Importance of Calculating Costs

First let me say there's nothing wrong with exploring every possible marketing venue. There are lots of ways - both good and bad - to pull in sales. However, while something you have considered may seem like a good way to pull in sales, a closer look at your costs to run the campaign may prove differently.

Let's say for an example you decide to give out freebies at random. Giving samples can be a good way to bring in sales, but at the same time can make you completely broke. Just for this example, let's say you've sent out 100 samples and from this you pulled in 5 sales. Sounds like the campaign worked, right?

Many would stop here and say "I'm going to send out more samples, because this is bringing me sales". Before you start in on your victory dance, I can't stress enough the importance of comparing your costs to your profits. When doing something like this, you absolutely cannot rely on reorders or repeat customers. Keep in mind it takes nearly as much time and money to KEEP a customer than it does to get them in the first place. The mind set of "I’m getting my name out there" has GOT to go. With a small business, you are working on building relationships and repeat customers, not branding like the big businesses do.

Breaking down our example, let's say our freebies cost $1 each. There's more math involved in figuring your costs, but for this example we'll just set that cost for each sample. Now since you sent out 100 samples, your cost was a $100. Quite a bit of money for just one campaign! Sent out over a period of time (say several months) you might not even notice that it cost this much. Another reason why it's important to watch these things, because you can see how easy it can be to go broke quickly.

From our example we decided that 5 sales were made. Let's say our average commission is $9 per sale, so with 5 sales that makes $45. Great! You made sales! But wait - take a look at those costs again. Remember how it cost you $100 to send it out? You just lost $55 as well as precious time.

The purpose of this example isn't to scare you off of marketing all together, but rather to figure out your average costs BEFORE you start handing out samples or any other type of marketing. Regardless of how much figuring you do, there's still a chance for a loss instead of a profit, but that's fine. It happens, and it's normal. Testing, tweaking, and tracking are how we learn. After comparing your first try, decide how it can be better and try again. Either that, or try something else that will bring you a profit.

If I didn't mention it enough before, it's EXTREMELY important you track your costs closely. Our examples above proved this. Regardless of what you are told, it's not about getting the sales, it's about making a profit. That's the key word here - PROFIT. Just like a major company, it's all about the bottom line.
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Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success, specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their goal of becoming successful in their field. If you need additional help calculating costs, visit http://www.directsaleshelpers.com/calculating-costs.html

Know Your Business

Usually we speak about these matters to those who are new to direct sales or are looking to possibly get in to direct sales, however, having spoken with quite a few different reps recently; we’ve found that even those who have been involved with direct sales for many years still don’t know the definitions of different terms used. This of course could be for a myriad of reasons such as maybe one particular term doesn’t affect your company, you never asked and your sponsor never mentioned, or you just never knew. Even if a particular term does not affect your company, you could very well be asked by a prospect and you’ll want to know so you can answer this question quickly and easily without a hitch. An even worse case scenario would be that you weren’t aware of a particular rule/regulation and you’ve been going against your company's regulations all along. Not following a company’s regulations could easily be call for dismissal from your company. Remember, not knowing is not an excuse. The following is a list of frequently asked questions/terms and definitions to help you. If you find a question that you can’t answer … find out!

Distributor Kit – Also commonly referred to as a start up kit, rep kit, etc. these are usually a compilation of products, business supplies, brochures etc. These are sometimes offered for new consultants only but are also offered to any consultant. These are usually discounted through a bulk package rather than buying each item individually.

Tax Requirements – Make sure you know what your company’s tax requirements are. It’s also a good idea to do some research online about other states' requirements also. If you do a lot of recruiting online, you’re very likely to have a downline of members all over the country. No one expects you to become a tax pro but, it never hurts to be able to share links with your potential recruits about their particular state so they can do the research themselves. This question is ranked high in the top questions asked.

Sales Quota – Some companies require their representatives to sell/buy a certain amount of merchandise in a certain amount of time. These usually range from monthly, quarterly or yearly. If a consultant does not meet the required quota, some companies will remove that consultant.

Customer Service - Be sure you know exactly how various order problems are handled. Who does the consultant contact and how in this unfortunate event?

Drop Ship – Dropshipping is when a consultant places an order with their company and the company automatically ships the product directly to the customer.

Commission Structure – This is another high-ranked question. Of course everyone wants to know what they’re going to make. Make sure that you clearly understand the commission structure so you can explain it to your potential recruit.

Territory Restrictions – Some companies have territory restrictions, meaning that you may only be able to sell in a certain area. Often this is set up according to towns, counties and sometimes even states.

Hostess Credits/Gifts – These are items or prizes that hostesses can earn/win for holding their parties. What are these prizes/gifts and who is responsible for paying for them?

Inactive Fees – These are fees that might be incurred if a consultant were to go inactive and decided to re-join.

Bonuses – Some companies like to offer added incentives/bonuses to their consultants for maybe when they reach a certain number in sales or reach a certain level with their downline.

Downline – These are the people that you “sponsor” or those who join the company “under you”. These are also known as team members.

Fundraising Opportunities – Many direct sales companies have a separate plan set up especially for organizations, teams etc. so they can earn money for their organization.

Buy Back Policy – Often companies will buy back any unused merchandise that consultants have not been able to sell. As required by the Direct Selling Association, most companies will buy back the unused merchandise at up to 90% of the cost.

Non-Compete Clause – Many direct sales companies have a non-compete clause in place meaning that consultants may not sell for a competing company while representing their own. There are even some that will not allow reps to sell for any other company – competing or not.

