Life on the Road

Following the festival circuit across North America can be an exciting adventure, after all how many jobs provide a built in vacation environment.

Your friends back home are jealous that you have seen the four corners of the country and everything in the middle - you spend hours showing them your trip pictures and home movies - trying desperately to separate one highway from another and what state park you saw a specific national monument, luckily you have your notes.

For those of us who have traveled thousands of miles, spent time in big and small communities, lived in hotels and motels for months on end and can write a book on fast food and clean restrooms in North America, the lifestyle of constantly being on the move, being a road-warrior, is not for everyone. We miss our families and friends back home, and we don't always eat properly.

We have all made friends on the road, our traveling family. People that we continually meet at different venues, we know their first names; recognize their cars, trucks, and RVs. We can spend hours of time catching up; how we spent our winter, where we have been, the price of gas, problems encountered, where we are headed, our venue plans and who should be the next president.

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How to Engage Your Art Website Visitors

Getting website traffic is step one. Now, keep those visitors in the loop and coming back. Here are a few tips on increasing engagement with visitors to your art website:

How to Email Sponsors and Get a Response

Event sponsors can mean the difference between organizing a profitable event, or not. Sponsors can add uniquely valuable experiences to event attendees, and they can signal to industry stakeholders that the event your organizing is legitimate.

Objectives

When writing a cold email to possible event sponsors, make sure you keep in mind your end goal: to start a conversation and ultimately schedule a meeting to discuss the sponsorship opportunity. You cannot expect to secure a deal just by writing the email alone. You're starting a conversation, not signing a deal.

The email should focus on value, an articulation of shared objectives and audiences, and should include a tone or language that elicits a feeling of partnership.

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Why Corporations Collect Art
Carolyn Edlund

What are the reasons corporations collect art? There are definite benefits to the company, their employees, clients and the community, as well as to the artists represented in those collections.

• Art in the work environment improves the quality of life for employees, many of whom may spend most of their time in that space. Studies have shown that art in the workplace also increases employee and corporate productivity and creativity.
• Art can stimulate conversation, networking and ideas. When choosing art for work spaces, the curator may choose pieces that are energizing or thought-provoking in key meeting areas.
• An environment filled with visual art creates higher rates of employee satisfaction. This leads to increased motivation, and lower workforce turnover and disruption.

Straight from the Source: Marketing Your Event

First up in our Straight from the Source series is about pre-event marketing. Getting a huge crowd to your show directly affects the success of the artists, crafters, musicians, and vendors there. Naturally, folks who have been in the festival/event circuit for a while have seen plenty of marketing tactics that have worked and those that have failed. Here are some tips that come directly from our very own FestivalNet members on what they hope to see and not see.

- The bigger the crowd, the better! Don't skimp on the promotion part of event planning - not only does it determine the success of your own event, but for everyone who is booked as well.

- Give them promotional materials. You'll want the vendors, artists, and performers booked onto your show to reach out to their own fanbase to drum up more attendees - give them the tools to do so! Put together a welcome kit to send when confirming a booking that includes things like printable fliers, button ads, social media links they can share, etc. Putting a little effort into these materials can really help your bookees help you.

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Why You Should Start an Art Blog

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5 Music Industry Myths That Hurt Your Music Career

Want to build your music career faster? Stop believing these music industry myths:

Music Career Myth #1: You must be young to make it in the music industry.

Reality: Your age matters very little to bands and companies in the music business. There are thousands of professional musicians in their 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s in every area of the music industry. Your age won't be an obstacle unless YOU make it one.

The music business is like any other business. When you have value to offer and possess drive, determination and work ethic, you can become successful at any age.

Learn what music companies really look for in musicians and develop these skills (more on this below). This makes you highly attractive to everyone in the music industry.

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7 Essential Features for Marketing Your Art on Facebook
the writing team of fidelisartprints.com

The Facebook Fan page continues to be a viable tool for building an audience and engaging with fans of your art. If you haven't build a Fan Page, now is the time to invest a morning (1-2hrs max.) to get one set-up.

To help you get started, here's a list of features that are essential for marketing your art.

1. Cover Photo: The largest change is the physical look of the page. Timeline provides a large placeholder for a single photograph or image. This is a particularly great feature for visual artists, as it provides an opportunity to feature a specific artwork. Feel free to create a collage of several artworks (in Photoshop) or feature your most popular piece.

Tip: Images for uploading need to be cropped to a panoramic format. Feel free to overlay text with your copyright or embed your name, however, do not include pricing or a call to action (This is no permitted by FB and could get your Page blacklisted).

2. The profile picture is now placed within the Cover photo. Just like the previous profile or page, this is a great place to feature a photograph of you. If you are using a business or gallery name, use this placeholder for a logo. Profile images need to be cropped square and sized at a minimum of 180x180 pixels.

3. There's also a feature called "Views," found directly under the Cover photo. This is where you'll find your photos, events, Likes and apps.

