The Shy Artist
949-415-4749
  • Home
  • Books
  • Videos
  • Blog
  • Resources
    • Making Your Stuff Look Good
    • Finding & Applying to Shows
    • Supplies
    • Business resources
  • About me
  • Contact me
  • Subscribe
  • Exhibits
    • September 2014 - Food for Thought
    • August 2014 - Puppy Love and Sex Kittens
  • Featured Artists
    • Amanda Fish
    • Nancy Roux
    • mo mosartstudios
    • Amy Lin
    • Sharon Jackman
    • Michael Cahill
    • Marlene Rogers
    • Become a Featured Artist

It pays to ask questions

7/10/2014

0 Comments

 
Picture
Last week the plumber came over to make some repairs in my bathroom. I know, not terribly interesting. Or is it?

You see, my bathtub faucet has been leaking for a long time. It got to the point that I was feeling so guilty about wasting water that I would save the water in the tub and use it for toilet flushing and laundry.  So, why didn’t I fix it sooner?

Many years ago a plumber friend of mine came out to replace the same faucet. He was grumbling that the fixture was no longer manufactured and it was hard to find parts. He led me to believe that it was going to cost a fortune and require tearing out the wall if I ever wanted to replace this fixture. He did find replacement parts and fixed it. But now I was concerned about what to do if this one ever failed.

When the faucet started to leak, I ignored it. I didn’t want to deal with what I thought was going to be a huge project. The leak continued to get worse. I continued to ignore. My boyfriend became aware of the dilemma and offered to pay for the plumber. Thinking that it was going to be a couple thousand dollars, I couldn’t accept. So, I continued to ignore.

My boyfriend made yet another offer to pay for the plumber. Eventually, I relented. I found a plumber and asked for an approximate price. I was expecting a really big number. $185! Hmmm, how much to fix the loose toilet and replace the shutoff valve? $100!

Ahhhhh!!! Why didn’t I do this sooner?

I was working on an assumption. It was based on one piece of information. That information was not correct.

When you are investigating a show, get your information from as many different sources as possible. Start by looking at the information provided by the show promoter. Is it clear and informative? Does it answer all your questions? Does it sound like the promoters know what they are doing?

Do some research on the web. See if you can find the show online. If not, then neither can your customers.

If possible, visit the show as a customer before actually applying to the show. See what the space looks like and what difficulties you might encounter with setup. Talk to the other vendors and ask questions. (Just don’t try to talk to them if they are busy selling.)

The more information you have about a show, the better prepared you will be.

To learn more about how to investigate shows and what questions to ask get the book:
35 Questions to Ask Before Applying to a Show: The Shy Artist's Guide to Researching Art and Craft Shows

So, what do you do to find out about a show?

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Loretta Alvarado, Fiber Artist

    About the Author

    Helping artists and crafters improve their sales, one word at a time.

    Loretta Alvarado is the author of several business for artists books. She spends most of her time in her studio making art and writing. But you can sometimes find her on Facebook.



    Categories

    All
    Art Career
    Art Shows
    Books
    Freebies
    Interesting Quotes
    Just For Fun
    Marketing
    Resources
    Status Updates
    Tips
    Videos
    What To Say


    Archives

    October 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    November 2016
    October 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011

    RSS Feed