New Year, New Ninja Leader? Direct Sales Coaching Resolutions

This week I’m specifically talking to my leaders, my Ninja Coaches, people who excel at a particular skill or activity (i.e., coaching their direct sales team).

I resolve to…

• Lose 50 pounds.
• Save $1,000.
• Increase my customer base by 200 people.
• Get a beach body by going to the gym every day.

As we know, January is a time for resolutions. It’s a “new day,” a New Year even, and people are out there making these wild predictions. As a psychologist (and a watcher of people in general), I always wondered why. Why now. Why not, like, oh, I don’t know, last week. I’ve talked to a lot of new direct sellers who signed on in December who said they were going to wait until January to start their businesses.

I don’t get it.

Start now. Like NOW. Go. Now. Bye. GO.

BUT here’s what I do get. A new year is almost like a new “slate” – it’s an opportunity for you to make a goal and have a start date (January 1) and we all know that goals need start dates. And assessment dates (because we have to assess progress and make changes). And end dates (or why would we have the #EOMHustle right?!).

As a leader, you can do this too.

Take an honest look at yourself last year as a leader and a coach for your team. What did you do? What didn’t you do that maybe you should have? Where did you focus the most of your time?

• Leading by example? (This is huge by the way, and it IS part of coaching).
• One on one coaching calls?
• Pop up/party prep coaching?
• Stroking egos of team members who are feeling down about their business?
• Social media posting?
• Putting out fires?
• Telling people where to find shit that they should know how to find themselves?
• Sending out team incentives?
• Creating and managing team incentives?

Be honest with yourself. Write down what you spent your time doing last year (or at least for the last two quarters because we know November and December are cray-cray and not normal).

Now the next question. And it’s a hard one.

Did what you were doing get you where you wanted your team to be?

*Pause*

Clears throat.

Now, if it did? Fantastic! Fabulous! Do more of THAT!

If it didn’t…let’s assess.

Think about your ROI (return on investment). If you spend 10 hours per week posting to your team Facebook page and nobody is working…something ain’t working. If you spend 10 hours per week trying to get your team on the phone for one-on-ones, and they aren’t calling you back or scheduling a time…something ain’t working.

Side Bar…

I have heard leaders from different companies say, “People just don’t want to work!” So wait…your team member shelled out $99/$175/$50 for…what? A kit? Maybe but probably not. Team members typically don’t work their biz for two reasons: 1) they don’t know how to, and/or 2) they can’t find the time to work it into their already busy schedule.

Remember that whole resolution bit I talked about at the beginning? THEY resolved to start a thriving business in [enter start date here] and…nothing. Maybe they didn’t do the 60-day trainings, maybe they didn’t know how to, maybe they got caught up in life. For whatever reason, they had a dream, an idea, and it came in a box (all kits come in boxes right…?). And right now it’s on the back burner. It’s fizzling. (And by the way, they probably blame their network for not supporting them or the company for not helping them because humans are typically loathe to take the blame for something themselves).

So if you’re feeling frustrated with your team not working, if you have $0s on your team, think about those two things. Do they have the tools to be successful? If so, do they have the time? Something else to think about – sales is like addictive substances. And we all know this. Once you get a sale, you want another one. So if you have lifetime $0s on your team, their goal (in your mind at least) should be 1 sale. Get that 1 sale. Get it done, get it over with, log in to your dashboard and see a sale and get The Bug. If a team member says they’re too busy (and cheers to you for getting them on the phone or getting them to text back by the way), then coach them to that one sale. If it happens like we’ve seen it happen, The Bug will bring them back to you for help with time management. I have even told team members to copy my social media posts if that’s what it takes to push them into “drive.”

Because sometimes they’re not creative (or they don’t think they are).

Sometimes they are shy or don’t want to harass their network.

This is where our jobs, as leaders, comes in to remind them that they ARE creative in their own way, and that they AREN’T harassing their network if they truly love their product. And that’s the massaging egos part of our job.

Side Bar Over.

OK so back to work on you and your team. Some questions for you.

How much time did you spend planning? Planning your own personal business month, planning your social media posts to your team, planning your emails to your team, your texts to your team, scheduling your days when you will do one-on-ones (if you’re doing them haphazardly and whenever you can, I REALLY suggest you create office hours and do them then consistently and do an outside touch base with a team member only if they aren’t available during your office hours). Work your business (of coaching) like a business. We open at X and we close at Y (although good luck with that closing at Y bit, team members will text you at all hours sometimes). Hell, even plan to plan. I plan on Sunday nights. Every week. Here’s what I’m going to do and on what days. Team Member Jane has a party on Tuesday so I need to call her Monday and do a walk through (and remind her of that constant calendar). Write these things down. Don’t have a planner (or use your phone calendar or Google Calendar)? My gosh are you kidding me? How do you stay sane and organized? Do you? Git’r done.

