With limited Small Business Vendor Licenses issued per state each year and the costly overhead needed for Brick-N-Mortars, many small businesses look to Pop Up Events to help drive up sales.
Pop-ups can be a powerful growth tool, but only if you go in prepared. Not all events are created equal, and signing up without asking the right questions can quickly turn into a costly learning experience.
Below is a practical checklist vendors can learn before committing to participate a pop-up event:
Know Your Audience (and the Vendor Mix):
Having signed up for my share of Pop Up Events, I’ve learned that not all Event organizers put in the same amount of effort to generate a significant crowd to their events. Knowing your own audience is important because it allows you to determine if the event participants will match your own and knowing your fellow vendors can help or hurt your efforts.
These are a few common questions you can ask an Event Organizer to determine if you are a good fit for the event:
- Who typically attends these events? i.e… families, professionals, tourists, niche community
- What’s the average price point that sells?
- Is it shopping-focused or more “window browsing”?
- What other vendors will be at the event? You want complementary, not competing vendors because many similar sellers can mean diluted sales.
Inquire on What’s Included in the Vendor Fee
Never assume you know what you are paying for. It’s always best to ask the Event Organizer what is included in the vendor fee:
- Table size, linens, Chair
- Electricity / Wi-Fi access
- Load-in & breakdown times
- Indoor vs outdoor, inquire on plans for ‘rain day’
Calculating Your Total Cost
Aside from the Vendor Fees, additional costs are a good idea to be factored into your overall costs and determine if your participation as a Vendor is worth the ROI (Return on Investment). Best Practice is to set a break-even sales number before you say yes.
- Vendor fee – What will you get for this fee? Table, Marketing, Branding?
- If Table/chair rental is not included, what is the cost for you to invest in your own equipment?
- Cost of gas, parking, tolls, transport, etc.
- Inventory costs – How much merchandise will you need to bring to the event?
- Staffing – It’s often best practice to have a 2-person support at the event to ensure you have coverage should you need to leave the table, as well as to ensure you are able to manage the traffic at your table.
Evaluate the Organizer and Know the Rules (Seriously)
Not all Event Organizers are the same. It’s important to know who you are working with and understanding the ‘fine print’:
- Clear communication and follow-up from the Event Organizer. How responsive are they?
- Learn their experience and what other events they have organized. You may find other vendors that worked with them in the past and get a referral before committing.
- Cancellation & refund policy, Exclusivity clauses
- Sales tax responsibility
- Are insurance, permits/licenses required to participate in the event?
Ability & Ease to Capture Leads to continue sales post-event
With every event, it should be looked at as an opportunity to grow your customer list. Event Organizers can help with this by adding your company branding to their marketing efforts. You should also consider ways to increase your leads at the event as well. Building your customer list can be easy with the following efforts:
- Marketing and Branding – How is the event being promoted? Will vendors be tagged on social? Is there paid advertising or email marketing? Create a QR code or specific URL for email sign-up (Subscribers)
- Hand out business cards with your Social Media information, website and any additional information to help customers find you.
- Provide a simple giveaway / raffle or discount to help get customer information to help build your Customer List.
- If Event Organizer is handing out ‘Gift/Swag Bags’, see how you can participate.
Pop-up events can be an incredible growth channel—but only when chosen strategically. The best vendors trust both the numbers and their intuition. If an event feels disorganized, overpriced, or misaligned with your brand, it’s okay to pass.
There will always be another pop-up—but your time, inventory, and energy are valuable.
