Friday, February 28, 2014

The Game Crafter Press Release - Running a Hot Convention Table Without Booth Babes

From the Game Crafter Website

The Game Crafter recently sponsored a Designer’s Table at OrcCon 2014 for Kevin Warner and his team. It was a successful event and Kevin wanted to share some helpful tips on how to run a exhibitor table at a game convention. You can see photos and read more about his experience on facebook or google+



Here a some things we thought really made our OrcCon weekend a success for us. 

1. Draw People To You
I really recommend putting effort into making an attractive table display. Try laying out the components on the table like you would in a magazine ad. Stand some things up so your display doesn’t feel flat and can be seen from a distance. When people walk by say a simple friendly “Hello”- if they slow down or came over then ask “Are you enjoying the convention? What games have you had a chance to play?” By letting them talk to you about what they are excited about you open a dialogue, make them feel comfortable, and you can tailor your pitch to their interests. 

2. The One Minute Demo. 
Work out a quick 60 second demo your game that focuses on the story, theme, and goal of your game- don’t try to explain all the rules in 60 seconds. The goal is not to teach someone how to play- it’s to make a viewer interested in learning how to play. If possible demo with a minion at your table who knows how to play- it can take the pressure off a watcher. At the end invite them to learn more. 

3. Invoke the Collector. Instead of handing people flyers or business cards for the games we let people choose one of 5 convention exclusive promo cards. The promo cards had our website on the bottom. These functioned just like business cards but had perceived value- people then wanted to have the game that went with the promo card. If they were on the fence I offered to give them the complete set of 5 with their purchase. If you can figure out a way to do this for your game I highly recommend it. 

4. Run Demos. Some people were interested but not ready to buy. I invited them to come play a full game at one of our demos, or would even send someone to demo it for them right then. We sold a lot of games when people came back from a demo excited and ready to purchase.


5. Have a Plan for Selling Out. Once we sold out the weekend could have been over if we hadn’t made a plan. We had a tablet with Wi-Fi set up for purchases. To add incentive for people to do it right away instead of waiting till they go home where they might forget, we had coupon codes ready that we would give to anyone willing to buy online right then at out booth.

6. Bring a Team.  I could not have pulled off this weekend without the support of my friends- I had a team of 6 who were there all weekend to run demos, take photos, give me breaks, run for food, and be awesome. We all wore matching t-shirts and the fun we were having brought people over to us- they wanted to have fun too. 

Note: If you are interested in running a Designer’s Table at a game convention, please visit our Designer’s Table Sponsorship page in the help section of the site.

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