What does your team snapshot for the last 6 months look like? Who’s consistent? Who are your rock stars? Who’s inconsistent? Who seems to have lost interest? Now, some silly questions. Where do you make the most money? Rock stars (and consistent rock stars are like whoa I love you). Are your rock stars self-sufficient? What do they need from you? A “good job” every once in a while? A shout out on a corporate Facebook post? Now look at your lower-level team members. I break them down into consistently over $1k, $500-$999, and under $500 (and then the lifetime $0s). Push all your consistent ladies to go just a LITTLE higher every month. In your monthly planning, look at their sales average for the last 4 months (don’t count November and December), add on some bucks, and talk to them about their goal (with your goal for them in mind). No comfort zones ladies – push them outside.

Do you track your team? I use an Excel spreadsheet and created tabs for overall sales (so there’s a new column every month with their sales from Dec-15 etc.), contact info (in case my phone dies a painful death), and then there’s a tab for “focus.” Sally hasn’t had a sale in 2 months. She’s on my January list. Rhonda hasn’t responded to my Facebook posts or emails for a few weeks, what’s up with that – she’s on my January list. So the focus tab is a work in progress and is based upon the overall sales tab. I also track their pop ups/parties in a calendar and contact them 2 weeks, 1 week, 2 days before, and 2 days after to talk about the different things that need to be done (especially initially – veteran team members are like ya ya I know – and as long as they do it, I’ll leave ‘em alone).

Do you break the goals down into bite-sized bits with your team? Team goal is $50k. 50 team members. $1k/team member. 4 weeks in the month, $250/week per team member. Average party is X, that means we need XYZ numbers of parties to reach our goal. Be sure to add in a cushion of a certain number of parties that will be $0 or get cancelled. I even break it down into daily goals sometimes (especially if there’s a promo going on like a sale – “Today we want to do $50 each – that’s 2 $25 sales or 5 $10 sales”). Think about that. Every single team member has a goal of 2 $25 sales today. That is a) easy, but b) forgettable (“I’ll just do it after I get out of work” NOT). So just like I drink 20 oz of water before I can have my morning coffee (so I can reach my water goal for the day), we need to coach them to work the sales early rather than late. “Get your goal met by breakfast and then maybe, heck, double it and feel awesome for the rest of the day…”

And last of all (because this is a long post), Do you have a growth mindset? Are you encouraging your team to recruit/find their +1/whatever your company does? Most well-thought-out recruits do wayyyy better than a random who joined off the website. Are you, in your head, increasing your monthly sales goal by $1k or so per month? Are you helping your team members grow as business people who new business knowledge and suggestions? Are you growing your own business?

You're still reading! High five!

Let’s close this out because I’m on page 8 and that’s just crazy. So your team didn’t do as well as you’d hoped last year. Or they did and you want them to do even better (growth mindset). Here are the Cliff Notes:

• Planning.
• Intentional contact with team members to encourage goal setting and reaching.
• Track and break down goals.
• Think in terms of growth.

Now do two things – first, pat yourself on the back for reading all of this, and second, high five. You got this. Now go be MORE awesome. How are you planning to be more awesome? Comment below and let me know!

Do you find my posts useful? If so, sign up to receive emails in your in box whenever I post – on the right put in your email under Follow By Email! Also, sharing is caring – share my posts with other direct sellers you know so they can check it out! Join the Direct Sales Mavens Facebook Community here and let’s help each other achieve our goals!

Turn the Naysayers Around

We all have that family member who asks us why we’re doing direct sales. They ask if it’s a “pyramid scheme” (how tired are you of that question??). You also have the friends who just won’t buy from you, no matter what the sale or the promotion.

Negative people...downer (image from Psychologytoday.com/)

Today we’re going to talk about some strategies to bring those people to your side. Why is it important to do this? Well, we want to be surrounded by positivity in our business.

Negative Nancys are draining people aren’t they? You have all this energy, come bopping along, and you see them, and they’re all doom and gloom, and bam, energy sucked.

First, a couple of things to know. When I teach introduction to social psychology, these are the first things I teach so that students walk out of Day 1 with information they can use. Now YOU get to hear about it for FREE.

