# Selling prints at a local craft show?



## G. Ike

Hey guys,
There is a craft show coming up at a local firehouse, and I wanted to try to sell some prints. I was planning on printing out 5 different 8x10s and 2 16x20s and selling them in frames (no idea about pricing though, I figured like 10 dollars more than I paid for the prints and frames) and maybe bringing my laptop to show some other photos and maybe take orders and ship prints to them if they are interested. This is completely new to me, and I am looking for any advice. Thanks in advance,

George


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## Chris Stegner

My wife talked me into doing a craft show at our Church. I had no luck there. Then we thought maybe it was just particular show, so I did another in a local town's town center. And again, nothing. I know that you're taking a shot in the dark no matter where you try to sell, but I'm just not a believer in craft shows for photographers. I even shoot a lot of barns, and county type stuff thinking maybe that would go well in a craft show, but they weren't into looking for photography. They are looking for "crafty" stuff.

I hope it works out better for you. Please report back to us and let us know.


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## KalaMarie

I'd like to know as well because I see framed photographs selling for $150 at our local arts & crafts shows to be purchased by people with more money than sense.


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## rabhobbes

I just did my first craft thingy ever a couple weeks ago, and did not sell any prints or framed pieces (everyone LOVED them, though )

It is mainly local nature, parks, animals and pet stuff.  The enlargements are all matted, backed and bagged so they look good, anyway

I did however sell a few sets of greeting cards, which are 3.5 x 5 prints of my work (same images as the enlargements) mounted on blank card stock. 

I am doing it a couple more times, also to do some in-person advertising for my photo services, so it's not a total loss.


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## KmH

KalaMarie said:


> .......I see framed photographs selling for $150 at our local arts & crafts shows to be purchased by people with more money than sense.


An unfortunate, and costly, attitude for a business person.

One of the most important things to remember about selling is: "It's not your money."


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## HikinMike

I've always did well when I did arts and craft shows. I haven't been able to participate in one for a few years due to health reasons, but hope to start next spring.

Here's my booth....


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## Rifleman1776

We had a local crafts show last week. I saw two booths with photos. One was set up by a retired man. His photos were really excellent. None were framed, just mounted. The other was a woman whose pictures, while not bad, were not something that would get raves. The man was selling well. The woman wasn't.  He has been doing this for quite a few years. Prices were reasonable. He does his own printing. I believe the key are quality and value.


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## tirediron

For $10 over cost, you might as well give them away.  I would suggest doing a little "market research" to see what others are selling their work for, and price accordingly based on relative quality, subject matter and final product (size, matted/framed/etc).  

As far as the type of show goes, if it's a "real" craft fair, that is one which is 99% knitted mittens and home-made Barbie clothes, you're probably not going to do all that well.  If it's more of an art show (Potters, painters, craftsman, artisans) then you will likely do much better.  I wouldn't bother at all with the former, but look for every chance you can to attend the latter.


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## Big Mike

> I figured like 10 dollars more than I paid for the prints and frames


Put another zero on the end of that...or it won't be anywhere near worth your time.  

I haven't tried this yet...but one strategy that I've seen work...is to display a few large pieces (16x20 or bigger) in nice frames or as gallery wraps etc.  These should be priced fairly high (2x your cost at the very least...and that counts custom framing...not just some cheap frame).  These are to get people's attention and the higher price tells them that it's 'artwork'...not just some snap shots.
Most people won't be able to afford these (or just don't want to spend that much)...but if they fall in love with the large framed print...you pull out an 8x10 of the same photo (mounted on card stock or matted etc)...and sell that for $20-$50.  
Also, you could have something cheap for them to buy...photos in 'post card' format.  $3 or two for $5.  Maybe not the same photos as the large print...but at least something that might sell when they aren't looking to buy a wall print.  

Like someone mentioned, the photographers who seem to do well at this...look like they've been doing it for a long time.  They probably had many shows where they didn't sell much of anything...but over time they figured out what works for them.  It might be different things for different shows....in different places.  So it might be hard to ask what works and just go do it...you have to put in the work & time...trying different things until you find what works.


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## Eco

It can be a gamble until you get use to what type of people go to the shows.  If the show ends up being a dumpy flea market then you will find people that are eager to buy crap for low prices.....but not all of them are cheap!  If the show reaches people with money and your photos match their taste then you might get lucky.  

