Direct Sales – Which Company Is Right For Me?
There are many avenues you can go with this title with many options to consider. You may be asking this question because you want to be your own boss, work your own hours while balancing it around your family life. Or you may have been recently been made redundant, or in worse context – fired. For whatever reason you are considering joining or starting your own party plan business, you will need to sit down first and have a firm handle on what your motives are and what you want to get out of it.Some questions you may start with areWhat are your interests? Do you have a special skill or hobby you enjoy that you could utilise? Make a list of all these things – they are all potential business ideas.Would you like to start a business from scratch or would you prefer to jump aboard a ground floor opportunity already presented by a successful business?By honing in on your interests and skills, you will ensure that you will find something that will maintain your enthusiasm for the long haul.HOW TO CHOOSE WHICH ESTABLISHED PARTY PLAN COMPANY TO STEP INTOEssentially, once you have found your niche, or interest, do your research. Find companies that support this interest with their service or product line and ASK, ASK, ASK!Pester a consultant until you are satisfied with all answers to these questionsHow worn and well-trodden is the territory?In other words, how many other companies are out there marketing the same or a similar product or service? Questions to ask may include:What does this company offer that stands out from the others in the same industry?
Do they offer regular and usable promotions to their customers?
Are their regular product prices reasonable or excessive? How about postage costs?
What does the host/ess receive for hosting a party? Are the rewards ‘WOW’ or just ‘good?
How about the product line itself – is there enough products and variety that will interest a whole range of consumers?
Does it give need for customers to re-order from you or is it a type of product that you buy once then never again?Ask yourself -Do YOU love the company products? Have you tried/used them and know their benefits firsthand? If you are thinking you may grow to love them, perhaps think about another company. The way you feel about the line you show will come across in your presentation and if you only ‘like’ the product, your potential customers may not receive the enthusiasm or vibe that your products are as great as you say they are and may go elsewhere.What is the company’s start-up kit price and what do you get for this?Some companies supply a kit with all products in their range, while others may supply the bare minimum to get you started with.If you do have to purchase more for your kit, does the company offer a discounted rate for consultants?As a general rule, most companies will require more stock to be bought at some point, either for new product lines or promotional items. If the company you are looking at is a consumable line (food and drink), then find out an average amount of stock & ‘samples’ you will need to have on hand for an ‘x’ amount of parties (however many you would like to hold over a typical month)then work out an approx. cost per year.What are the company’s contract conditions & policies?Find out what you will need to do in order to start with the company. Some companies will expect so many parties or sales within the first month or so from their new consultants. This is usually along with a condition of either receiving a heavily discounted or free kit, with the company maintaining a policy that you will be liable for the full retail cost of your kit if these conditions are not fulfilled.Also, it is a good idea to check out if the company has a minimum amount of parties that need to be done per month on an ongoing basis, as if you fall below this amount, you can become inactive and quickly be removed from the company. You will find these conditions will also be on your contract when you go to sign (usually at the bottom of the page in the teensy tiny small print that most of us are guilty of not reading at the best of times)Does the company offer ongoing support and training?Great companies will offer support and training to their consultants for FREE. Find out if this is offered and by what means. It may be in a book form, online meetings, or an online forum or meeting place where you can put your questions and concerns forward, while connecting with other consultants’ experiences and ideas. There should also be an up line or team manager which will be your direct source of contact – someone who you can contact straight away should you run into difficulty or need support.What is the pay like?The majority of companies follow a commission structure. Of the ones I have researched, they vary typically between 15% – 35% commission on sales made.So – how much does the company you are interested in offer?
Do they offer any added incentives?Generally, companies also have a minimum party sales requirement, averaging between $100 – $400, in order for the host to receive their benefits. Work out how much you will receive on this minimum amount and then ask the company consultant if they know the party average sales for their company. This will give you an idea of how much you can earn within the company on a per party basis.Obviously, in order to correctly ascertain your expected pay, it also depends on how many parties you would like to hold over a week or month. Once again, check the companies minimum ‘parties to be held’ requirement and work off this as a guide.Some companies also go the extra mile and along with the usual commission, may also offer incentives based on performance or sales. Some I know even offer free trips and holidays for those consultants who achieve a certain amount in a year.How can you get your name out there?You will find that most companies supply their consultants (either free or at a small cost) with professional brochures as well as other business stationary. Some even may supply you with business cards. Find out what they will supply and what you will need to supply for yourself. Then work out your personal cost per month.As well as paperwork, ask if the company uses consultant websites, allows personal websites or any web marketing at all (such as Facebook for example).Also find out if you are allowed to distribute flyers or participate in market days or other event or fundraising activities. Most companies will allow these things, some with consent first, but others are quite strict with their advertising rules and have a zero tolerance, which means you can immediately lose your job if you do participate.Ideally, you should find yourself a company that will make it easy to promote yourself to others, not make it a nightmare. As a side point, Vista Print offers some great free cards and other business tools you may like to consider if you are allowed to utilise extra marketing.STARTING YOUR PARTY PLAN BUSINESS FROM SCRATCHIf you are thinking you would prefer to start your own party plan business from scratch – some questions you should have answered before you go any further would be:What product lines are you interested in selling? Are there other companies in your state selling the same or similar product line?
What areas would you need to strongly compete with in order to stand out from these other companies?
Can you identify any areas in which your competition are lacking in, and then capitalise on these areas?
Have you chosen a name for your business?
Have you worked out government tax and looked into GST?
How much commission will you pay your consultants?
What will be in your product range? Where will you source these items from?
How much inventory will you need approx. in order to start your venture?
What will you include in the kit and how will you price these for your consultants?
Where will your stationary come from? And, will you change your consultants for these?
How much will shipping be? And how much will you charge to cover this cost per customer & consultant?
Where will you find your initial customers?There are many sites available online to help answer these questions. The ones I like are:Build a Little Biz, ( http://www.buildalittlebiz.com/ )which outlays in easy to understand terms and mostly step by step instructions, simple ways to start and build your business from the ground up – by people who have been there and done that.Flying Solo – ( http://www.flyingsolo.com.au/ ) a micro business community which features thousands of articles, tax & government help, start up tips, marketing ideas & moreThese sites are just a few, among hundreds found on the web that will assist you in beginning to reach your goal of starting and running a successful business.