4. Under your Profile picture, is your "About" content. This will need to be carefully crafted as it is now placed front and centre for your viewers. This is a good place to include your website link and contact information.

5. The Admin Panel (seen above) is a new feature located at the top of your Page. Here is the place you can connect with your audience. Read client private messages, see who's been active on your Page in the Notifications and New Likes. When you have 31 Likes you also have the use of collecting user data through Facebook Insights.

Building Your Event Management Team

The number of people involved in organizing an event depends upon the size and scale of the event. While organizing a small party may require only one or two people, organizing a very large event like the Olympics may require several thousand people.

An event management company can have following event professionals, and each have their own, unique job to do. In order to get all the gears running smoothly, it's imperative to cover all aspects of the event management team.

1) Event Manager/Event Planner

S/he has following responsibilities:
1. S/he is responsible for planning and producing the whole event.
2. S/he is responsible for procurement management and resource management.
3. S/he formulates, prepares and implement risk management plan (risks related to event planning and production).

2) Event Coordinator

It's often hard for someone starting a food concession to know WHERE to start. I believe they should start with EVENTS. Before they plan and design any other part of their concession business they should research and become familiar with the type of events they plan to do business at. This is important because, operation-wise, different concessions are more practical and successful at different types of events.

I'll explain, but first let me start by clarifying some lingo:

Food cart - does business from a fixed location such as at a food pod or parking lot. On a day to day basis a food cart serves a steady clientele and operates much the same as a regular storefront food business. A food cart starts by pursuing the ideal permanent location for its business. With a good location found, that job is done.

Food concession - does business at various short-term, albeit sometimes multi-day, events and venues such as special events and county fairs. Concessionaires must pursue multiple locations (events) every event season.

That's all simple enough. But for concessionaires; here's the hard part:

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Source: http://www.foodbooth.net/

Seven Top Tips for Selling Online

• Establish your ecommerce strategy. Just like any business venture, to sell online well you need to work out what your strategy is and stick to it. This includes your ecommerce business structure - are you online only (just selling via the website) or do you also have a physical store? You'll also need to decide on the product range you're going to stock - are you a specialist in one thing (like trampolines) or do you sell a wide range of goods tailored to your customers' requirements?

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The Struggle Against Obsession

The cursor sits there, flashing impatiently, daring me to fill the page with words that mean something. I have a vague concept in my head, but it shifts when I try to see it more clearly.

I start writing and get a few lines down, then backspace to delete them. They weren't quite right. I repeat this process a few more times. Nine, to be exact.

I drum my fingers against the desk again, frustrated. I'm tempted to move on to another topic, or to stop trying for the day. This is what I do. I write. So why is it such a struggle today?

Because I'm obsessing over it. I'm so focused on finding the best way to start the article and the most logical way to lay it out and the ideal story to include that I'm not making any progress. I'm getting in my way and preventing myself from accomplishing the task at hand. It's frustrating. Moreover, it's difficult to overcome.

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The Pain and Power of Tough Criticism
Carolyn Edlund

We all love to get wonderful compliments on our art. But sometimes we get feedback that is hard to take. It might be the best thing you could hear.

How to Build Vibrant Online Event Communities

Know that social media is not necessarily community building

Just because someone on your team is tweeting, snapping, and posting does not mean that they are actually building an online community. Contrary to popular belief, a social media manager and a community manager do different things and "doing social media" is not the same as bringing people together via online networks.

That means that as you develop an online community building strategy it may look quite different from a social media strategy that is usually designed to increase brand awareness or increase event registrations. In fact, it is possible to have two separate strategies that involve the same networks but aim to accomplish different goals.

Online community building strategies

When it comes to building a thriving online community, you have many different tools at your disposal. To select the right tool for you, it's important to understand the target audience. Which social networks are your target audience most likely to use naturally? Which sort of connections are these people most likely hoping to establish (friendships, business connections, relationships with industry influencers?) What social media platforms are integrated with the event networking app you are using, if you are using one. Here are some different community building strategies that can be implemented on different social networks.

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8 Simple Ways to Cook Up New Customers On Facebook & Twitter

It's no denying that social media has become a massive tool of leverage for tech savvy entrepreneurs hungry to reach new and current customers.

What started out as a tool for Ivy League college kids looking to connect, hook-up and build community has grown into a multi-billion network of fans, friends and followers translating to billions of dollars in sales for small business owners around the globe.

So in today's article I want to give you some quick marketing tips for connecting with your fans and attracting more customers to your mobile food truck or concession stand using two of the most powerful social networks on the internet today. Facebook and Twitter.

4 Ways To Get The Most Out Of Facebook:

1. Set up albums to store your images within your Facebook account. You can share photos of your menu items, playful images of your family, friends, co-workers, even customers at the booth or waiting in line etc.

2. Provide links to your website and/or blog. In addition post links to any articles or reviews written about you as well as media/press coverage you receive. You can also post daily menu specials and coupons that you offer.