Watch others and learn, you will find that most of them have nice booths and send  a vibe that they are a professional that has created art.  If you send an image like a 5 year old selling lemonade expect no sales.  

Whoever mentioned having a couple large nicely framed prints is dead on in so many ways!


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## ottor

Came from one just last weekend......  about 80 'craft' vendors, and 3 photographers..   One was selling matted 8x10's for $65... home-made framed pictures (cheap pine) for $90...   Asked her and she said she wasn't doing too good...   Photographs were crap.

The other was selling matted & framed 11x14's (home-made barnwood frames) for $385.00....   asked him how he was doing and he said he sells 2-3 a day..  Photographs were much better than average, but not 'pro' quality..

I'll bet that if you sell your 8x10 for $10 more than your cost, you'll make about ................................................ $10 that day.. maybe.

There's your range......    

r


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## G. Ike

Hey guys,
I guess I should have mentioned that I am a high school student and I'm not trying to make a living selling these, just a few extra bucks in my pocket. I thought that local people would like having prints of local landscapes in their house, and everybody likes cheap art, so I figured $10 above cost would be a good price for people to grab up a piece of art for their living room or whatever. I intended on attending the craft shows and looking at what people bought, I just thought I would try to get a basic idea of what to do for the first one. Thanks for all your advice,

George


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## KalaMarie

KmH said:


> KalaMarie said:
> 
> 
> 
> .......I see framed photographs selling for $150 at our local arts & crafts shows to be purchased by people with more money than sense.
> 
> 
> 
> An unfortunate, and costly, attitude for a business person.
> 
> One of the most important things to remember about selling is: "It's not your money."
Click to expand...

 
Not sure what is so "unfortunate" about what I wrote because I was not referring to _my_ images. The OP was asking about what we thought about selling our photos at craft fairs. From what I've seen, it can be a great way to make some money for your efforts, hence my post. People will pay $150 for a framed 5x7 snapshot. So there is a definite market out there, but it obviously depends upon the type of photography, how it's presented, who your target purchasers are, what the location of the venue is etc etc.

Furthermore, I don't need to be scolded about my business sense on a photography forum. I spent 22 years in Corporate America selling before I retired last year at the age of 45. So back off.


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## Big Mike

> and everybody likes cheap art


Sure...but if it's too cheap, people don't consider it art.

As a crude example;
At $10, it's a snapshot. 
At $20, it's a photo.
At $50, it's a good photo.
At $250, it's a valuable piece of art that someone would be proud to hang on their wall.


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## Big Mike

> Not sure what is so "unfortunate" about what I wrote because I was not referring to my images


I think he's referring to the point about the 'customers' having more money than sense.  

As photographers (artists), we should think that people who spend money on 'artwork' have a lot of sense.


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## KalaMarie

Big Mike said:


> Not sure what is so "unfortunate" about what I wrote because I was not referring to my images
> 
> 
> 
> I think he's referring to the point about the 'customers' having more money than sense.
> 
> As photographers (artists), we should think that people who spend money on 'artwork' have a lot of sense.
Click to expand...

 
It makes no sense to me that someone would pay $150 for an average 5x7 framed snapshot. I stand by that. At the same time, it also gives me tons of incentive to try and sell my shots which I think are much better than average. I don't know how much clearer I can be on this.


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## KalaMarie

Big Mike said:


> and everybody likes cheap art
> 
> 
> 
> Sure...but if it's too cheap, people don't consider it art.
> 
> As a crude example;
> At $10, it's a snapshot.
> At $20, it's a photo.
> At $50, it's a good photo.
> At $250, it's a valuable piece of art that someone would be proud to hang on their wall.
Click to expand...

 
True. It really is a matter of taste & perspective.


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## Big Mike

> It makes no sense to me that someone would pay $150 for an average 5x7 framed snapshot.


$150 for a snapshot....$500,000 for a Picaso...
It's worth what somebody is willing to pay for it.  

In some ways, sure, that really makes no sense...but if someone wants to sell art, they shouldn't believe that the people who buy art are idiots, should they?


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## KalaMarie

Big Mike said:


> It makes no sense to me that someone would pay $150 for an average 5x7 framed snapshot.
> 
> 
> 
> $150 for a snapshot....$500,000 for a Picaso...
> It's worth what somebody is willing to pay for it.
> 
> In some ways, sure, that really makes no sense...but if someone wants to sell art, they shouldn't believe that the people who buy art are idiots, should they?
Click to expand...

