not want to be liable if someone were to get the banking information from a check from us. MOST of our vendors pay with Paypal now, and beginning last year we have a credit card reader. So. Much. Safer.
We keep track of who has paid in our spreadsheet. We simply add a column to the spreadsheet for "paid" and mark it off.
If their check doesn't clear, you will get it back and have the information you need. Why have to worry about someone seeing it and using it? The same thing for any kinds of financial information such as bank accounts, credit cards, etc. DON'T keep those records.
Don't ask for Social Security numbers. You have no need for them. [UNLESS you have to report sales for your vendors to your state for tax purposes. I have no idea how to do that, so I can't help there. If you could find that vendor -- she'd set you up rigtht! I can't help you, though, cause I don't even remember her name. She sold very high dollar handbags and outfits-- nothing under $100, I remember. ]
If you do have sensitive information, as soon as possible, shred it. (Unless your accountant says otherwise, of course.)
NAMING CONVENTIONS
As a general rule, you will want to put the year in everything you make for your show. This helps to avoid saving over last year's data when starting the process for the new year. So you will have application 2015, craft show spreadsheet 2015, layout 2015, etc. If you do more than one show a year, you will put the season or some other identifying part in your name. Spring 2015 or Holiday 2015.
CONTACTS
You will also need a way to contact and send out information. You will want a few lists. You will need to communicate with your committee. You will want to send information to your whole group, your volunteers and your vendors. You will also need to keep track of where you have posted the ads for the show. Spreadsheets are great for keeping track of lists like this. But when it comes time to send out the communication, it can be tricky.
If you do a paper communication, you can use a mail merge from your spreadsheet. usually your spreadsheet or your editing software will have a built in 'wizard' or tool to help you do this.
To send an email from your spreadsheet, check out this tutorial from Google;
https://developers.google.com/apps-script/articles/sending_emails
I have not used it yet, and I will have to change the order of our data or copy and paste it (more likely) into a new spreadsheet, but I love this idea.
Otherwise, you need to set up a list in your email. We have Hotmail -- there is a tutorial here for making a mailing list in hotmail.
Good luck on your show!
Staci
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