Okay this is coming from a numpty but don’t doubt others just as confused. Would anyone who has done the market explain what you have to do on the sales days in easy to understand steps.
This is coming from an old lady who is a bit thick where these sort of things are concerned.
Thank you in advance x
Me too Caroline @Caroleecrafts I never join in because I don’t understand what I have to do.
Nice and interesting question, would love to see some answers from people who have participated 
Hi Caroline,
To be honest I’m not an expert but I can let you know what I’ve done for online markets in the past!
I tend to do ‘stall set up’ post to go out first thing on IG & FB, usually a time-lapse of me setting up my stall on my dining table! And then 2 or 3 further posts just highlighting different items during the day.
Most of these I get ready during the week before & schedule to go out during the day. I also make sure I’m happy with the information on the Tresstle site during the week before - if you do a market Tresstle have easy to use guides on setting up your ‘stall’ with them and once done once it works for all markets you do with them, so I tend to just tweak things like photo’s depending on the time of year etc.
During the day its just a case of keeping an eye on social media posts so you can respond to any comments etc & checking for any emails from Folksy 
! I find so long as I do enough prep during the week before it’s quite easy on the day & doesn’t stop me from doing anything else I may have planned. If you want to join in things like the market walk these were also prepped in advance by Camilla & the Folksy team.
I think others try and do things like going live and doing a demonstration on IG on the day but I find that sort of thing too stressful & know I wouldn’t come across well so I don’t bother. Like everything the more you put in the more you get out but I don’t see the point in getting too stressed 
Hope this helps,
Cheers Lou
Thank you Lou. Very informative. I agree about the stress thing and do not do stress.
I struggle to get my head round how these things work, would love to give it a go but not sure would be available later evening.
May I ask how do you schedule on Instagram, know how to do FB and do have the accounts linked. So would that mean it would also appear in Instagram?
Thanks Louise. Very informative. Setting up a stall would not be easy for me due to lack of space. But maybe could do it in the garden. Also time lapse is not something I’ve done before.
I have never done time lapse either but may give it a go.
Yes, you can create and schedule your posts to go out on FB and IG in one go.
Go to Planner underneath Meta Business Suite on the lefthand side of your FB page and then when you get there, there is a ‘Create Post’ button top right hand corner and this will take you to the tool to schedule your posts for both platforms. You can even do one basic post and them make them slightly different, if you see what I mean.
It took me a bit of trial and error to get the hang of this, but now I find it’s the easiest and quickest way to put a post out.
I did a Christmas market with Etsy and found it incredibly stressful but (oddly enough) I also really enjoyed it. It did result in a few more sales but I have not plucked up courage to do another one. I would like to get back to doing them but I think I need to be a bit more practiced on ‘social media’ first as I am still not great at regular postings on instagram etc.
You’re welcome, as @plumporridge said, you can schedule posts to go out on both from business suite. I tend to do most of mine from the laptop because I find it easier than on the phone/tablet app but either should work. I also use Canva a lot to create my posts as they have some good, easy to use templates & grid patterns, also Folksy tend to create a lot of templates you can add your own photos to in Canva to make life a bit easier!
The only thing I’ve never found a way to schedule is Reels in IG which is a bit of a pain.
Cheers Lou
You’re welcome, I’m lucky I have a nice big conservatory (which is where the dining table is) so I get lots of lovely light in a nice space! You don’t have to set up a stall if it’s difficult, although it’s worth looking at what others have attempted as some do manage to be quite inventive with their space!
The only reason I managed to do a timelapse is because my phone does them 
Cheers Lou
Thanks @plumporridge for your instructions on FB …I’ve just scheduled a post for tomorrow ! …Never done this before …I’m learning lots on Folksy !
Good luck with the post Karen, there’s certainly always something new to learn. I always think that things sound a lot more difficult than they actually are, but the only way is to have a go and you actually learn more from the bits that go wrong than the bits that go right.
Thank you @Caroleecrafts for starting this thread, something I’ve been thinking of doing but couldn’t figure out how, I’m also to old and a bit dumb as never thought to come here and ask.
Thanks also @WhimsicalBells for the very comprehensive answers. 
You are welcome. I do not understand but may give it a go. Trouble is £10 registration plus cost of the fair unsure.
You’re welcome - here is a really good place to find help & advice! I’ve got a lot of good advice from folksy peeps 
Good luck!
Hi Caroline. We put together some information about online markets and how they work for anyone who is unsure. Does this help? If you have any questions, just ask 
One of my fears is my application being rejected. I’m not sure my photos and descriptions would meet the criteria. And being rejected would be such a downer I’m sure I would lose some of my enthusiasm for crafting.
I can’t speak for all virtual markets but as one of the local captains I help go through the applications for the folksy markets and we don’t reject anyone due to the quality of their photos or descriptions. (we might nudge a few people to improving things once they are accepted but we don’t reject anyone based on photos/ descriptions)
Echoing what Sasha says, we try to make sure the Folksy Markets are inclusive as possible and anyway your pictures and products are great! I really wouldn’t worry about that.