 
1) I don't dictate what people should or should not believe, that is not my place nor is it anyone else's.
2) Never did I use the word "idiot".


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## G. Ike

Big Mike said:


> and everybody likes cheap art
> 
> 
> 
> Sure...but if it's too cheap, people don't consider it art.
> 
> As a crude example;
> At $10, it's a snapshot.
> At $20, it's a photo.
> At $50, it's a good photo.
> At $250, it's a valuable piece of art that someone would be proud to hang on their wall.
Click to expand...


So the quality of work is directly proportional to the price?


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## Big Mike

G. Ike said:


> Big Mike said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> and everybody likes cheap art
> 
> 
> 
> Sure...but if it's too cheap, people don't consider it art.
> 
> As a crude example;
> At $10, it's a snapshot.
> At $20, it's a photo.
> At $50, it's a good photo.
> At $250, it's a valuable piece of art that someone would be proud to hang on their wall.
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> So the quality of work is directly proportional to the price?
Click to expand...

Sometimes yes...but certainly not all the time.  I should have mentioned in that post that the example is all for the exact same photo.  

My point was that people are more likely to pay more for something if it already has a higher perceived value.  Is a BMW really worth 5 times the price of a Kia?  Maybe not...but plenty of people buy BMWs.  
So when it comes to 'art work'...if you give it a low price...people will automatically assume that it doesn't have much value.  
You can't just tell them that "It's really valuable"....so in order to make people believe that it has value, one of the things you can do, is give it a higher price.  
Of course, ideally you want to price your products as high as you can...until the price gets too high that fewer and fewer people buy it.  (The law of diminishing returns).

Of course, another method is to price thing lower and sell a higher volume (it works for McDonalds & Wal-Mart)...but it means a lot more work for you.


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## G. Ike

I understand what you mean Big Mike. This is my first attempt at selling my work, so my intention was to get my name out there more than anything. If I make some money, that's great! If I don't, I gained experience. Thanks for your input everybody


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## KmH

KalaMarie said:


> KmH said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> KalaMarie said:
> 
> 
> 
> .......I see framed photographs selling for $150 at our local arts & crafts shows to be purchased by people with more money than sense.
> 
> 
> 
> An unfortunate, and costly, attitude for a business person.
> 
> One of the most important things to remember about selling is: "It's not your money."
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> Not sure what is so "unfortunate" about what I wrote because I was not referring to _my_ images. The OP was asking about what we thought about selling our photos at craft fairs. From what I've seen, it can be a great way to make some money for your efforts, hence my post. People will pay $150 for a framed 5x7 snapshot. So there is a definite market out there, but it obviously depends upon the type of photography, how it's presented, who your target purchasers are, what the location of the venue is etc etc.
> 
> Furthermore, I don't need to be scolded about my business sense on a photography forum. I spent 22 years in Corporate America selling before I retired last year at the age of 45. So back off.
Click to expand...

Nah. I think I'll continue to comment when I think it is worth provoking thought in other thread viewers.

One of the weird parts about ART is, what you consider 'average' may be seen as 'stunning' by someone else. 

Mike's comment sums it up pretty good. 



> "I think he's referring to the point about the 'customers' having more money than sense.
> 
> *As photographers (artists), we should think that people who spend money on 'artwork' have a lot of sense."*


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## Jon_Are

> I'd like to know as well because I see framed photographs selling for $150 at our local arts & crafts shows to be purchased by people with more money than sense.



I think what is rubbing people the wrong way about this sentence is your implied contempt for potential customers. If a salesperson/artist has feelings along these lines - as you seem to - he or she had better be skilled at hiding this arrogance if they want their business to prosper. 

"22 years in Corporate America selling" or not. 

Jon


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## jubb

Big Mike said:


> G. Ike said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Big Mike said:
> 
> 
> 
> My point was that people are more likely to pay more for something if it already has a higher perceived value.  Is a BMW really worth 5 times the price of a Kia?  Maybe not...but plenty of people buy BMWs.
> So when it comes to 'art work'...if you give it a low price...people will automatically assume that it doesn't have much value.
> You can't just tell them that "It's really valuable"....so in order to make people believe that it has value, one of the things you can do, is give it a higher price.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I agree with this.  Somehow psychologically this works to suggest that something is really valuable.  It does have to be better than something worth about $10 dollars more than paper it's printed on though.
> 
> What do you guys think about setting up the booth Displaying your work and trying to get people to sign up for your portrait photography packages?
> 
> Click to expand...
Click to expand...