What Your Customers Can Teach You

You might prefer staying in the studio rather than meeting the public. Or maybe your gig is selling online, through your website, or a third party website. You might prefer to deal with galleries, or have sales reps or a business partner who can take care of the marketing and sales for you.

Although those methods can save time, travel and money, there is much to be said for coming face-to-face with the public once in a while. Whether that means you are exhibiting at a retail art show or craft fair, doing a trunk show, or making personal appearance, your retail customers can teach you quite a few things.

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Getting Past the Gatekeepers

A Marketing Plan for Your Crafts Business
James Dillehay

Do you have a marketing plan for your craft business? I am not speaking of a business plan, which is a more formal lengthy manuscript used mostly when attempting to raise money from lenders or investors. Instead of a multi-page document, the marketing plan consists of seven sentences which guide your progress in the coming months and years. The seven sentence plan can be drafted on one or two pages.

1. What is your most desired result to be achieved from your marketing activities?

The first part of creating a marketing plan is envisioning what you want the success of your craft business to look and feel like. Start by writing down exactly what you want your craft business to accomplish and by when. If you want $5,000 in sales each month within the next six months, write that down. If you want to get 20 items listed on eBay in the next sixty days, that's a target. Go ahead and make that list right now.

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Fundraising for Events

"If you think breaking even is alright, you are doomed for failure."

The themes for events cover a wide range, but most of these special events have an underlying purpose: to make money. While this commercial aspect may bother some purists, there's no getting around the fact that events are excellent fundraisers. All kinds of good causes can be helped. In addition, some of the money generated can be set aside towards next year's event. For many groups, the question is simply: What's the best way to raise money? There is no quick answer. What might help is to look at some of the fundraising techniques used by other event promoters.

1. Selling Booth Space. This is one of the most popular (and effective) fundraising ideas, particularly with arts and crafts shows. No two groups seem to do everything the same, however. Many just sell a designated space and let the exhibitor provide everything else: display tables, backdrops, and chairs. Some groups supply these things and still others include electricity or even a tent over the booth. These different factors (along with projected attendance) influence booth fees as does the size and location of the spaces. In short, booth fees vary greatly from event to event.

   Most groups collect these fees well in advance, usually at the time an exhibitor applies for space. They've also found that a strict refund policy is a good idea. It's one way to insure that exhibitors reconsider before canceling at the last minute.

2. Percentage of Sales. Several organizations don't stop with making money from rental space; their contracts with exhibitors stipulate that a certain percentage of sales-frequently 10 to 20%-be returned to the event organization. If the "cut" is kept reasonable and crowds show up, exhibitors don't seem to mind sharing their proceeds.

   This approach is not without its problems. Bookkeeping headaches can be expected, along with occasional doubts about the accuracy of sales reports. Its success for raising money though, is beyond question.

3. In-Kind Donations. Encourage in-kind donations of materials, supplies, and services instead of money. Assess each in-kind contribution and keep a record of what the cost would have been if you had paid for it out of pocket.

1. Food and Beverage Sales. People at gatherings consume vast quantities of popcorn, hot dogs, cotton candy, and drinks. Most event organizers do not need to be reminded of this. Their job is to figure out how to make the most of this demand.

   Promoters can handle the food/beverage matter in two ways:

   • selling the refreshments themselves
   • allowing someone else to sell food and drinks on a concession basis

   Many groups lean toward the former, but unless they have the necessary equipment and a good crew of tireless volunteers, they may be better off to work with an experienced concessionaire. Organizers know the food and beverage business is closely regulated by the Dept. of Health. Selling hot dogs, for instance, involves much more than placing a hot frankfurter in a steamed bun.

   Requirements governing the floor, walls, doors, ceiling, and windows of concession stands exist and must be followed (for details, see the chapter on food and beverages).

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Make Time for Online Networking

It happened again! I talk to a group of artists about using social media like blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. I tell them that this is part of a marketing program and that, yes, it will take time. I warn them not to get sidetracked using social media and forget to go into the studio-that the studio is always the priority. Still, they grumble, whine, and make excuses. (I had spies at the lunch table after my talk!)

ALL worthwhile marketing takes time. You would love for me to hand you the name of an agent that will sweep you off your feet and whisk you off into the stars, wouldn't you? You'd prefer that you can just buy a bunch of ads or send out a single mailing and have all of your dreams come true. Yeah, that would be nice all right. But what planet are you living on?

This is Earth. April 2009. We're bombarded with hundreds of marketing messages each day. You have to learn to build meaningful relationships that will propel your career forward. You must keep your name in front of people you're in contact with. Networking online is one of the cheapest, easiest, and most effective ways to do that.

In order to avoid being overwhelmed by all of the social media opportunities available, you might be best served by carving out time for them. This isn't something you do in a block of time one day a week. Instead, you need to do a little bit every day. I suggest starting with 15-30 minutes a day for logging in to sites like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. That's enough to create and maintain a presence.

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