Return Policy – Make sure you’re well aware of your company’s return policy.

Advertising Regulations – Some companies will not allow their representatives to advertise online. Some will not allow consultants to mention the company's name or even certain brand names in any advertising.

There are a lot of different rules/regulations that pertain to advertising. Make sure you’re following them.

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Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success, specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.

Proper Networking and Email Formats

Often times when sifting through networks, I see some extremely terrible things. Just as your clothing offline shows how professional you are, your typing and email formats show how professional you are online.

Many of us have read the basic networking tips, what to do and what not to do. What's spam, what's not. Although there are several tips you hardly ever see, and need to be mentioned. These apply to every day conversation as well as ads.

The following is a list of things to avoid when networking and sending emails:

1. Grammar and Spelling
Nothing bugs me more than to see grammar mistakes. Some are forgivable, as I know we all make mistakes. However, some are deliberate or signs of laziness. I don't ever expect someone to spell check a reply on a group, but using capital letters at the beginning of sentences and periods shouldn't be left out. Also things like "u" instead of "you" are unacceptable. Message boards and groups are NOT chat rooms.

2. Using All Caps
This tends to fall into the grammar and spelling category, but I thought I would make mention of it alone. Online, the use of caps is translation for shouting. If you need to get a point across, by all means shout. Just don't write your entire message in caps (or vise versa - refer to the tip above).

3. Excessive Exclamation Marks
This mostly applies to ads, since I know we can get excited when talking to fellow WAHMs on a casual level. I absolutely cringe when I read an ad with (!!!!) after every sentence. This is probably because I learned early excessive exclamation marks is a huge no-no in ad writing. It indicates hype, and no one wants to read pure hype. One exclamation mark is good enough, and more is unprofessional.

4. Fancy Stationery
It might look neat to you, but extremely irritating to others. You wouldn't see an envelope covered with stickers from your electric company would you? Or a statement from your bank on pretty stationery that says "I don't do mornings". Not only that, but many groups and email programs will reject the code for the stationery. I can't tell you how many messages I've seen on Yahoo Groups that start out with "XYZ Stationery Header". That doesn't look professional at all. Save the fancy stationery for your personal mail.

5. Arguments
We all feel the need to put our two cents in sometimes, although while networking with business it's usually not a good idea. Unless it specifically concerns you, try to stay out of arguments and heated discussions. There's a time to say something and a time to keep quiet. Knowing the difference is the only way to improve your networking status.

There are many other "no-no's" that we see on a regular basis, but the ones listed above are the top mistakes many networkers make. Don't forget - your emails and words are a direct reflection of your business online!

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Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success, specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.

Importance of Offering Team Incentives

If your team is growing but not staying motivated, one of the best ways to kick them into gear is to offer an incentive. By offering an incentive you are not only helping your team stay motivated, but in return helping your own business. Working towards a tangible goal can be a very powerful thing!

Here are some ideas for goals you can set for your team:

- Top monthly sales
- Top quarterly sales
- Most recruits in one month
- Reaching a set sales goal in a month
- Reaching personal goals
- Advancing in company ranking

Incentives come in many forms. While many would appreciate a company discount, others may like different types of gifts. After all, being in the company they are already getting products at a discount, right?

Gifts do not always have to be expensive, but should reflect the goal you have set for them. If the prize is offered monthly, the gift should be small. If it's a larger, long term goal, something a tad more expensive would be better. Remember though, it's the thought that counts and what appears to be expensive doesn't have to BE expensive.

Some ideas for incentives include:

- Candles
- Gift Certificates
- Jewelry
- Products from your other businesses
- Personalized Products

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Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success, specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their goal of becoming successful in their field. Needing incentives for your team? DirectSalesHelpers.com offers personalized candles at http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com/candles.htm

Locating Local Craft Shows

It's that time of year again! Christmas is over and the weather is starting to get warm, which means craft shows are starting to be scheduled. Are you ready to start looking for events?

We all know how profitable a craft show can be. Offline events are perfect for getting the word out about your business and making new contacts. What could be better than hundreds of shoppers walking right up to you and saying hello?

The most difficult part of a craft show is actually locating them before all the tables are booked. If you have never attended an event before, be prepared to spend several shows stuffed in the very back at a last minute table. Many of us start out like this, but as soon as you get on "the lists", your table location WILL be better.

The following idea for locating events is brand new, and given to us by a "neighbor" at our last craft show. While chatting with her, she pulls out a book and asked if we had this. It was titled "Iowa Calendar of Events", and was FULL of events for all over the state. Granted there were many events that do not accept vendors (theater dates, car shows, etc), but the list of shows that did accept vendors was amazing. All events were listed by date, complete with location and contact information. Perfect!

While this information might have been great for us being in Iowa, you might ask what good does it do for the rest of you in different states. I'll tell you - this booklet was free from our travel information website. All we had to do is go online and request a free copy. Iowa has a very limited amount of sights to see, yet we still have a travel website. This to me says other states have the same kind of information on website or with local offices.

There's a few ways to find out if your state has information like this:

- Check your state website
Often times the travel and event information will be right on your government website.

- Search online
Use terms like "travel" or "tourism" with your state to see if there's a specific website.

- Local offices
If all else fails, contact your state government offices to see if anything in print is offered.

Even in a small state like Iowa, we were able to find a list that will keep us booked every month for the entire craft fair season. Once you have your information, the easy part is contacting those on the list. Easy!

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Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success, specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their goal of becoming successful in their field. If you need additional help with booking and attending offline events, visit: http://www.directsaleshelpers.com/offline-events.html