Any Tips for Boosting Sales for a Newbie???

[amandaC]

I just started with Pampered Chef April 2nd. I have had 2 shows and have 4 more scheduled b4 my 30 days are up may 12th. My first 2 parties were from friends and family and barely made it to 150. any suggestions?

 

[Nep2nfly]

Hi Amanda C! I started on April 1st - so I'm right there with you! My first couple of shows weren't as awesome as I would have liked either - however, I think I found my groove on my third show. I really played around by reading other people's posts (like a woman who sold over 10K last month). This last show that I did will end with a minimum of $1400 and looks to hit closer to 1700 in commissionable sales. (I should mention that I live in a rural area of KY - so I never thought this would even be possible) There were three big differences with this show (and amazingly nearly 1/2 the people that ordered also ordered on another show of mine earlier in the month): 1. Host coaching - it works, amazingly well. I gave my host her packet at the party she signed up at (my second party), and briefly reviewed her potential benefits. I followed up with a call the next day to re-confirm the date and ask if she had time to view the packet, I followed the host coaching sheet for call 1 (word for word, nearly - just answering any questions she might have). I then met face to face with her a week later and did the second part of the host coaching checklist (found in our guide). I could tell she was getting really excited about her potential benefits. This face to face was the key - she was showing interest in the cookware and went over the benefits of both, etc. We talked about her wish list (she laughingly said she would need to sell $20K to get it all free), and set some realistic goals of getting outside orders, etc with people who couldn't show up. She knew what she wanted, and knew she could get it if she just stepped out and asked. All I did was encourage her that people would love our products (which she had already found out for herself). She brought in 6 outside orders for the show - one totaling nearly $150. She invited 50 people. Two days before the show, I called again to ask if she needed assistance making reminder calls. She made the calls. Her show was on a Monday night. 20 people showed up. At the show I made Chicken fajitas in the DCB (I modified the equipment I used because I don't have everything - but I do have the DCB which I am selling the heck out of). It's super easy, I let guests use the food chopper and the mandoline, and the garlic press. While the food was cooking in the microwave (I gave the host instructions on what to do when it was out of the microwave so I could continue with my next step), I had the group head to the "sales' area. We played a game called "Have it, Love it, Got a Question (found it on here on one of the threads) and went through the catalog hitting big items, collections, etc. when someone would shout "Have it Love it" or "Got a Question" I threw them a Hershey's kiss. My customers enjoyed this (I threw a lot of humor in) and they sold the products with their stories. At the end, I talked about hosting, did a drawing, and invited them to eat the fajitas and brownie bites (which I brought pre-made). They loved the food - and raved over the dcb. At the end of the night I had racked up $800 in sales. Then I sat down with my host, and we talked more about her wishlist. (this was key)...she wanted to reach $1000...so she went back to her friends who couldn't make it and has been getting sales from them all week. We will close the show tomorrow night. She plans on buying the cookware, and possibly the knives as well (in addition to her top ten wish list). The guests all gave great feedback on the night and said they really had fun. Bonus - I was finished with my presentation (both cooking and catalog) in 1 hour and 05 minutes - which was a huge improvement from my first two shows. I booked 2 shows - both complete strangers.
I also was able to boost a slow catalog show by going ahead and setting up my website. It wasn't looking good, but as soon as the website went up, and my catty host sent an email, I got two more orders in an hour, and it is still growing).
Hopefully, this wasn't all a fluke. I will have to let you know .... but I thought I would at least try to help, in case it isn't.
Good luck and God bless on your first thirty days!
Nan

 

[Nep2nfly]

Sorry that was so long! I'm just excited!

 

[lesliec]

thanks nancy, you inspired me.

 

[amandaC]

Nancy-
Thank you so much! I feel like host coaching is something I need to work on. I think next time I will try going word for word with what is on the checklist! I am so excited for you!!! That's a HUGE show! at least from my limited experience :chef: I love your show schedule... I have a show on may 5th and will be doing the fajitas. I think I will do it that way. Its a late show, 8 pm, so I think everyone would appreciate getting home at a decent hour! Thanks for all your advice...you sound like you are well on your way!

