Direct Sales Basics: How To Hold an Online Party
Have you been wanting to hold an online party for your direct sales company but didn’t know how, or even where to begin? Good news… it’s much easier than you might think! Here are instructions to help you plan and hold your very first online party. You can start right away building your business with added online sales using this technique.
• First, invite a friend or family member to serve as hostess. You can host the party yourself, but it’s nice to get others involved. If you choose a hostess up front, she can work with you to promote the online party and invite more guests.
You can also hold a “Mystery Hostess” party where you draw a name at the end of the party from all the guests who stayed for the whole show. This can be a lot of fun and is added incentive to get your guests to stick around the whole time.
• Decide on a date and time for your online party. If you have a hostess, work with her to set a date that’s convenient for you both.
• Next, you’ll need a chat room. If you plan to do online parties on a regular basis, you can add a chat room to your site using one of the many services available online. While some of these chat rooms do cost, there are added benefits to having your own customized room.
But if you only want to hold an occasional party, are just getting started, or simply don’t want the hassle of setting up your own chat room, there are several free party rooms available online. Just search for “free WAHM chat rooms” and pick the one that looks best to you. You can always go for the paid, upgraded version later on.
• If you’re using someone else’s chat room, check to see that the site you’ve chosen limits parties to one rep per company per day. That way you’ll be able to get more guests to your party and you won’t be competing with another consultant from the same direct sales company.
• Once you reserve your chat room, you may want to play around with the mechanics of it a bit to familiarize yourself with how everything works before the day of the party. If the chat room offers an online tutorial, read it thoroughly so you’ll be comfortable. You don’t want the technical aspects of the chat room site or software to affect your comfort level during the party itself.
But don’t worry! Chat rooms are extremely easy to navigate and you’ll feel like a chat room pro in no time.
• Your next task is to invite guests. Just as with a live party, the more the merrier–and the more orders you’ll get! Some ideas for getting the word out include:
==>Invite everyone you know.
==>Have your hostess invite everyone she knows.
==>Offer a gift or a discount to anyone who brings a friend.
==>Add a note about your party to email or forum signature files.
==>Post a note on your website.
==>Blog about your upcoming party.
==>Tweet about your party on twitter.
==>Announce your party on Facebook.
==>Send out a postcard (electronic or print!).
==>Do anything you can do to get more guests–without SPAM, of course!
Guests are the lifeblood of a party and without them, your party will fail. Spend as much time promoting and inviting as you can!
• Plan two or three games to play during the party. If you play games that involve searching for items on your website (and you should!), ask your guests to open another browser window so they can keep the chat room window open at the same time.
• You can find several possible games online. A couple popular and easy ones include Word Scramble, where you scramble the name of a product and the first one to decipher the word wins that product, or Product Search, where you give guests the name of a specific product and the first one to find the description and type it in wins that product.
• Create a script to use the day of the party. That way you can cut and paste snippets of text to eliminate the need for typing everything. This will also ensure you remember all the things you want to say.
• Keep in mind that an online party operates much like a live party. But instead of verbally saying what you want to say to your guests, you’ll be typing what you want to say. The activities and conversations will be much the same, though.
• Start by introducing yourself to your guests. Tell them a little about you and how you came to be involved in direct sales. Then invite each guest to introduce herself. This is a good time to play an icebreaker game if you have one planned.
• Allow time for your guests to ask questions about your products, if needed. Just as when hosting a live party, explain various products, how they work, and give tips for their use. Include sales and specials for party guests, booking incentives, hostess gifts, etc. You can do almost anything online that you would do at a live show. Just keep in mind you have to explain it via text rather than verbally.
• Remind guests that every order they place will give their hostess credit (another reason for having a friend serve as hostess). And help them place their orders online if they need your help.
• Be sure to create a “party atmosphere” by providing fun and entertaining activities, games and lively discussion. You want every guest to be glad she came so she’ll want to attend the next party you hold–and ideally, book one of her own with you as well!
• After your online party, send a quick email thank you to everyone who attended, whether she ordered or not. It’s a nice gesture and will leave a positive impression with your guests.
Using Online Parties To Grow Your Direct Sales Business
Hosting online direct sales parties can be very smart especially if your hostesses are finding it hard to get your friends and family together in the same spot on the same day. Some direct sales companies even offer online parties to make it easy to pool sales together, but adding an online chat as part of the party can make the event a fun “girls night out” — without leaving the house!
Tell Everyone
Make sure to tell everyone you know that you’re hosting an online party. Excitement is contagious. Be sure to let everyone know how excited you are about the great products that will be presented. Send out emails that tell your guests the date and time as well as a link to the website where your party is going to be held. If you know of any special offers or discounts being offered, let them know in your email. A lot of direct sales companies now have special areas for their hostesses to provide their guests with online email invites and information.
Offer Some Incentives
Everyone likes to think they’re saving money or “getting a deal” so incentives can be a draw for your guests and they just might place a larger order, too. Often your company will have monthly guest discounts or other specials you can offer your guests. Send the company flyer in a subsequent reminder email or create a flyer offering your own special.
In addition to company sponsored incentives – or instead of them, if your company doesn’t offer anything- you might consider creating incentives of your own. If you’re trying to make sales then offer a discount or buy one, get one offer using your consultant discount. If you want to fill up your calendar with bookings, offer a special item or discount percentage to anyone that books a party on your available dates. If you have trouble coming up with ideas or think you’re spending too much money on extra incentives, talk to your up line leader. She will likely know how to help you in your particular situation.
Advertise, Advertise, Advertise
Make a list of places to advertise your online party. Think of forums, chat rooms and websites that might cater to someone interested in your company’s products. You must make sure to pay attention to the posting rules in the sites you are looking to place an advertisement. You don’t want to be accused of spamming since that will get you banned from future postings and make you look unprofessional. Forums for moms or for moms that work from home are excellent places to look for advertising your online party. Just remember – be respectful.
Enjoy The Party
Once you’ve send the invitation and reminder emails, advertised and thought up your sales and booking strategies then sit back, relax and enjoy the party. Be excited for your hostess and guests and share your enthusiasm for the products being offered. It is very likely that you will get others interested and excited too and that will lead to a fun and profitable online party
