soa session :: craft fair applications pt1
photo by the seventy tree | Hazel Stark
Robert and I presented a session about craft fair applications along with Rachel at SOA last week in Baltimore and here are our long awaited notes from the workshop! note: these are speaking notes, so most of it will be in bullet form
Learn how to prepare a craft fair application to help your company stand out from the crowd including choosing the right fair for you, what juries are looking for and how to handle rejection.
topic: photos
For Got Craft?, we request three images as part of your application that best represent your products. I can not stress how important these three photos are, yet, I often receive blurry images with distracting backgrounds that often have me scrolling back to the description to double check what exactly I should be looking at. I have a short attention span and most likely, if your first picture doesn’t make an impression, I may not take the time to read your description and visit the additional links you posted. I know that it may sound harsh, but if there are two vendors that make similar items and one has clear, bright photos of their product versus somebody that took a few quick photos from their phone, you can easily guess who we are going to go with.
- blurry, dark and using flash
- distracting backgrounds (no dust balls please!)
- too many props
- thumbnails (make sure your items are properly sized!)
- large files (Grrrrrr – nobody wants to wait for an 8MB photo)
- wrinkly linens
- clear, clean and simple photos
- appropriately sized (check application for details as they may vary)
- if you sell many different items, try a photo collage
- styling can be your friend – see Just Noey
- properly lit (use natural light whenever possible)
- have a fancy table display? include a picture of it
stay tuned for part two!