Eleanor's News » Travel

HOW it went

Eleanor — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 16:36:55 +0000

Gosh, looking back on the HOW conference, I think it was a great success!! The crowd was alert and had some great follow-up questions, and I got to meet some really sweet people. Thanks to everyone who came out to see my talk; I hope you got something out of it!!

HOW is this gonna go?

Eleanor — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 14:57:01 +0000

Photo: Larry Goss
Okay, so I saw where I’m speaking today and this is major! It’s a big room. I’m a bit intimidated, but I know that once I get past the initial nervousness, I can get my message out to the attendees and hopefully help some people find their style!

HOW!!

Eleanor — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 17:37:49 +0000

I’m at the Sheraton in Denver, CO, lying with my broken ankle up on a pillow today. It’s been a pretty hard journey out, but it’s all gonna be worth it tomorrow: I’m speaking at 2PM, and I’m really looking forward to it!! Hope to see you there!

National Stationery Show – What I learned!

Eleanor — Tue, 25 May 2010 16:29:33 +0000

(image courtesy of Brae Howard)

For anyone who might want to show next year, I’ve made a list of things that I learned this first time around.

Make your booth as transportable as possible. Curtains from IKEA make great “walls.”
Same goes for furniture. You’ll need at least one stool/chair and a table for displaying items. Take-apart legs are a great idea and IKEA also has lots of those!
Bring a booth buddy. You’ll need to take quick breaks at the very least, and you’ll probably also want someone to take orders while you’re talking with people who stop by your booth.
Bring some dry snacks. I brought applesauce, and that was a bit messy! Oops!
Have lots of hand-outs so people can remember you. Also, make sure to get business cards from people who stop by; you’ll want to follow up with them after the show. It helps to write a quick note about what they do or what you talked about so you can personalize your message later.
If you don’t have products ready to go, get really nice samples made. It’s a bit expensive, but it’s totally worth showing your work of in its best form possible.
Don’t get talked down in price. Have your pricing ideas firm in your mind and stick with it. I was talked down, and now I regret it since I’m barely making money on a few orders. Just practice what you’d say if someone said “can you give me a discount” – something like “these cards are already discounted for the show, but I’d be happy to upgrade your shipping for free” or something like that. Never say “no” to a sale, but also respect your boundaries.
Don’t look at people’s badges when they come into your booth. Resist the urge!! It’s so off-putting to be stared in the badge, and you never know – someone might not want to be recognized and might be wearing the wrong badge on purpose, etc. It pays to treat everyone with the same friendliness!

Back from the Stationery Show!

Eleanor — Thu, 20 May 2010 12:52:44 +0000

Wow, what a whirlwind! Though totally exhausting, the National Stationery Show was such a great opportunity for me, and I’m totally glad I did it. The booth set-up went well, my neighbors (with the exception of the ones across from me) were great, and I had some orders come in during the show, with more being placed now that I’m back. I handed out lots of catalogs, met lots of sweet people, and even had Target Corp come into my booth for a look! The hard part was resisting the urge to look at people’s badges to see if they were buyers, but I did my best to ignore that part and just talk to people who stopped in. I’m definitely doing the show again next year! For anyone out there looking for advice, I have lots of it – shoot me an email and maybe I can help you organize your own booth for the show next year!

Stationery Show coming up!

Eleanor — Fri, 07 May 2010 12:51:13 +0000

I’m getting so excited about the NSS coming up on the 16th! It’s just under 10 days away, and I’m nearly done with preparation. Come and visit me at booth 1228A!

My Students’ Portfolio Day

Eleanor — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 13:55:20 +0000

Hey, Art Directors out there! My adorable students from UArts are coming to NYC at Splashlight Studios to meet you! Portfolio day this year is on May 18th, 12-6PM. I would love to see you come out! PS: This image is from last year’s portfolio day, but the update will be coming soon!

Stationery Show!

Eleanor — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 16:00:34 +0000

I just applied for a booth at the National Stationery Show in NYC this May. If I get a booth, that means I have 1 MONTH to get ready! Wow, it’s exciting, but I have a big knot in my tummy over it all. Booth planning, order form making, design finalizing, etc.

Going to Ireland!

Eleanor — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 15:08:55 +0000

Tonight, Petey and I are leaving for a 10 day trip to Ireland to see my Grandfather for his 90th birthday. My Mom’s side of the family all live over there so it’ll be cool to see everyone and introduce them all to Petey finally! I’ll be posting from time to time over there, but it won’t be as regularly as from home. Sláinte!

HOW Design Conference 2010

Eleanor — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 16:18:18 +0000

Hey, this is cool! The HOW Design Conference site is up and guess who’s speaking? ME! I’ll be talking about how to distill your personal style whether you’ve been working for years or are still in school. I’m planning a great presentation!

I have a special discount code for $50 off! It’s for anyone who wants to go and see me speak! : EG10