Booking March shows tonight

[TheFreddiesCook]

I have a show tonight... Should I try to get bookings for the rest of this month? Or talk about March and how the March hosts get to use the new catalog at their show? How should I do it? Should I just forget about this month and go fo r March, or should I not mention March and focus on Feb? Help!

 

[esavvymom]

well, you only have 1 week left in this month. If you have a date open, you could try ot get a booking if you want it...My HD suggested this- if you have a date you need to fill, then offer an incentive such as "I know you really want those Stainless Steel Bowls. If you book a show on the 27th of this month, I will give you those bowls for just $14.90! (that's using them for the HOst Special and then paying for Half..they pay only 20% of the retail price)." Or if you know someone was looking at the Food Chopper or Bar pan or UM....you get hte idea. I wouldn't do it for any of the items OVER the $135 grill pan...I can stomach $20-30 max for an incentive...preferably would keep it lower...jsut depends on what you'd spend.

How many shows realistically could you get in one week? Maybe one if they really want one of those items. Perhaps a catalog show (1 week only!)

To get the double points- the shows have to be SUBMITTED by the 28th anyway.


Other than that- I'd go for March dates...book them EARLY in March first...especially if you want to go to NC. You can get $25 off for holding/submitting 2 shows the 1st-15th.
$100 for $2500 in sales for the whole month.

 

[suzipooh]

I say it all depends on you and what you want. If you'd like to have more Feb. shows (double points!!!) totally focus on booking the rest of this month. The host specials for Feb. are fabulous!!!! AND the guest special is a good one too, especially since the stones are going up in price in the new catalog. I've been encouraging my customers to save money by ordering stones NOW while they are getting 20% off the current~lower price...ya know?

BUT~ if you're happy with where your Feb. is, then go for the March bookings

 

[NooraK]

I tend to focus on the free products and the fun evening out aspect of a show. I don't necessarily refer to any specific products, except maybe the cookware or something else higher priced.

This way, it leaves open for you to book a show before the end of the month, if someone wants one.

 

[NooraK]

My HD suggested this- if you have a date you need to fill, then offer an incentive such as "I know you really want those Stainless Steel Bowls. If you book a show on the 27th of this month, I will give you those bowls for just $14.90! (that's using them for the HOst Special and then paying for Half..they pay only 20% of the retail price)." Or if you know someone was looking at the Food Chopper or Bar pan or UM....you get hte idea. I wouldn't do it for any of the items OVER the $135 grill pan...I can stomach $20-30 max for an incentive...preferably would keep it lower...jsut depends on what you'd spend.

Barbara Duke came to visit my Hospitality Cluster, and she does the same thing, except she picks the least expensive item and says she'll give it for $10 or something like that. Then, if the host would later prefer a different item, she'll give the same amount in credit toward the other item. That way she's not spending more on the incentive even if the host wants a more expensive item.

 

[Deb Bixler]

The real question is "are you happy with the rest of the month?"

You should focus on what you want and apply that to the needs or your audience. Be careful not to focus too much on your "desires" as customer service means meeting your customers needs. The word sales comes from a Scandinavian word meaning "To Serve". Make sure you are serving your guests.

This is a cool graphic that you may be interested in that when you focus on it, you will have a balanced business. Filling the sales funnel with a wide variety of direct sales leads is the key to a solid show calendar.