Lead Generators

Remember the day you told your family and friends you joined a "party plan/ direct sales" business?  At first, they were excited for you and eager to try all of the new products that you had to offer.  Then the realization sunk in that now THEY were EXPECTED to hold parties and help you.  Okay, so the words may not have ever been said but the thoughts were there.  I mean realistically, how many parties a year can you have for the same company? I would think it depends on how many catalog changes you have in a given year, for me and my company - it is three.  So, you now have family and friends locked in for 3 parties a year but your goal is 2 or 4 parties or more a month.  Where are you going to find those people?

All direct sales companies will tell you that the best place to book a party is at the party.  Okay, so you now have maybe 2 or 3 more parties a month on the calendar but you want to GROW your business.  Some here are some ideas from a top selling direct sales coach that may help you on the quest to find new customers, new parties and EXPAND your circle.

Deb Bixler talks about The Fish Bowl Lead Generator.  We have all seen those cute little fish bowls at the register of your favorite restaurant or store.  Usually, they are encouraging you to enter a drawing for a free meal or for a chance at free products.  Did you really think that they threw away all of those business cards or leads if you weren't a winner?  The idea is to put your fish bowl someplace with foot traffic, offer a chance to win your direct sales products, then advertise the winner after all is said and done.  Maybe it is a business where the manager loves your product and you can offer them a percentage of the sales from the parties that you book.  How about a bank that may highlight local businesses.  Look at your connections and determine if it is the type of customer that you are looking for then GO FOR IT!

Another tip from Deb is "Go to Vendor Events as a Guest".  This is a GREAT way to network with other vendors as well as the guests who are attending the event. I never thought about this since I was doing ALOT of vendor events but I tried it a few times and IT WORKS!  In fact, at one event where I was a guest - I booked a party and took orders.  Visit vendors that you already know are doing the event PLUS stop and meet new ones.  I ALWAYS have my product with me as well as catalogs.  Selling all kinds organizational products in the form of totes and bags helps ALOT.  It is simple: Go up to the table and let the vendor do their thing.  Always answer questions or talk in 10 seconds or less and always end in a question. Finally, wait for the right moment and say "How is this event?  I was thinking of bringing my business to it next time.  Is this vendor event a good one?"  The vendor will then ask what you do - remember the 10 second rule when you share and see what happens.

Follow-up is the key to fortune.... I have heard this many times in the workshops that I have been attending hosted by the Entrepreneurial Think Tank for Moms.  So, if you are not good with follow-up, PRACTICE.  Remember it takes 30 days to become a habit.  Set a small goal to follow-up with the leads (so many each day) and go from there.  Generating leads is not going to get the people to walk through your door (or buy your products) BUT if you follow-up with them, you can build a relationship and THEN they may become your best customer or hostess.

How do you generate leads for your business?  We would love to hear from you about what works and even what hasn't worked for you.  Have a ThirtyOne-derful day!

Standing Out in Business

I was told, along with many others, to succeed in business you need to set yourself apart for your competition.  This was easy for me to do when I was in the non-profit world, my work including grant writing success, program development and networking helped me to rise to the top - even when I least expected it.  

As I entered the world of Direct Sales, setting myself apart from other consultants from the same company was going to be a little tougher.  We are all given the same tools to use - scripts for parties, amazing products, catalogs, scripts for recruiting and the list goes on.  My biggest problem was (and sometimes still is) learning which of these tools best fit ME! Which party presentation was easy for me, especially since I have always disliked public speaking?  Which follow-up was I going to use (okay, so I am still working on this and it is an ongoing struggle)?

According to Direct Selling Education Foundation, here are some things that can help you to stand out in your business: 

1. Deliver great value – Offer excellence for a great price.
2. Offer more choices in your products/services than your competitors.
3. Make the sales process more convenient, easier and quicker than your competitors.
4. Make it easy to find and contact you – use memorable business cards, post information on how to reach you through social media networks, post your cell number and promote testimonials.
5. Share your sense of passion and excellence for what you do – make sure you come across passionate, caring and willing to do what it takes to earn your customers’ loyalty.
6. Follow up immediately after the sale and continue on-going follow up.
7. Anticipate your customers’ needs and help them with solutions.
8. Ask for feedback and act upon those suggestions.
9. Continue to improve.
10. Be a connector and networker – help your customers find solutions to their needs, even before they know what they are, and engage in becoming friends with everyone you meet.
11. Stay current in your area of expertise – keep up with professional training, industry trends and share innovations with your customers.
12. Be positive and approach everything with a can-do attitude.
13. Strive for excellence every day.
14. Be more personable, friendly and approachable.
15. Become solution oriented.
16. Be creative and innovative while also following through.

One of the greatest compliments that I got was from another direct selling consultant.  Lissa had attended one of my parties and never mentioned that she was in direct sales.  I ran into her several times after the party since she coordinated events for one of the local schools.  Out of the blue, Lissa called me one morning and asked if she could take me to breakfast - she wanted to pick my brain.  As we sat down and began talking, she pulled out ALL of my communication & written follow-up that I did after the party.  She proceeded to tell me how impressed she was - WOW!  I was shocked!  But since that morning meeting, I have heard from my hostesses and customers that "it was easy having a party with you - your follow-up was great", "our orders looked so nice when they came in".  So, I have found one of my ways "to stand out" without even trying.  I simply applied what I learned in the business world - communication is the key to success - to my direct selling business and TADA! It works!  Is it hurling me to the top of the ladder? No!  Does it have people banging down my door?  No!  What it has done is to help me build a reputation with my customers and their friends which will ultimately help me to gain the business that I want - BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS is key to BUILDING YOUR BUSINESS.

Check out "Business Owner's Road Map to Success" by the Direct Sales Education Foundation for more great tips.

Have a ThirtyOne-derful day!