 

[ChefCat]

Awesome post Nancy, thank you for sharing!Amanda, another suggestion is to do the training videos online for product knowledge. =) The more you know the more you sell!

 

[Nep2nfly]

I wish I could take all the credit for what I wrote - but really - I learned nearly everything from other people's posts on this site. If I could personally give them credit right now, I totally would.
So - thanks everyone out there who contributes to this site - you all are the best teachers! I spend tons of time on here just reading about everyone's success. Oh - I forgot to mention that I used the ice cube trick (from one of the cooking shows in action videos) with the executive saute pan....everyone was really impressed by it. In fact, I have two individuals who both said they would be ready to replace their cookware within the year and will be calling me to set up shows so they can earn it like this host will be doing. I really hope this doesn't sound like I'm bragging - this all may just be a super lucky show - but I"m just extremely excited. I will keep trying my current format and see if it continues (though I"m sure the average show won't come nearly to this level). I would love to hear what works for you guys in your shows.

 

[scottcooks]

Nancy--it WILL come to that level! What is amazing about PC is how it improves you / me / us as consultants. Truly I had no idea how PC would make me an even more positive person when I started. In a nutshell skills to actively embrace to have high sales are:
...upsell: encourage add ons at checkout like oils, spices, qwickut paring knives, mini serving spatula, suds pumps or trivets by having them where you tally guest orders
...host coaching: a combination of calls and postcards works really well for me. Once you've made a live contact at the show or shortly after, you can do it all with postcards but 1 or 2 more quick calls makes it awesome.
...outside orders (I talk about 5-15-5 as 5 orders before the show for folks who are so excited and want to see the catalog, or who know they cannot come, or distant relatives and friends / 15 or more buying guests at the show, and 5 orders after the show from folks who couldn't make it or distant relatives or friends that haven't ordered yet)
...keeping it quick (you can whittle down your 1:05 show by making it more interactive and doing more of the Q/A. A top seller who was among the first to hit 1 million in sales used to not cook at shows, but insist that there be 20+ in attendance. A premade recipe was the secret, and instead they did a "have it / love it / questions about it" kind of activity where a tool was held up, and the consultant would ask at least 2 primal questions for each item.
-why do you love it
-what else do you use it for
-is it easy to clean
-why would you recommend it to your mom/sis/best friend
-who would it make a good gift for
then after the show the host was responsible for sharing the premade recipe.
...host coaching: do your first host coaching as you book at your show
...checkout: do a full service checkout (5 piles of material; 3 minimum.
-who do you know that would be good at what I do? Give #1 opportunity info
-can I offer you my "insider look" hostess information so we can have this kind of fun with your friends, and get you some awesome products for free? Give #2 premade host packet (, or raebates' awesome Think About It booklet)
-would you care to take a few catalogs and either add to Suzy's show so I can give you an item for free, or would you prefer to just host your own catalog show? Give #3 premade catalog host packet (, or raebates' awesome Think About It booklet)
-would you care for a copy of our recipe from tonight? Give #4 a print copy labeled with your contact information.
-is there anyone you know who would like a copy of this recipe? I will send it to them and see if they want to have a show and get free products? Give #5 drawing slip and then give her a recipe and a catalog and order form. Remind her the person can either order on this show by noon tomorrow, or we could open your own show and you can get you those awesome tools for free and the other host benefits.
...keep it fun / light
...ask for future business (above #1,2,3,5)
...know about product collections, especially higher end ones like
-cutlery
-Simple Addi+ions
-stoneware
-cookware
-bakeware I recently bumped up my host coaching skills and am working now to ask for referrals more to build my business and my team. Good luck!

 

[amandaC]

Thanks everyone! My show on Sat. was fantastic!!! 700 in sales and more still coming! I have 1 booking from it and 2 possibles! I am so excited and my host is too!!!! Thanks for all the tips. So much to learn and do- I have notes all over the place...now to just get them organized:angel: