Surviving Conventions

I managed to pick up a wicked cold from somewhere and am currently feeling like rusty sawblades are scraping away at the inside of my skull. This got me thinking about the do's and do not's of attending conventions. Chief among them is do not eat from the buffet, otherwise you pick up junk just like this.

For those preparing to hit the convention circuit to promote their work, here is a brief primer on what we do to minimize costs, discomfort and come out the other side of the weekend in one piece.

Invest in a rolling cooler and a dolly. Being able to travel in relative ease is crucial since you will be totting a lot of product. Some of these hikes through crowded convention floors can also be lengthy, so keep lean, mean and mobile.
Bring all your own food and water. Keep it healthy! Subsisting on junk food and fast food will take its toll pretty quick, zapping your energy and making those long days of talking to hundreds of people unbearable. Some conventions might bar outside food, but go ahead and bring yours. I've never had a convention bar the vendors from bringing in food.
Develop a concise and engaging pitch. You'll be repeating your pitch ad nauseam , so keep it short, to the point, but also tweak it depending on what type of crowd you are selling to.
Know your audience. For literary conventions, its all about the concept. Merchandise won't move, but you'll sell plenty of books and comics. Comic crowds steer toward original art, so if you are doing comics, make sure the artist is available to do sketches. Anime fans tend to prefer prints and merchandise. I sell books in all of these conventions, but I will pack differently depending on the flavor of the convention.
Don't lie to the convention-goers. If you don't like manga, don't say you do to make a sell. They can always smell a rat.
Don't take rejection personally. Just because someone says 'no' once, doesn't mean they will say 'no' next time they see you. Just keep positive and know that 95 percent of people at the convention won't be into you, but that five percent that are will be enough to make the trip worthwhile.
Be nice to your fellow vendors. These people are connected and if you are a jerk to one, everyone else will find out. If you are nice to them, then opportunities could open up in ways you'd never expect.
Don't buy anything until Sunday. There is so much cool crap at these conventions that you could spend your retirement in just one day. Wait until Sunday, see how much money you've made and take a small portion of the profits as blow money. If you had a good weekend, then its good kharma to spread the wealth. Plus, a $10 book purchase could earn you a friend that could come back to you tenfold.
Research the conventionsbefore attending. A convention with 10,000 people may not be as worthwhile as a convention with 1,000 people depending on how well it is run and the type of people that attend. Talk to your fellow vendors and see what events they've done well at in the past. Also, there are sometimes scammers who put together an ambitious convention and are either not able to hold it together and disappear with the money, or they never intended on following through at all.
Join forces with other vendors. A lonely author with a single book at their table is a tough plight. I've been there and know how hard it is to convince strangers that you are legitimate. It is much better to sit with another artist or author, not only to split costs and work the booth in shifts, but also to help present the appearance of professionalism.
Get a website, print business cards, decorate your booth, spend money on professional design. Do everything you can to foster an image. Promotion is perception. If your work appears worthwhile people will believe that it is.