There are some forms of selling at which swap meet and flea market vendors are just intrinsically better suited than any other retailer — such as demo products. There’s just no better way to sell some stand-out new products than to show customers in person exactly how they work, what they do, and why they are the latest must-have gadget. A strong contender in this mode is the Magic-Mat by Cajole. “With a demo, Magic-Mat moves really quickly. Vendors can sell it as a stand alone item by itself and do great numbers, or they can do it as an add-on item,” says Cajole partner Jason Barlow, “but so long as they are demoing it, they’ll do really well.”
The product is a plastic mat that sits sits on a car dashboard and grips tight to any small item put on it, without glue or adhesive. “It moves more than virtually any other product you’ll come across,” says Barlow. “It works for so many different things — cell phones, GPS, sunglasses, toll passes, and coins.” He says it makes a great gift because it is a unique item. “The Magic-Mat is inexpensive, and something a gift recipient has never seen, that they will use all the time.”
But a demo-centric strategy for selling requires vendor support, and Cajole is making that support a key part of the package it offers vendors. First-time sellers get a start-up package that includes a “Demo-Dash” that is used to simulate a car’s dashboard in demonstrating the Magic-Mat, as well as signage and training videos on how to sell. “We offer a complete solution to vendors, including a demonstration board and signage that helps close sales as well,” says Barlow. “At flea markets, signage is key for drawing in customers and making sales.”
“Once you draw them in with the product, and the pictures, it’s a really quick pitch, between a minute and two minutes,” says Barlow. “We train people to upsell customers, so they usually walk away with multiple pieces.” He explains that the product retails in the $8 to $10 range per item, depending on market and local factors. That offers vendors at least three times what they pay wholesale. The Magic-Mat comes in black and clear varieties. And the entire selling package is highly portable, a real plus at a swap meet. “Vendors can carry a small box, weighing, say, 25 pounds, with the day’s supply of products,” says Barlow. “It’s an easy pack-in and an easy pack-out. They can set up quickly, they can tear down quickly. They don’t have an hour or so of set up, they can tear down quickly, and they can set up quickly.”
Cajole is planning to roll out a new variation on the product at the ASD Show in Las Vegas, at Booth Number G3305. For more information, visit the company there, or call (760) 666-1867 or e-mail jasonb@cajoleonline.com.