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  Gina Boyle January 16, 2015 at 9:15pm

  I think Barry is on to something...if the subscription was a low enough price, just about everyone would buy it. $100 a year is a very easy sale, but $696 a year, yikes. I will gamble $100 that this is a solid enough resource EVEN IF I have reservations about the validity of some show results....but $696 is a huge gamble, especially when shows are being asked for a kickback in order to have their "winning" shows listed.
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  Jim Parker January 16, 2015 at 9:05pm

  Yeah, Barry, but Greg's not like you. He has to eat. ;-)
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  Barry Bernstein January 16, 2015 at 9:00pm

  No information from any one source is reliable, in that, there is no guarantee that you would do well just because someone else in your medium did well. I only rely on word of mouth, which includes people posting in real time on social media. AFSB is only one source. There are multiple sources online and most of them are free, which is problematic for Greg. If it was me, I would charge a flat $100, or a $10 per month subscription for the whole site. Make it cheap enough so that everyone will use it and then have advertising pay for the site, like this one. 
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  Jim Parker January 16, 2015 at 5:29pm

  Most of the information is now available from other sources via the internet and a quick Google search. The value of the AFSB is mainly that the information is gathered in one place, and presented in a consistent manner. To get a true picture of whether a show is going to work for you or not, you need to factor in your medium, your price point, what your competitors are doing and how the show historically performs for others presenting similar work. While the AFSB does have some helpful information if you are willing to pay for it, Art Fair Review (on FaceBook), this site, the Art Fair Calendar , and other may be as helpful to you as the AFSB. 

  The best indicator of how a show may work (or not) is word of mouth. Talk to other artists whom you trust. Walk the show if you are able to get to it the year before you want to apply. Use on the ground info to make your decisions. 

  I'd agree with Bonnie -- having a show pay to play certainly doesn't bode well for an unbiased playing field, and can't help but skew the information you are paying for. 
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  Gina Boyle January 16, 2015 at 4:57pm

  Sorry for all those typos....ipad acting erratically!
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  Gina Boyle January 16, 2015 at 4:54pm

  Mark, I guess I don't see how the ratings CANNOT potentially affected. If artist vote a certain show so it reaches a high enough level to be listed (meaning it was a great show, it was voted high ), but then in order for the results too be listed the show director must pay to have their winning listing included....then the voting isn't the only thing affecting whether a ranking is ever presented to subscribers. If a show director has to pay to get the winning results released then.....perhaps their are solid shows out there who get voted in as high yield shows, but which are never listed bc the show director won't "pay"..... Though I don't see how paying for known voting results is unbiased or a true representation of the bores?
  Is there any other voting model that expects the "winners" to pay?
  I just think I MUST be missing something here....
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  Bonnie Blandford January 16, 2015 at 4:14pm

  I choose to no longer have our show (Garage Sale Art Fair) listed because I think it loses all credibility when shows have to pay to be listed. As an artist, I no longer trust the information in the Source Book because of this.
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  Mark Loeb January 16, 2015 at 9:43am

  They have very valuable information.  I don't know that the ratings are affected by paying to be listed.  It just feels like it could be a conflict.
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  Jim Parker January 15, 2015 at 6:08pm

  If you're new to shows, the resource is quite helpful in finding venues within a certain area, as key shows, or as fillers. The database is well organized, and I found it helpful when I was starting out. That said, there are now more resources online with which to evaluate shows, and you may find that the expense of AFSB outweighs the benefit.

  Greg is charging for two types of listings:

  http://artfairsourcebook.com/promotional-listings

  $119 for a basic listing, $169 for a deluxe listing.

  The historical sales data is useful, to a point. Since only a few artists respond to the questionnaires for many shows, the data is skewed towards those responses, good or bad. It does give you some perspective on the show, relative to other shows.

  The hard copy book is no longer published. The various levels of access to the data remain expensive. Greg discounts subscriptions from time to time, usually at shows, and at the beginning of the show application season. Call their office if you are interested, and discuss your needs.
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  Gina Boyle January 15, 2015 at 4:13pm

  This is an old blog post, but I was wondering if anyone can confirm whether or not this is true?  Bc if it is then it pretty much invalidates the value of the AFSB listings for me.  

  Trying to decide if it worth it to purchase a subscription. Thanks!