Whether it be Tupperware, Pampered Chef, PartyLite, or Lingerie – home parties come in many forms. Home parties are a great way to have fun, make new friends and make a lot of money while you’re at it. Throwing a good home party involves following a few key steps. Follow these steps and you’ll be well on your way to profitably selling from your own home.

Create a Great Impression of Your Home – Before you have anyone over, you should make sure that your house is meticulously clean. Remember – your home is a reflection of you and therefore a reflection of your products. Having any kind of messiness in your home will indirectly detract from the credibility of your products.

Make sure your bathroom and kitchen are spotless as well. A lot of a home’s impressions are formed in these two rooms. Finally, guests form their opinion of your home before they even step into your house. They form this impression the moment they first lay eyes on your home. Make sure the exterior of your home looks good. This could be as easy putting the garbage containers back on the side of the house, sweeping the front walk, and then putting a nice plant on your porch.

Preparing for a Fun, Profitable Party – Know your material like the back of your hand. Before your home party, rehearse your whole sales speech several times. If possible, get a friend or two to give you their critique.

Remember that you want to sound natural and don’t want to sound like you’re reading lines. You should be in the moment when you’re presenting, but don’t just wing it. A combination of knowing what you’re going to say without confining yourself to exact lines tends to work best. Make sure you know which are the main benefits you need to emphasize. If you need visual aids, make sure those are all prepared. It helps to have back-ups of anything that might break just in case something happens.

Every good presentation needs to include a demonstration. The demonstration should be one that really “WOW”s people. If you can involve your audience in the demonstration, so much the better. Cutco Knives for example, do in-home sales presentations where they ask a member of their household for a knife. They take a piece of leather and ask them to cut it with the knife. It takes a lot of sawing to get the knife through. Then they take a Cutco knife and slice through the leather like butter. They have the customer try it for themselves. A demonstration like that is infinitely more powerful than words.

Connect First, Then Sell – Nobody likes being sold. But everyone loves it when a friend recommends a great product. Before you get down to the selling, spend some time catching up with everyone. How are they doing? What’s new in their lives? Reignite the trust and rebuild those connections. Then and only then do you start selling your products.

It’s trust and connection that sells more than anything. Even if you give a really great sales presentation to someone who doesn’t like you very much, you won’t sell a lot. On the other hand, good friends will often buy your products even if they’re just moderately sold.

Discover a simple, yet powerful system that will help you increase your sales, increase your referrals, stop you from losing prospects and customers, and allow you to to stand out from the competition all at the same time: http://www.cardscreatesales.com

Click here for more direct sales ideas that can help explode your business!

So You Are Going To Start a Home Party Plan Endeavor

It is the end of the night and you are sitting at a friends home placing an order from her home party and you find yourself thinking, "I really like this product and if I sign up to sell it I can help out my friend and also buy at a discount for personal use!" Great! You just signed up on an impulse. Do you really know what it takes to do home parties? Do you have time for this business? Are you ready?
These are just a few questions one should ask oneself before signing on the dotted line and handing over a chunk of money for your starter kit!

Beginning a home party biz can be a little bit overwhelming. The first thing to do is look to your up-line (your recruiter or a manager or team leader etc.) for support and guidance. If they aren’t going to be there for you now is the time to learn this. There are many web sites, yahoo groups, and networking sites dedicated to home businesses so don’t panic!

Sit down and make a list of people you know who will help you start off your business. I suggest your first party be your own! Ask these people to help you out and pin them down to a date and time if you can. Now check out and see if you have all your supplies you need in your kit. Read and learn and KNOW your product. Be prepared to answer questions. No one expects you to be an immediate expert but basic information is important to know.

Now it’s party time! Here are some do’s and dont’s for your party. Don’t serve alcohol at the party as it is not that kind of party! DO NOT set up an elaborate table full of Hor Dourves as a potential hostesses may think that would also be expected of her. The simpler the better when it comes to snacks.

You are ready to start. You need to take control of the room. It is hard your first few times but it will get easier! Stand up and announce you are ready to start your presentation. Hopefully the room will get quiet for you. If not, kindly let those talking that you are ready and would like to get started as you promised your hostess it would only take a certain amount of time to do presentation and get done as everyone’s time is valuable.

