There is no doubt that for those in the quilting and sewing biz Quilt Market is an invaluable but expensive proposition. Between the cost of flights, hotels and excess alcohol consumption ( I am not going to lie, a LOT of drinking goes on at Market) not to mention extra staff in the shop while you are gone and new shoes so your feet don’t fall off from walking for miles each day you are pretty deep in the hole before you ever buy a single fabric collection.
For that reason I think it is incredibly important to take advantage of the educational opportunities available at QM. This is a time for strategic thinking and not time to think about who is giving away the best chocolate or thread samples.
Now is the time to be taking a careful look at the offerings that will pay you back by putting more money in your shop till come the end of the year. These are the sessions that help you gain the skills you are lacking or at least identify what is missing to help you know who you need to hire to make big things happen for your shop or quilt related business.
Times are a changing and quilt shops need to be changing right along with it. From emerging forms of social media to making sure that your staff is open and welcoming to the LGBT population ( yes gay people sew) there is a lot to learn.
Come check out ( below) my picks for the best offerings for Fall Market 2016! <– click there for a full listing of classes offered ( my picks are below the blatant advert to get you to come see myself and Cheryl)
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 28
There are two offering in this time slot that catch my eye but in the end I am going to go with the session by Bob Negan. A serious issue for a lot of quilt stores has to do with their employees, or as they really should be named..- Sales Staff. These people are the front line of every quilt shop. They make or break the customer experience and sales totals every damn day!
202. HOW TO DEVELOP A WHIZBANG! STAFF $20
Bob Negen, WhizBang! Training
Learn the secret to consistently recruit and train a great team—every employee, every hire—plus the five components of successful coaching.
10:00 – 6pm – School House.
This is an animal all of it’s own and usually the schedule of these hours is available just hours before the events begin. My plan is to be livecasting from School House — more about that in a later post!
6:00-7:00 PM
Advice from the trenches is what is needed… times are tough people and your little shop is now going head to head with shops offering serious discounts as well as other factors that can be hard to compete with. The experience people have in your shop means everything today and I am putting my money on Deb Luttrell to help stir up some ideas for you to take home and make changes in your shop – you know you need them.. now is the time to start brainstorming.
211. HOW TO CREATE THE EXPERIENCE *$20
Deb Luttrell, Stitchin’ Heaven
Create the experience in order to compete against discounters in this fun, lively, and educational session.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 29
Sleep in a bit… but make sure to make it there by 9 since you will not want to miss Cheryl Sleboda help you understand just how valuable video can be to your business! Right now Facebook favors video and gives it wider viewing than any other delivery medium. If you are serious about your need to get your message to your customers this is where you need to be.
9:00-10:00 AM
302. VIDEO FOR SOCIAL MEDIA *$20
Cheryl Sleboda, Muppin Inc.
Learn tips for creating memorable and valuable video content for social media. Platforms, equipment, and basics will be reviewed.
6:00-7:00 PM
You do have 15 minutes each day to invest in making your shop stand out, what you don’t have is time to waste. This class is the perfect compliment to Cheryl’s morning offering, don’t miss either of these!
326. BETTER SOCIAL MEDIA REACH IN 15 MINUTES A DAY *$20
Cheryl Sleboda, Muppin, Inc.
Get results without overextending yourself! Explore the best platforms in this easy-to-follow plan. Perfect for retailers, teachers, and artists.
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 30
9:00-10:00 AM
Do you even really know what BRANDING is?… you hear people telling you that you need it but how? why? Again Cheryl is going to make this easy!
401. BUILDING UP YOUR BRANDING *$20
Cheryl Sleboda, Muppin Inc.
Learn the tips and tricks to build brand awareness both by design and by accident! Learn the strategies that elevate your business and how to leverage your brand across social media.
6:00-7:00 PM
And then if I might be so bold, come see me and learn what it takes to make your name, your shop, your business truly identifiable and accessible to those who care about who you are and what you are doing for the quilt world. We are going to talk about serious stuff as well as how to do a damn good looking selfie and not show off your double chin on camera!
426. BECOMING A ROCK STAR TO YOUR CUSTOMERS THROUGH FACEBOOK *$17
Maddie Kertay, BadAss Quilters Society
Your face is the most powerful part of your brand. How to develop authentic connections through Facebook to drive your business forward.
MONDAY, OCTOBER 31
8:00-9:00 AM
Possibly the only thing that could drag me out of bed for an 8 am session is the promise of concrete numbers to help establish business baselines from which you can then compare your numbers as a shop. We might not like numbers but they are so important and by knowing them you can save THOUSANDS of dollars each year. Grab some coffee and find a seat…
501. LOOKING FOR FINANCIAL NUMBERS? WE’VE GOT THEM! *$20
Laurie Harsh, The Fabric Shop Network, Inc. (FabShop)
Learn industry standards—payroll, advertising, rent, inventory turns, sales per square foot—plus the hard-to-find financial statistics your CPA will love you for.
So there you go… Now is time to pop on over and register. Will I be seeing you there?
