A meet the buyer event with a lot of procurement teams may not be an obvious place for a niche creative business. Here is what I got out of it.
First I met another creative business owner who had been round the room and found that the buyers were not looking for our line of work.
Most of the buyers at the tables around the room were facilities management and operations specialists, so I introduced myself and asked about their marketing and comms teams.
An airport responded well. They said they’d pass on my details and that there may be potential for a project. A further education college was less of a work lead, but suggested a chance to visit and talk to arts and media students.
The Federation of Small Businesses had a stand and their rep understood my position. Membership looks worth it for the legal advice and library of templates, so I’ll have to take a proper look at that.
The other buyers at the event either didn’t have the right people there or described long tendering processes, which aren’t a fit for a business my size right now.
All in all, it was good practice at explaining my niche within a niche in a few sentences to potential buyers.
If you commission creative or artwork services, what makes you say yes to an approach from someone you have not met?