Now you have finished your presentation. Find a quiet area where you can help each guest go over their order. You may be able to offer suggestions and do some up-selling when one on one with the guest. Ask this guest what they thought of the items and if they would help their friend out by booking a party. Also feel them out on having a home business, as they just may be your next recruit. Let the guest know you enjoyed meeting them and give them approximate time frame to expect order.

You are now done with all the guests and it is time to close out the party. The hostess says she has a few more catalog orders coming in. Be stern and let her know you need those by such and such a date to close out party. Total up sales and let hostess know where she stands. You may be able to get her to add to her orders more to get her hostess gift of choice!

Once you have her orders all in get the order in to the company as soon as possible so the orders will arrive quickly. Either deliver to hostess or if direct ships to her give her a call to make sure all is OK and see if there is anything you can do to help! Also let her know you would like to call her again in 6 months to see how she is doing!

These few tidbits will hopefully help you get on with your business and start out a success!

Joan Penfold
Owner
http://joansproductreviewsandgiveaways.blogspot.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/5703083

This morning I was thinking about two very cool rings I ordered from a friend’s home party catalog jewelry party. I was super excited about these rings when I placed my order about two weeks ago. I haven’t heard anything since and now I’m starting to get a little annoyed. I’m wondering if the party’s been closed, and if I’m ever getting my rings. And I sure don’t feel very valued by this direct sales consultant at the moment.

It got me thinking about my own direct sales business and how I conducted my catalog parties. Then I realized that this is a topic I’ve actually never written about before. It’s not even really a part of any of my training materials. That sort of surprised me. It’s probably because I didn’t do a lot of catalog parties as a rule in my own business.

I knew that I was in business to do three things:

• Sell my products
• Book parties
• Share my opportunity

Since home party plan catalog parties only cover one of those three objectives (and really the least important one to the overall growth of a direct sales business, in my opinion), they really shouldn’t be taking up much of your time.

That being said, there is a time and place for them. And I’m sure it won’t surprise you to learn that I had a systematic way of working my catalog parties. So I thought I’d lay out when I offered these and the systems I put into place to make sure the customers from these parties felt as valued as possible by me.

When is It Appropriate to Offer A Catalog Party?

In my opinion, only when it’s crystal clear that the person you’re offering it to has no interest in hosting a party. Now, wait a second. I said CRYSTAL CLEAR. That means, you’ve used all of the great booking techniques you’ve learned, you’ve identified their objection and attempted to overcome it, and they’re just positive that they have no interest in booking a party. Please don’t give up easily on this option. Physical parties are so much more valuable than catalog parties in every way. That’s why I always considered my catalog parties “gravy.” I didn’t count on the income, but it was very nice if a few catalog parties happened to put a couple extra bucks in my pocket every month.

My 3 Tips for Home Party Plan Catalog Party Success

1. Coach Your Host – First of all, you MUST coach your catalog party hosts. This is actually as important (if not more important) with this type of host as with a regular host. You have to educate them about how to:

• Get the word out about their party (how will they “announce the fact that they’re having this party?)
• Accurately fill out an order form, get payment information, etc.
• Use your catalog to sell (and upsell) your products (this is important and it’s pretty easy to teach as long as you’re good at it yourself)

2. Go For a Goal – Make sure you have your host set a goal for herself so she’s shooting for something. That will motivate her toward a successful party. Without it, most catalog parties are doomed to failure.

• She can choose an item or a few items she wants to earn
• She can choose a total sales goal for her party
• She can choose a number of orders she’s going to get
• She can choose all of the above

3. (This is the most important) Set A Closing Date – This one would have eliminated my current frustration. It’s tempting with a catalog party to simply turn your host loose and say “Let me know when you’re ready to close.” This is a bad idea for a couple of reasons:

• It makes for a lazy host. Most of us are natural procrastinators. If she thinks she has as much time as she wants, she’ll put it off as long as possible.
• You end up having to chase your host around trying to get her to close her party
• Your customers end up getting frustrated and their feelings about you and your company reflect that (I’m living proof of this last point).

Hopefully these tips will give you a little structure the next time you agree to a catalog party (even if you’re hosting one yourself for a direct sales representative who doesn’t happen to read this blog. LOL). As I said, I’ve got fairly limited experience with this part of the direct sales pie, so if you have any other tips to add, I’d love it if you posted them below.

