Selling At Your Show

Ellen O’Hara Head of Business Development

Cockpit Arts

ECCA February 2011

Creative business incubator for designer-makers

What we’ll cover …

• Different options for selling at your show

• What you need to prepare

• Pricing approaches

www.cockpitarts.com

Selling options

Direct selling during the show:

• If you have stock• More appropriate

to product based work

Taking orders of work on show:

• If you only have limited numbers of each piece

Image: Katie Barton at Open Studios, Cockpit Arts

Selling options

Taking commissions• If you offer a bespoke

service or variations of work on show

Other services• Freelance design etc.

Image: Work by Katherine Wardropper

What to prepare

• Business / contact cards• Portfolio• ‘Elevator pitch’• Receipt book (that can

double as an invoice)• Simple order form with

terms and conditions• Price list

www.cockpitarts.com Image: Work by Jen Rowland

Elevator pitch

• One or two sentences about you and your work

• No more than a couple of minutes long

Image: Work by Alpa Mistry

Basic record keeping

• Record and keep receipts of all purchases you make

• If you pay cash, make a note of purchases in a cash book and produce your own petty cash receipt

• Create an invoice or produce a receipt for every sale made

• Keep copies of your invoices and record them in a sales ledger

www.cockpitarts.com Image: Linda Florence in her studio

Invoices for a sole trader

• your company name, address and contact information

• the company name and address of the customer you are invoicing

• a unique invoice number • a clear description of what you

are charging for • the date of the invoice • the amount being charged • VAT amount if applicable • the total amount owed • any business name being used if

the surname of the sole trader is not being used

www.cockpitarts.com Image: work by Louisa Taylor

Approaches to pricing

1. Cost-plus pricing – calculating the costs to you of producing work and adding a mark up

2. Market pricing – researching the market and pricing yourself accordingly

3. Value based pricing – estimating the perceived value of your work by potential customers

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Cost plus pricing

Cost price = materials + labour + overheads

Wholesale price = cost price + profit

Retail price = wholesale price + profit

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Market pricing

• What competitors are charging?

• How do you compare with them in terms of what you offer?

• Where would like to position yourself?

Image: Work by Catherine Hammerton www.cockpitarts.com

Value based pricing

Collectable

Experience

Service

Status

Investment On trend

Customised

Sustainable

Design content

Hand crafted

Unique

Value

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Other considerations:

• Don’t give all your work away until the show is over!• Think about delivery of work and how this will be

arranged and paid for• Agree a realistic deadline for orders and take a deposit

if you can• Arrange a time to meet after the show for commissions,

agree a clear brief and take a deposit on agreement of the brief / contract

• Have information to hand regarding other services and arrange follow up meetings once the show is over

• Don’t make promises you can’t keep!

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Some final selling tips:

• Engage with your potential customers – ask questions and take contact details

• Rehearse a few words to describe yourself and your work

• Smile! Be confident, welcoming and enjoy yourself

• FOLLOW UP!!

Image: Lush Designs at Open Studios

Summary

• Sell your work and services in the most appropriate way

• Prepare your ‘elevator pitch’, business cards, price lists and receipt book / order forms for your show

• Set up a simple record keeping system for income and expenditure

• Use a combination of Cost Plus, Market and Value based pricing

www.cockpitarts.com

Cockpit Arts HolbornCockpit YardNorthington StreetLondon WC1N 2NP

T 020 7419 1959F 020 7916 2455E info@cockpitarts.com

Cockpit Arts Deptford18-22 CreeksideDeptfordLondon SE8 3DZ

T 020 8692 4463F 020 8692 3735E info@cockpitarts.com

www.cockpitarts.com

Published by Cockpit Arts (2011), under a Creative Commons licence which allows you to copy and distribute the report as long as

you keep it intact in its original format, credit the original author and do not use it for commercial purposes .

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