Just a reminder for those who have been around awhile & some good info for those who are finishing their first year with their direct sales business. Here are some important things to do at the end of the year:
1. For tax purposes*, write down the ending mileage for your vehicle & add up the total numbers driven for business this year.
2. For tax purposes*, add up the total cost (what it cost you to buy it) of any items left in your "inventory".
3. For tax purposes*, gather together all your receipts from items you sold & items you purchased for your business this year.
4. If you have money left in your business account, this is a good time to give yourself a Christmas bonus or purchase items that you've been saving up for. I always start the new year with an account balance of $0 (or close to it) so that I get to start the new year fresh!*
5. Book your January parties . . . take advantage of the great deal of free shipping for parties held in the first 2 weeks of January! Customers & hosts are sure to LOVE it!
6. Look at your 2008 goals & determine where you fell short & what you accomplished. Celebrate your successes & come up with new strategies to help you achieve what you weren't able to.
7. Set new goals for 2009!
*Note: I am not an accountant & am not offering tax advice, just offering advice on things I do with my business. Contact a tax professional for advice on what you need to do for your specific business.
12/18/08
11/13/08
Team Meetings
Debbie H. also asked "how do you handle your team meetings"? I thought this was a good question to pose here & would like to hear all the questions you may have about doing team meetings. Please post a comment to this article to let me know what questions you have & I would be happy to answer those questions in a future article.
Clarification on New Demonstrator Welcome Packets
Got an e-mail from Debbie H. asking for me to clarify some of the stuff that I include in my welcome packet (posted on 8/29/08)so I thought I would answer her question here. I won't give specific wording on the things that I send out because I really believe this kind of stuff should be done in your own words and according to what you find to be most important to include for your new team members. But I'll guide you the best that I can:
1. "Link to a website with training" -- I have done several conference calls in the past that are training for new demonstrators. Instead of having to repeat those calls every time a new demonstrator signs up, I record them & then have posted them on a website along with some basic documents that will help a new demonstrator to get started. I use www.freeconferencecall.com to do my conference calls.
2. A team message board is so important to building a sense of team & community with your demonstrators. I use www.myfamily.com which has a small fee attached (about $30/year, I think) that I believe is well worth it! I tried doing a yahoo group, but it just didn't work for us like the myfamily site does.
3. "2 page training packet" -- Imagine you are a brand new demonstrator, just getting started in your business. What is the most important information someone could share with you? Put this into a training packet but make sure it is short. If it goes longer than a couple of pages, most new demonstrators won't take the time to read it.
4. "Top 10 list of what to do/not to do when getting started" -- I don't have one of these yet, but I'm working on it. As I shared the welcome packet idea with the top leaders on my team, I asked for their feedback & this list is something they suggested we include in our welcome packets. I've polled my team & they've given me some great ideas of what to include on this list according to their experiences. I suggest you do the same or ask other demonstrators in your company, "if you could share one short piece of advice with a new demonstrator, what would it be?". Include your list of your Top 10 on a 1/2 sheet of colored cardstock so it is kind of like an easy reference guide for the new demonstrator. You could even laminate it.
Debbie & everyone else, I hope these help!
1. "Link to a website with training" -- I have done several conference calls in the past that are training for new demonstrators. Instead of having to repeat those calls every time a new demonstrator signs up, I record them & then have posted them on a website along with some basic documents that will help a new demonstrator to get started. I use www.freeconferencecall.com to do my conference calls.
2. A team message board is so important to building a sense of team & community with your demonstrators. I use www.myfamily.com which has a small fee attached (about $30/year, I think) that I believe is well worth it! I tried doing a yahoo group, but it just didn't work for us like the myfamily site does.
3. "2 page training packet" -- Imagine you are a brand new demonstrator, just getting started in your business. What is the most important information someone could share with you? Put this into a training packet but make sure it is short. If it goes longer than a couple of pages, most new demonstrators won't take the time to read it.
4. "Top 10 list of what to do/not to do when getting started" -- I don't have one of these yet, but I'm working on it. As I shared the welcome packet idea with the top leaders on my team, I asked for their feedback & this list is something they suggested we include in our welcome packets. I've polled my team & they've given me some great ideas of what to include on this list according to their experiences. I suggest you do the same or ask other demonstrators in your company, "if you could share one short piece of advice with a new demonstrator, what would it be?". Include your list of your Top 10 on a 1/2 sheet of colored cardstock so it is kind of like an easy reference guide for the new demonstrator. You could even laminate it.
Debbie & everyone else, I hope these help!
11/12/08
Great Example from a Home Party Rep
I recently attended a jewelry party with my mom & sister. The consultant was brand new to the business and I was impressed with a couple of things that she did, so I thought I'd share.
1. At the party, she did a couple of door prize drawings. I was one of the winners & I got to pick the prize that I wanted from a box of prizes that she had available. I thought that was a great idea because I got something that I really wanted.
2. When the consultant delivered some things to me that I had ordered, she noticed that I was wearing the earrings that I had won from the door prize drawing at the party. Even though, she just stopped by to drop things off, she actually noticed me. And not only did she notice, but she mentioned it & told me they looked great which re-affirmed my "good judgement" in the choice I had made. She left me feeling good about myself.
