Phoenix traders - what is your most successful selling technique?

brightonman123

one large office i worked at had various sample books and gifts left by a firm (maybe a franchise thing), with one person allocated as contact / collector of monies.. some bizarre items often appear, and get bought!

blue_butterfly_4

mindermum wrote: »

I am starting to book stalls for some events, a plant sale, and a school Fayre, and I am starting to get nervous. In your experience, have fayres etc been good moneymakers? How much stock do I need? Do you usually take your own tables? What happens if it rains!!

Hi minder mum, I'm also new to stalls and fayres etc but did my first one last sat and took nearly £150! I have also done a toddler group which took about £40 so starting to think its abit down to luck! I think weather has a lot to do with it too. Last week I had an outside stall and I was lucky with the weather but I did buy a cheapy clear plastic dust sheet from Wickes (1.99) just in case I had to cover up in an emergency! I used my own pasting table and put a nice table cloth over it and it was fine. Some of the other events have let me know that they supply their own tables which are normally 6 ft by 2 ft, so its worth checking. Regarding stock I would say as long as you have the best sellers and a selection for men , children , occasions etc You should be fine. I sold 10 blue butterflies and 4 cup cakes last week so am stocking up on those for next time! The colour in hats went well and I sold a family organiser too! Basically what I displayed most prominately I sold out of. I hope this helps. Good luck with your stalls. x;)

ann0024

Earthengirl wrote: »

Hi ann0024, How do you go about setting the PT web link up? I've trawled the PT website and all the nocks and crannies of the trader area but can't find any information what so ever. I was hoping to find something out about this before deciding whether of not to set it up.

You may have to contact PT themselves. I did mine years ago when they first came out.

Wibblywobbly14

Earthengirl wrote: »

How do you go about setting the PT web link up?

Hi, on the Trader website, in the main menu, click on 'TWS Management' and then do your usual login, then there is some information about the websites and a 'click to sign up now' button.

It costs £30, plus VAT to set up, then £5 +VAT per month licence.

HTH

Earthengirl

Wibblywobbly14 wrote: »

Hi, on the Trader website, in the main menu, click on 'TWS Management' and then do your usual login, then there is some information about the websites and a 'click to sign up now' button.

It costs £30, plus VAT to set up, then £5 +VAT per month licence.

HTH

Hi Wibbly, I tried logging in to the TWS Management but it always comes back incorrect password/login.
I don't think I'll bother with it now. If it's that difficult to set it up, I'll leave it.

Wibblywobbly14

Earthengirl wrote: »

Hi Wibbly, I tried logging in to the TWS Management but it always comes back incorrect password/login.
I don't think I'll bother with it now. If it's that difficult to set it up, I'll leave it.

At the moment, I don't think I'd make enough from it to get any profit after I've paid out the £90 +VAT (£103.50) over the year - you'd need to sell over £300 to break even. However, maybe during the Christmas season it would work out - how do those who've got one get on? Do you think it is worth it?

I've only ever had about 4 people ask me if they can order online, so I'm not sure at all.

allIcouldwishfor

A catalogue, email and paypal work just as well and for much less outlay in my opinion. Paypal is something like 3.7% plus 20p per transaction, so cheaper than £5 per month unless you are doing massive volumes.

glenshee

That is such a fantastic tip allIcouldwishfor - hadn't even thought of it! So many people can't be faffed looking for their cheque book (me included). Great for mail order, must remember to factor it into my P&P costs to claw it back :-).

skeeter_2

How is everyone getting on?

I attended my first 'coffee and cards' at a client's home this morning and made sales of £80.

I took product samples from the May and March releases, as well as a basket of stock. I did take a couple of orders, although it was mainly stock which was sold today.

I also got names/addresses for my mailing list and the hostess has booked me for another party in September. So overall it was a success.

skeeter_2

allIcouldwishfor wrote: »

A catalogue, email and paypal work just as well and for much less outlay in my opinion. Paypal is something like 3.7% plus 20p per transaction, so cheaper than £5 per month unless you are doing massive volumes.

Instead of paypal, I give my clients the option to pay by online bank transfer, which costs me nothing to receive the payments.