I call these Wright’s Rules of Social Psychology:

• I am the most important person in the world (says everyone).
• Everything related to me is important.
• I am always right (and will even say/do things that are incorrect to maintain face).
• Everyone wants to be heard (and heard out) [because they are right].
• Everything I do, say, or am involved with is right (because I wouldn’t be right if I were involved with a group that wasn’t right).
• I have great ideas (and I’m always right).
• I don’t want to be told what to do (in fact, being told what to do causes psychological reactance whereby the person starts to want to do the opposite to maintain their independence of not being told what to do).

OK so that’s a start. Think about these rules as you interact with people – why might they say and do the things that they are saying and doing? Which rule is “governing” their behavior?

So let’s apply this to our Negative Nancy’s behavior. Telling them they’re wrong (“No, actually it’s a really great company and I love my team mates”) isn’t going to get you anywhere. How can we help them to make an independent decision to change their own mind about your business or your product?

Make them feel important

Find a way to bring the person into your business to make them feel important. Start by telling them you value their opinion (which you do, you’re not lying – otherwise you wouldn’t be trying to change their mind). This can be seen as part of the Compliment Approach that Liz Ross of Chloe + Isabel advocates for.

• Asking them for their opinion and truly listening (not interrupting to answer back) will be important here. If you sell jewelry, tell them, “I’ve always enjoyed the outfits you put together – you have a good eye. I’m trying to decide between two necklaces to get for my collection – which would you suggest?”
• Ask them why someone might like your product. If you sell makeup, remind them of the benefits of your company then ask, “Which of those do you think people might find the most important part of my business? Which should I focus on?”
• Ask them about networking – “I’m trying to expand my business and I know you have lots of experience with this, so I value your opinion. I have two opportunities – a vendor event or spending the same money making flyers. Which do you think would benefit my business the best?”

Making them a partner in your business and having them help you can make their attitudes towards your business more positive. If they already have a positive opinion of you, then through getting them to think about the benefits of your business you can help them relate your business to you (and their positive thoughts of you).

What are some other ways that you can use an understanding of others’ behaviors to help them think more positively about your business?

Do you find my posts useful? If so, sign up to receive emails in your in box whenever I post – on the right put in your email under Follow By Email! Also, sharing is caring – share my posts with other direct sellers you know so they can check it out! Join the Direct Sales Mavens Facebook Community here and let’s help each other achieve our goals!

Positivity – It’s Not Just a Pretty Word

Being involved with three direct sales companies, I follow a lot of Facebook groups and direct sellers.

I love seeing how ladies (typically in my industries) push each other, cheer each other on, and help each other to succeed. I love seeing that. It makes me so happy to see a positive post in the communities I follow.

And then…

You know where I’m going.

• Our quality sucks.
• Our shipping is slow.
• I can’t make any sales, how is everyone else making so many sales?
• Why won’t anyone buy from me?
• Why can’t I get customer service on the phone RIGHT NOW?

I could go on and on. But I won’t because that’s anti the point of this post.

You’ve heard it before – you get back what you put out into the world. As a leader in one of my companies, I see these “I can’t make any sales and the company sucks” posts and think, “Well…hm. I wonder if this same attitude is the one that you throw out there to your customers.” Because, well, that would make sense.

If we are positive in our lives, if we are optimistic and positive in what we put out into the world, then we will see the positive results.

The direct sellers who are the most successful aren’t the ones with the most friends (although I’ll talk about that in a second). They are the ones that are optimistic about their business even when it isn’t going as well as they want and are persistent. By persistent I don’t mean they call the same customers until they buy – by persistent I mean that these ladies (and gentlemen) continue to push even when they are not reaching the goals that they want.

As a leader, the hardest thing I hear is, “I’ve been with the company for 2 weeks and I haven’t made a sale. This isn’t for me.”

What?! If you’re job searching for 2 weeks and don’t get hired, do you give up? If you’re dating someone for 2 weeks and you haven’t discussed marriage, do you move on? One of the leaders I worked with early in my career told me, “Direct sales isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon” and this is what I remind all of my team members. You’re not going to “get rich quick.” You’re going to build and build and build to reach the goals you want (which includes a sustainable business). Period. And I will tell you, a lot of the people who start off “with a bang” (making $10k in their first 60 days, for example) end up “burning out.” Their network dries up, they don’t expand, and by the 3^rd month it’s hard to make a sale because they have exhausted their network.