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## o7sugar

G. Ike, I was just wondering if you had your showing yet?? How did it go, and what did you end up doing?  If you haven't had it yet, when is it??   I get to show off my work for the very first time, (other than family), at a local coffee shop, so I am super excited about that!


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## Heretotherephoto

We just did a craft fair yesterday and it was a total bust.  Part of the issue was very few people showed up.  Lesson learned was really research the venue.  We did a craft fair two weeks ago with poor results and one a week before that where we made a good bit.

On pricing we have been basing it a little on the area in whichwe are selling.  We live in a blue collar kinda town where people don't have a ton of money to spend on art.  We try to keep our prices low to encourage people to spend.  We also try to have some lower cost items like greeting cards and other items featuring our work that are not real expensive.  this has met with mixed results.


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## KalaMarie

Jon_Are said:


> I think what is rubbing people the wrong way
> 
> Jon


 
You're correct.  In retrospect that wasn't a very insightful nor intelligent post on my part.  Apologies to all who were offended.


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## KmH

Heretotherephoto said:


> We just did a craft fair yesterday and it was a total bust. Part of the issue was very few people showed up. Lesson learned was really research the venue. We did a craft fair two weeks ago with poor results and one a week before that where we made a good bit.
> 
> On pricing we have been basing it a little on the area in whichwe are selling. We live in a blue collar kinda town where people don't have a ton of money to spend on art. We try to keep our prices low to encourage people to spend. We also try to have some lower cost items like greeting cards and other items featuring our work that are not real expensive. this has met with mixed results.


How does all that fit into your busines plan and how does your pricing relate to your CODB (cost-of-doing-business)?


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## Heretotherephoto

Well to be honest we don't have a real business plan.  We just started doing this and have a lot to learn.  We really had little intention of starting a business but realized that in order to avoid legal problems we had to if we were going to do the website and craft fairs.  

As far as what we make on the print that certainly varies with what we charge.  A mounted print costs us about $10.00 to make, not including our time and effort.  I generally sell and 8 x 10 print for 20-35 dollars depending on the quality.  This is subjective which may be the wrong way to look at it.

We have tried pricing higher because we read that higher prices left the impression of higher quality.  We were then told we priced too high so I am trying to figure this out.  I would love any opinions on pricing or anything else on our site from those with more experience.  Right now I am working on SEO that I just learned about but any constructive criticism is appreciated.


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## nightwing

Honestly, I'm still a noob myself. What I would do is bring a couple of prints to demo what you can do then hand out business cards and try solicite business that way.


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## wjwncpro

Did my first show last week in Savannah, GA and did over $650. Not to bad for not knowing what I was doing and my prices range from $10 for matted 5x7 to $40 matted 12x18, prints framed were double the cost of matted. I had a couple 24x36 canvas prints for $240 that got a lot of attention but did not sell. I'm hoping the canvas prints get spotted by a gallery owner and maybe he/she will showcase them. You never know...


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## snowbear

wjwncpro said:


> Did my first show last week in Savannah, GA and did over $650. Not to bad for not knowing what I was doing and my prices range from $10 for matted 5x7 to $40 matted 12x18, prints framed were double the cost of matted. I had a couple 24x36 canvas prints for $240 that got a lot of attention but did not sell. I'm hoping the canvas prints get spotted by a gallery owner and maybe he/she will showcase them. You never know



You realize the thread is from 2009, right?  Probably would have been better to start a new one.


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## wjwncpro

snowbear said:


> wjwncpro said:
> 
> 
> 
> Did my first show last week in Savannah, GA and did over $650. Not to bad for not knowing what I was doing and my prices range from $10 for matted 5x7 to $40 matted 12x18, prints framed were double the cost of matted. I had a couple 24x36 canvas prints for $240 that got a lot of attention but did not sell. I'm hoping the canvas prints get spotted by a gallery owner and maybe he/she will showcase them. You never know&#8230;
> 
> 
> 
> 
> You realize the thread is from 2009, right?  Probably would have been better to start a new one.
Click to expand...


Why start a new one, there may be something of interest to others within this thread. Why waste the wisdom of others!!!


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## KmH

If you're digging up old threads as a way to promote the links in your signature, that could be adjudicated as a violation of TPF FAQ's SPAM policy.


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