Julie Anne Jones is direct sales corporate consultant, keynote speaker, and trainer, and the CEO of Julie Anne Jones, Inc. She is known for her authentic and easy-to-use scripting and specializes in specific language and tools for success in direct sales. To learn more about Julie Anne and her products and services and to read more blog posts, visit her at http://www.julieannejones.com.

If you want to generate more bookings in your direct sales business, and you want to generate those bookings with ease, you need to look at reasons why your prospects would want to book a home party with you in the first place. Most direct sales consultants think that the reason their prospects book a home show is to get free product, and that’s why they almost always lead with getting free product as the reason to book a home party.

What if you could improve your results by digging deeper and finding an even more compelling reason to book a home show, would you want to do that? If so, pay close attention to the marketing lesson within the following story of how I developed a large group of people to want something I offer.

There’s really only one reason people read my weekly ezine. Some would say that they read it because they learn so much from it. Others would say they read it because they think I’m such a good writer. But those are not the real reasons why they read it. There’s truly only one reason they read it at all.

The real reason my subscribers read my weekly ezine is that I present them with an offer they can’t refuse while signing up for my it. Here’s my offer: “Learn 3 simple secrets to building an empire in your direct sales business by giving me your first name and email address.” You see, the real reason my subscribers read my weekly ezine is that I begin by generating their interest with an offer of something they actually want. So what does all this have to do with you and achieving success in your direct sales business? Keep reading because you’re going to start seeing some similarities.

A major point I want you to understand is that no one reads my ezine because I say, “Hey, wanna get a free ezine targeted to the direct sales industry from me every week?” It’s true that I could have asked that of each of my subscribers, and maybe a few would have said, “Yes.” But the majority probably would have said, “No thanks.”

Likewise, you can jump-start your direct sales business once you pick up the phone and simply ask a few casual acquaintances if they would consider hosting a home party demonstration to get some free products. However, asking someone to host a home party demonstration for that reason would be similar to me asking you if you wanted to get a free weekly ezine. However, even that activity can generate bookings in your calendar, therefore, another major point is: Activity overrules inactivity any day of the week.

But the secret to generating new bookings with ease is identifying something that your prospects would love to have and then presenting those prospects with an irresistible offer. You have to get inside your customers’ shoes and really ask yourself, “What do my customers actually want?” If you think the answer to that question is “free products,” you haven’t thought much about your prospects.

Let’s look at my offer. When I thought about my prospects I knew that I could offer them a free weekly ezine filled with direct sales tips and direct sales strategies. But I had to ask myself, “Do my prospects actually want that?” In order to discover the answer to that I simply pictured my prospects going to bed at night and not being able to fall asleep. What was keeping them awake? Well, certainly not this thought, “Oh, if only I could get a free ezine targeted to direct sales! Then every thing would be all right.” HA! FAT CHANCE!

I knew that if anything in their business were keeping them awake at night it would have something to do with difficulty, how this business isn’t as easy as they thought it would be. Then I thought about things that could really help make this business easier. And ultimately I narrowed those things down to three things. Still another major point is that I didn’t just say “3 Things to…,” I said, “3 Simple Things…” You see, I know that my ideal prospects want and need simplicity in their business because their lives are already busy and complicated enough as it is.

The other thing I considered was that the bigger my prospects build their business, they not only earn more money, they experience leverage. By the way, “leverage” is another word for “opportunity” in project/risk management. By telling my prospects that I had 3 simple secrets to building an empire in their direct sales business, I capitalized on several of their desires – simplicity and leverage of time and money.

Hey, I can actually picture my prospects going to bed at night wishing they knew an easier way to make money and wishing there were a few more hours in the day! Do you ever go to bed with either of those thoughts?

What I’ve just shown you is the secret to generating new bookings with the people and strangers you meet every day. Offer a solution to one or more of their challenges. Stop offering free products (for example: a free facial) and start offering something they want (for example: taking 3-5 years off their face). You need to think about the problem to which your products are the solution. Yes… this just might require some deeper thinking on your part. Final major point: if you skip this, you’ll be veering off the critical path to building a truly successful direct sales business.
About the Author

Tammy Stanley directs The Sales Refinery, a sales training firm that assists direct sales consultants generate more business through powerful marketing, selling, and leadership strategies.

Get her FREE report, “3 Simple Secrets to Building an Empire in Direct Sales” at http://www.tammystanley.com

Ever had a party online or offline, and had guests say “I love that item, but I can’t afford it right now”, or “It’s so hard to decide, I want all of this!”. This is a perfect time to sell all those items to your customer without them having to pay a dime.

