Travel Turtle

In honor of the Olympics, I wrote several posts about China, but not Beijing. The first part was about the town of Datong, the second was of the Yungang Caves. This final post is going to be about shopping in China and some customer service tips for craft fair vendors here.

Shopping in China is unique. Prices aren’t really set and even at more westernized department stores there are signs telling you how much they are willing to drop the price if asked. It’s hard to negotiate prices when you already feel like the item you are purchasing is dirt cheap, but it can be a lot of fun. People REALLY want you to buy things from them and they do this by non-stop hounding you. I say hounding because a lot of the shops (especially outdoor shops) will continue to lower prices at any item you look at. If you touch the item, forget about it. The salesperson won’t leave your side until you purchase the item or touch another one. However, just remember that if you do touch another one, the cycle starts again. My best tip for shopping in China, carry small bills and change. Don’t touch anything unless you want to buy it. Hold out for a really good price. (This doesn’t really apply as intensely in Hong Kong)

On a side note. When I came back from China I went to a local farmer’s market. I had a strong sense of reverse culture shock walking from booth to booth with hardly any acknowledgment from the vendors. That’s fine. What frustrated me though was walking to a homemade pasta booth that had no customers and two employees. The two employees were so caught up in their conversation that they didn’t even look up when I approached. Nor did they when I picked up several packages of the pasta, attempted to interrupt their conversation, put the pasta back down and walked away.

I think this happens a lot at fairs and markets. People who are selling their product, for some reason, don’t want to sell their product. They hope the customer makes the first move. Well, guess what? Most of the time the customer just isn’t going to do it. They might be shy and prefer to talk to a vendor that just makes them more comfortable. Ignoring people doesn’t make them comfortable. Period. A simple, “Hello, let me know if you have any questions” will work wonders. Not much more is needed. If you aren’t comfortable with that, then there really is no point setting up a booth anyway. If you still want to sell at craft fairs, but aren’t really sure one how you can improve your customer service, here are some tips. Keep in mind, these are from a consumer perspective and are more a guideline of minimum expectations that don’t take much effort from you, but will result in a more positive experience

• Keep your area neat and inviting.
• Stand in front of the table when you don’t have any customers.
• Acknowledge people who look at your work.
• Don’t push your items on to them, give them time to look, but reassure them that you will answer any questions they have.
• Offer them something when they approach your table: a business card, a piece of candy, something.
• Thank them when they leave.

Do you have any other tips for minimal customer service skills at craft fairs? What types of things do you like or hate about the way vendors treat customers at the fairs?