1. At the party, she did a couple of door prize drawings. I was one of the winners & I got to pick the prize that I wanted from a box of prizes that she had available. I thought that was a great idea because I got something that I really wanted.
2. When the consultant delivered some things to me that I had ordered, she noticed that I was wearing the earrings that I had won from the door prize drawing at the party. Even though, she just stopped by to drop things off, she actually noticed me. And not only did she notice, but she mentioned it & told me they looked great which re-affirmed my "good judgement" in the choice I had made. She left me feeling good about myself.
11/4/08
Free Training Resources
Have you discovered www.outwardimage.com yet? Julie Jones is a great trainer; I just love her stuff! Add yourself to her e-mail list & receive great tips for free as well as notifications for free teleconference calls. And if you sign up for the teleconference & can't listen live, you'll get a link for the recording . . . couldn't be any better than that!
Here's the link for her upcoming free training, "Become a Super Mom & a Super Consultant".
http://myoptinpage2.com/?pid=4471455
Here's the link for her upcoming free training, "Become a Super Mom & a Super Consultant".
http://myoptinpage2.com/?pid=4471455
11/3/08
New Look!
Do you like the new look for the blog? I'm using www.thecutestblogontheblock.com for the background & LOVE it! Its pretty easy to use. Just go to the website, pick your favorite background, follow the directions to include it as an HTML "gadget" in the layout section of your blog (if you're using Blogger), and then edit the text colors so they appear as you want them to.
Most of all . . . HAVE FUN WITH IT!
Most of all . . . HAVE FUN WITH IT!
10/31/08
Using Blogs to Advance Your Business
Just some further notes on using a blog in your business. I did a call with my team on these details last night & thought I'd share the details here as well:
How a “business blog” can help your business
· Each new entry on your blog creates its own “page” that will come up in internet search engines. Blogging for your business will help you come up when people search for your product or service.
· Provide a service to your customers through your blog
· Create interest for current customers and possible new customers
· What kind of a service can you offer? Ideas for using your products, recipes (linked to your product), special deals on your product, testimonials from customers, your personal experiences with your product, decorating ideas with your product, pictures of your family with or related to your product, links to your online catalog, information about community events you’re involved in
· Your blog should be personal but still professional. Blogs are a type of online journal. Use your own voice & write the way you would talk to a friend. People should be able to get to know your personality through your blog posts. While showing your personality is great, still remember to keep it professional by avoiding language, topics, etc. that might be objectionable to your readers.
· If you already have or want to create a blog that is about yourself or your family, mention your business every now and then. Don’t make people feel like you are always pitching your product to them, but don’t be afraid to mention that you’re going to your national convention, that you did a home show over the weekend or other details of what is going on in your life with your business.·
· Post to your blog consistently . . . at least once a week. If there’s nothing new, people will stop looking. But if you consistently have new & valuable content for them, they’ll keep coming back for more. Keep a notebook handy that you can jot ideas for posts down as they come to you. Then, once or twice a week post those items to your blog.
· Include your blog address on your e-mail signature
· Include your blog address on your facebook profile & when you first create it, announce it by posting a note
· Print up address labels that have your blog address & a little bit of details about what benefit your customers will get when they visit your blog and put those labels on the back of your business cards & on your catalogs
How a “business blog” can help your business
· Each new entry on your blog creates its own “page” that will come up in internet search engines. Blogging for your business will help you come up when people search for your product or service.
· Provide a service to your customers through your blog
· Create interest for current customers and possible new customers
How to set up a blog
· I recommend, www.blogger.com; its free & easy to use!
· Go to www.google.com & sign up for a free gmail e-mail account
· Go to www.blogger.com and use your gmail account to sign up for a blog
· What kind of a service can you offer? Ideas for using your products, recipes (linked to your product), special deals on your product, testimonials from customers, your personal experiences with your product, decorating ideas with your product, pictures of your family with or related to your product, links to your online catalog, information about community events you’re involved in
· Your blog should be personal but still professional. Blogs are a type of online journal. Use your own voice & write the way you would talk to a friend. People should be able to get to know your personality through your blog posts. While showing your personality is great, still remember to keep it professional by avoiding language, topics, etc. that might be objectionable to your readers.
· If you already have or want to create a blog that is about yourself or your family, mention your business every now and then. Don’t make people feel like you are always pitching your product to them, but don’t be afraid to mention that you’re going to your national convention, that you did a home show over the weekend or other details of what is going on in your life with your business.·
· Post to your blog consistently . . . at least once a week. If there’s nothing new, people will stop looking. But if you consistently have new & valuable content for them, they’ll keep coming back for more. Keep a notebook handy that you can jot ideas for posts down as they come to you. Then, once or twice a week post those items to your blog.
FREE Extras
once you have started your blog, here’s some ideas of other things you can add to it:
· Free blog counter that increases in number each time your page is opened: www.easy-hit-counters.com
· Add a fun background to make your blog stand out: www.thecutestblogontheblock.com
· Allow people to sign up to receive update on your blog posts in the form of a newsletter when you post new items: www.feedblitz.com
· Include your blog address on your e-mail signature
· Include your blog address on your facebook profile & when you first create it, announce it by posting a note
· Print up address labels that have your blog address & a little bit of details about what benefit your customers will get when they visit your blog and put those labels on the back of your business cards & on your catalogs
HAVE FUN WITH IT!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
