Every week across Australia there are hundreds of markets, ranging from niche markets to general come one, come all markets.
Since we started publishing markets as events, it has grown to over 1,700 active markets live with dates. Over the years, we’ve experienced some interesting interactions with market advertisers’ and readers regarding market listings, which is the reason for this article.
This article is about markets in general, how they operate and advertised.
Good and Bad Markets
There are good and bad market operators.
One lady wrote to us one Monday morning and asked why didn’t we check to make sure the markets were on? She had driven some distance to a country market which was nowhere to be seen when she got there. We called the operator who explained that recent rains had flooded the grounds, and the surface was unsuitable so they had to cancel the market.
That explanation was not good enough for our reader, who still wanted to know why we hadn’t confirmed the market was on. Hmmm, on any given weekend, with over 1,200 active markets, are we expected to call every single market for confirmation? If we allocated 2 minutes a call, that’s 40 hours work (every weekend).
That’s a good market operator, what about the bad ones? The ones that never update their details, never confirm when the market is operating (or stopped operating).
More recently, we were alerted to a market that had changed it’s dates but had not told publishers’. The operator had tried a cover-up but badly, given some pages said one date, while other pages said another. When we asked the operator, we received a rather bemusing ‘don’t contact me again’ reply. Interesting eh?
Another new frustration, market organisers that update their social media pages, but not their web sites.. kapow! How confusing for readers.
We understand there are difficulties in managing a market. They have to deal with venues, weather, stall-holders, parking and other influences. All we ask for is clear communication.. advise changes as early as possible. One very helpful market leaves a recorded message on their phone each weekend.. great idea.
We have a long list of markets that continually change their operating conditions without ever updating publishers. There appears to be the assumption that if a change is posted on social media that is letting everyone know. Sorry, it is not.
We are happy to publish market advertising (free) but, in return for accurate information.
Markets on the whole are run by a mixture of seasoned professionals, volunteers, do-gooders and well, what can we say.
Confirm First – Hit Market Up Second
Market goers (shoppers) must confirm the published dates, times and operating conditions for every market, prior to making plans. Every market profile includes a link to the market website. If the market is not as published, contact the market.
Market Dates
Our market listings are set to ‘auto-pilot’ which means they automatically update throughout the year.
Date combinations:
- Fixed date (1st January 2023)
- Daily / Weekly (Monday to Sunday)
- Monthly = (1st Saturday of the month)
Common recurring market dates are: Frequency = First Saturday of the month, Weekly = Saturday.
But auto-pilot is open to issues, like when a market changes dates, is cancelled or ceases to operate. If we are not informed of the change, the listing continues to automatically update.
We also have market flags for other date anomalies (many) – example: occurs every month except January.
Probably the hardest one is the market that closes down. Little consideration is ever given to cancel advertising. Organisers move on and simply forget.
Which leads to Market Associations.. mainly farmers’ markets. The associations work damn hard but are often poor at marketing. We find it difficult to tell our readers to confirm event information when advertisers’ web sites have out of date information.
Update Publishers’
Reminders are sent to every market 4 times a year (quarterly) requesting they check their details.
Items For Sale
Next gripe, (it’s becoming that way) is the items for sale.
If it’s a ‘farmers’ market, then the person behind the stall should be the farmer or at least a relative.
Then there are ‘artisan’ markets where the person behind the stall should be the person who made, designed or crafted the items for sale (not Made in China labels).
That’s it.. gripe over!
Market Title
The word “market” generally covers what some like to call fairs, but for the interest of this article, we are going to call them markets. We understand market can refer to other meanings, but using Wikipedia.. a market is where sellers offer their goods or services in exchange for money from buyers.
Most organisers conform to traditional titles when naming a market, with the occasional misleading, long-winded or ill-considered titles like a fair, expo or show
Markets Fairs & Expos
-:- Antique & Collectibles Markets (often called fairs)
-:- Artists’ Artisan & Art Markets
-:- Automotive Markets – also named swap meets
-:- Baby & Childrens Markets – selling items ‘for’ juniors not ‘to’ juniors
-:- Boot Sales – selling out of the boot of a vehicle
-:- Boutique Markets
-:- Card Fairs – also named swaps
-:- Christmas Markets – related to the time of year
-:- Clothing Markets
-:- Combo Markets (Food & Craft)
-:- Community Markets
-:- Computer Markets & Swap Meets
-:- Country Markets – typically farmers’ but often also selling local made items
-:- Craft Markets
-:- Expos – but really a market
-:- Food Markets (Farmers’ selling produce + food/drink to eat)
-:- Gems and stones
-:- Healers * New Age Markets (often called Expos)
-:- Makers’ Markets
-:- Night Markets – selling anything and everything
-:- Psychic Expos
-:- Plants & Garden Markets
-:- Record & Music Markets
-:- Rotary Markets
-:- Rubble & Riches
-:- School Markets – often called fetes
-:- Sunday Markets
-:- Trash & Treasure Markets
-:- Treasures Markets
-:- Vintage Markets
* Missed any, let us know.