So why do some direct sellers have a lot of friends, what I alluded to before? Because they are a beacon. Because people are drawn to them like a bug to a light. They are bastions of positivity. And I’m not talking “kittens and rainbows” positivity where “EVERYTHING IS AWESOME!” all the time. Successful direct sellers are the people we want to emulate, personality-wise and behavior-wise. And who wants to be a negative crank ass? Very few people in the world would check that box on purpose.

Successful people are optimistic (but not unrealistically so) and despite adversity, they keep going. The way to get customers to you is to be the person they want to be. Listen more than you talk. Remember things about people that are important to them. Ask people to talk about themselves; notice what interests them and pursue that conversation.

Does this mean that you should walk around pretending to be happy about everything and pasting a fake smile on your face? No. It means that you need to take a good hard look at what you’re putting out into the world (and what you’re posting on social media). If I see one more “My life sucks” post followed by a “Shop my boutique” post, I swear, I’m going to send the link to this post to EVERYONE who posts like that. Selling and negativity JUST DON’T WORK. People associate you with what you do, say, post, etc.

So, any ideas why you can’t make a sale? Do you need to focus more on long-term positive outcomes (optimism)? Do you need to bring more positivity to the world (and your sales)? Do you float your dirty laundry to the world on social media then expect people to buy from you?

Just sayin…

Do you find my posts useful? If so, sign up to receive emails in your in box whenever I post – on the right put in your email under Follow By Email! Also, sharing is caring – share my posts with other direct sellers you know so they can check it out! Join the Direct Sales Mavens Facebook Community here and let’s help each other achieve our goals!

Promoting Your Business at Halloween

Happy Zombie Week direct sellers! Yes, it’s almost Halloween (which means it’s almost Thanksgiving, which means it’s almost Christmas…ahhh!). Hopefully you’ve been planting seeds about your business for the holidays as I talked about HERE, but if not, Halloween is a great time to start!

Our pumpkins - the left was done by my artist husband, the right my 5 year old son

How can you promote your business at Halloween? A couple of fun ideas:

• Dress as your business. Are you a jewelry lady? A lash lady? A Posh lady? Do you have a way to “wear” your business or “dress like” your business? If so, do it up! And don’t make it “meh,” make it cray-zay! Boring isn’t remembered, but that lash lady who wore the big clown sized pink glasses with 1-inch plastic lashes? She gets remembered (even if it’s because she’s funny). Sell jewelry? Go big – put on all the statement pieces you can without dragging yourself down the street.
• Attach business cards to the candy you give out. If you’re the one at home handing out candy, then have two buckets – one for the kids (no cards) and one for the adults. Adults get a business card (even a post card sized one would be better) with info about your business and/or opportunity PLUS a piece of chocolate. You know why? As a parent I can tell you that when the candy haul comes home, the kids go through it and want all the good stuff (read: chocolate). So make a special treat just for the parent – their own chocolate.
• Give out business cards if you’re walking the kids around. If you’re a parent who is walking around with their kids (dressed as your company of course), then hand out cards to the people who answer the door. Give THEM a chocolate too (remember, the kiddos want to take all the good stuffs).

Tips on Promoting Your Business this Halloween

If you’re using larger cards or even making a little note with candy attached, what should be on it? What are some ways to plant seeds for holiday gifting (what can be called “gardening”)? What are your goals for the next few months? Sales? Recruiting? Both? Always be sure to include your contact info, your link, and your social media links.

• Have some cards that tell people about your product and how YOU can help THEM with their holiday gifting. Let them know if you have free shipping, will gift wrap for free if they are local to you, and any other perks for shopping with you. Let them know you’re available via email or phone call to help with gift selections.
• Let them know about any future open parties you are having. Are you having a party at your house within the next few weeks? Put the date and time on your card and invite them (and suggest they bring a friend)!
• Suggest they hostess their own party for holiday giving. “Oh what fun it is to shop with my friends in my own living room…hey!” Include your hostess benefit info as well as some options (1 hour party, online, etc.).
• Tell them about your opportunity! Let them know they can make holiday cash by helping others find their holiday gifts by joining your team. Let them know you want to talk to them personally about the opportunity and offer to schedule a time to meet up to chat.

Have a happy Halloween ladies and gents! I would love to hear some more ideas from you (and your team/business) in the comments below!

Do you find my posts useful? If so, sign up to receive emails in your in box whenever I post – on the right put in your email under Follow By Email! Also, sharing is caring – share my posts with other direct sellers you know so they can check it out! Join the Direct Sales Mavens Facebook Community here and let’s help each other achieve our goals!