28 November 2009

So the Yule Market has come and gone for another year...and it was, as far as I can tell, a resounding success. This is the fourth one I've been to and it seems like we had a large number of people through the door this year (probably more than the last two Yule Markets combined).
It was really excellent to see the vendors selling to customers rather than to other vendors.

I'm really not sure what we did differently this year for advertising that made such a difference. I know Facebook was a valuable tool as was the listing in "What's On" in the Journal (and both are free!). I also want to thank Janie who took and distributed a stunning number of information slips about the Market as well as Jennifer who took time to put up posters.

The hall we had it in was good too (thanks to Dina for finding it). I think we're going to have it in the same hall next year.

Two comments we had were: why was there no concession? And why were there so few signs?

The first, about the concession: I did have someone lined up until Wednesday, however, he discovered he had to work today and couldn't make it. I am going to approach a number groups in the community to see if anyone wants to do this as a fundraiser next year.

With regard to the signage...well, I'll be honest. I did my best with the time and resources I had. I realize how I could have done better, like, for example, figuring out that by late November the ground is too frozen to stick a wooden stake in. Also, fluorescent green and yellow letters really aren't all that visible on a white background. That being said, many many people were able to find the hall even though it was on a one-way street.

If anyone out there has any other constructive comments or feedback to help make next year's Market even more successful, please drop me an e-mail.