If you aren’t using this idea already, make sure to put it into action immediately. Have a gift registry form ready to point those customers to should they want extra items they simply can not buy right now.

What they do is fill out their information, special dates (Birthdays, Anniversary, etc), and the products they want. Then, they fill out names and contact information of relatives and friends they know they will be receiving gifts from. You contact the relatives, stating where you received their information and what’s on the wish list you hold. Ask them if they would like a reminder before the special date, and which item they will be purchasing.

Simple eh? It’s a win-win situation for everyone! You make the extra sale, the gift-giver knows they are buying a gift the other person wants (no guess work or wandering around a mall!), and the one receiving the gift is getting exactly what they wanted but couldn’t afford.

This idea works easily both online and offline. Keep several forms handy if you are offline, so you can pass them out at parties or events (Pre-made forms available with the Direct Sales Success Kit). Online you will want to set up a page with an automatic form for your guest to fill out.

For an example of an online form, visit:
http://www.soy-wax-candles.com/gift-registry.html

About the Authors: Kara Kelso & Anita DeFrank are two busy wahms, and the owners of Direct Sales Helpers. For more Direct Sales Success Tips, visit: www.directsaleshelpers.com/newsletter.html

So, you’ve just moved to town and, along with all of your worldly belongings, you’ve brought your direct sales business with you. The problem is, the direct sales/party plan industry is a relationship industry and chances are good that those are in short supply for you right now. When you’re new in town, the one guarantee is that you don’t know many people. I can relate. I started my direct sales business three months after I moved to town and I knew virtually no one. We moved in the summer and school hadn’t started yet and I had little kids I was home with so meeting new people was hard. Plus, my sponsor lived 4 hours away, where I’d attended a direct sales home party while visiting my sister, so he couldn’t really help me either.

The key to solving the temporary problem of “I don’t know anyone” can also help if you get stuck because your bookings have dried up or you’ve “tapped out” all of your current friends and aren’t sure where to turn next. Here are a few ideas:

Think outside the box – Think about who you do know in town. You might not have a network of good friends yet, but I’ll bet you have all of your service providers pretty much in place; dentist, doctors for you and your kids, hair stylist, manicurist, babysitter, even the lady at the express counter of the grocery store who knows you by name. Think about who you know casually or professionally who would love your direct sales products and approach them about booking a home party for you.

Appeal to other people’s desire to help – People (especially women) will generally lend a hand when asked. It makes us feel all warm inside to support someone else. So ask for that support. When I got started and didn’t know where to turn for my first direct sales party, I went to the woman who did my nails and asked her if she would host a party for me. I knew she must have known lots of women and that she loved jewelry (my product). She enthusiastically agreed and hosted my very first “kick off” party. It was a huge success and, more importantly, I got lots of bookings with people I didn’t know, which launched my business.

Get into someone else’s extended network – You may be new to town, but your neighbor or the other women in your church group aren’t. Let them know you’re just getting started and ask them who they know who would love to host a home party (they may step up and volunteer themselves). If you’re married and your husband is working, see if there’s a way to access his work network to offer the opportunity to attend a party you throw yourself.

Get out in public and generate interest – Finally, if the people won’t come to you, go to them. This can be as simple as sitting in a Starbucks with your direct sales products in a basket and some catalogs. You’ll be amazed at how curious people will be about what you’re doing. Some might even walk up and ask you about it. You can also set up a booth at a local women’s fair or school bazaar, making sure you’re standing out in front of your booth and connecting with passer’s by by asking them questions and engaging them. Be sure you have your party dates available on cards and some form of “instant booking gift” to give anyone who books on the spot and that you’re gathering information of those who might be interested so you can follow up.

I know it may feel like you don’t know anyone when you’re new in town, but that’s really not true. The key is to get creative and ask for help. And the best perk about all of this is that it’s a great way to meet people, so you’ll be building friendships in your new town as you build your business.

Julie Anne Jones is direct sales corporate consultant, keynote speaker, and trainer, and the CEO of Julie Anne Jones, Inc. She is known for her authentic and easy-to-use scripting and specializes in specific language and tools for success in direct sales. To learn more about Julie Anne and her products and services and to read more blog posts, visit her at http://www.julieannejones.com.

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