Expectations

It's very hard to gauge the outcome of certain things... for instance, one might think that a Baby and Tween show geared directly at consumers that fit your target audience perfectly, would be a veritable sales bonanza. But this show I just did, pretty much tanked. I would have been concerned if I was the only one with low sales but every grumpy exhibitor who shelled out $1,400-$5,000 for a booth was extremely disappointed. Their complaints ranged from lack of traffic in general to lack of quality of the shopper. I had one customer, pushing a little kid in a stroller, stop by my booth and complain that there was no free food...

No free food?! Well I guess I can't expect her to fork over $29 for baby clothes if she wasn't even planning to pay for a cheese burger.

So you sign up for these things, these shows, based on guesses you make about consumer spending and buying habits. What you can't rely on is the quality and quantity of the shopper. That is just hit and miss. Some shows are hits. Some aren't. Why? Don't ask me. I'm still trying to figure that one out.

But the booth next to me had a cool concept. They are a website that features one product a day at 50-80% off retail. So every day you can receive an e-mail alert to check the site in the morning. If you like or need the item, grab it because they sell out of almost everything before the end of the day. It's a brilliant idea. Check it out!

BabySteals.com