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Post Maker Faire Thoughts

It was fun. It was frightening. It was exhilarating. It was exhausting. It was successful. It was disappointing.

It really was all of the above.

Most of all it was a learning experience. As I walked into Union Station on Friday evening to set up, I was of mixed emotions. I was doing something that I had dreamed of for years - representing my own company, my own brand, and taking what felt like a giant leap of faith. As my wife, daughter and I set up our little table and figured out how best to display the posters and fliers I thought about the steps it had taken to get there and what I learned along the way. 

I had already learned how NOT to launch a Kickstarter campaign. That was flailing at a whopping 1% funded going into the weekend. I had learned that there was an interest in my board because most who had pledged had stumbled on it on the Kickstarter site and liked the idea.

I learned about writing a book, and about re-learning programming so I could teach it. I learned that sometimes the hardest part is just forcing yourself to write. Better words will come later, but the idea may not. 

I learned about mass production practices for circuit boards both here in the US and abroad. 

As Saturday morning rolled around and the Faire opened for business, I wondered if I was in over my head. People were swarming everywhere, my table included. I talked to people, I pitched my product, I answered questions and explained what it did and didn't do. I started to feel horse in my throat.

Then I sold a board. Then another. And more. I picked up on what people were getting and not getting about my board and refined my sales pitch. People kept coming, there was a lot of interest, people took fliers, they took pictures of the posters, they asked questions - and it didn't let up all day!

I also learned that not being able to take payment via credit/debit card was a bit of a problem. Not a major one but enough to address before the next time I did something like this.

By the end of the day I had sold over half my boards I had with me.

Sunday was a bit easier - it was not as crowded. I actually was comfortable letting my wife and daughter take care of the booth while I got a chance to walk around and see what others had on display. People were still stopping by the table and I was still selling boards right up until the end of the day.  In all I sold 24 of the thirty boards I had come with. Had I been able to take plastic, I may have sold out. 

Some little things I had realized during the process - the CD that had my Arduino learning book and the sample sketches on it didn't have a URL to my website. D'oh! My circuit boards at least said "Landon Enterprises" on it, which on the 3rd page of a Google search will lead you to my website. Like I said, it's a learning experience.

Some may wonder why I sold my circuit board while my Kickstarter was still going on. There were several things, really. 

#1, I was looking for around 1000 pledges on the Kickstarter, so 30 boards was not likely to make that big of an impact. 

#2, Having something to sell meant I had a better chance of recouping some of the expense of having the booth.

#3, Selling the boards meant gauging the demand for my board - more-so than the feedback I was getting through Kickstarter.

#4, I have worked in retail and I do know a thing or two about impulse buying. The "I gotta have it" feeling can wear off quickly after walking away from the table when there isn't anything there to buy.

So. It was a start. And it was a good start at that. I'm happy with the results of the sales, but disappointed with the lack of the boost to the Kickstarter I was hoping for (although it is now up to 2% funded). While the Kickstarter campaign might not be successful, the product itself is going to be. That I am confident in.