Boost Your Party Bookings: Tips for Successful Direct Sales Events

[winklermom]

I have had four cooking shows this month and have gotten only one show booked from any of them!!! This is really getting frustrating. I need the good sales at the parties, but all of you know that the bookings are just as important!

Tonight I even went about it a little differently. I finished the cooking shortly after the guests arrived and they ate first. Then we moved into the living room where I had some of the products on the coffee table. The other products were displayed on the dining room table. I went through the catalog page by page, hitting the highlights and played "Love it! Want it!/Got it! Love it!" with them.

I'm planning a "Twelve Days of Christmas" for December where I have a different product for each day for the first twelve days of the month. The host will get whatever the product is for that day when she has a qualifying show. Most of them are $400 or more to qualify and products include a small batter bowl, small micro bowl, Mix 'n Chop, Festive Holiday Desserts Recipes, etc. As I was going through the catalog, I made sure to tell them that this particular product is on such and such date in the Twelve Days of Christmas.

I also went over the host benefits and told the host specials for this month as I came to them and told them about the 60% off new Fall/Winter products next month. I told them all of the benefits that they would enjoy for hosting a show (monthly host specials, free product, half price products/combos, percentage off over and above the free product, free shipping, 10% for next 12 months, etc.) Still tonight...no takers!

What am I doing wrong??? I keep going to these shows thinking, "Tonight I'll be able to book some more shows" but that just doesn't seem to pan out. I keep hearing that they're too busy; it's not a good time of the year for them, etc. The one show that I did book last week was for the end of January. I'm thankful for this, but I still don't have any shows booked for December.

HELP!! :cry:

 

[lesliec]

Have you thought about offering something special for the holidays? It is a hard time of year. I, too, had a show tonight. Got one booking and it was for February. Call the ones that have been Maybie's in the past.
I have 4 at the beginning of December and have just realized that this may be all I have. I just pray that they don't cancel.

 

[raebates]

Are you asking everyone? How are you asking?

 

[winklermom]

I ask each one when I see them at my full-service check out. I usually ask would they be interested in earning more free and discounted product by hosting a show. Not sure what else I need to do. Maybe it's just the area...

 

[PamperedK]

Do you feel like people are having fun with this format?

 

[lindseystar]

I have also been struggling with December bookings. Doesn't seem to matter what I say to them. I have a lot of "I want to, I just can't right now" I even had a "I wish I could, but my house is disgusting!"

I've also had a lot of promises of ordering and then the guest not having the money to do so.

Maybe it's the area, maybe it's Christmas or maybe it's the scheduling, all I know - it's getting a little old.

 

[Rosechef]

I would suggest going to one of your director's shows or someone else who gets a lot of bookings from your cluster. Saying things like....okay, no not now or no not ever? Maybe you can get a future booking in the new year from people who aren't interested in doing December. Ask those people who say no, if you can call them in a month or two... Sometimes, no is just no, not in the next few weeks, not just no forever.

 

[winklermom]

Do you feel like people are having fun with this format?

This was my first time trying it but it seemed to go over pretty well.

 

[winklermom]

I have also been struggling with December bookings. Doesn't seem to matter what I say to them. I have a lot of "I want to, I just can't right now"

Sounds like we've been talking to the same people. LOL!

 

[lindseystar]

Sounds like we've been talking to the same people. LOL!

No kidding! Maybe they are just related?

 

[lindseystar]

I would suggest going to one of your director's shows or someone else who gets a lot of bookings from your cluster. Saying things like....okay, no not now or no not ever? Maybe you can get a future booking in the new year from people who aren't interested in doing December. Ask those people who say no, if you can call them in a month or two... Sometimes, no is just no, not in the next few weeks, not just no forever.

Yeah, I have assumed that not now, doesn't mean not ever. I did get a tentative for January, but the others were not sure. I set them for follow up at the beginning of December and figured I would call them at the beginning of each month until they said "stop," like the lady in the video posted the other day. What can it hurt?

 

[heather223]

I am so glad you posted this thread. I too am having this exact same issue. I have people who want to book and are telling me that they can't pick a date until after the holiday but the want to host a January show. (I don't think they realize January is so close after the holiday.) I have even told them that we will pencil in the date and if we need to change it we can. I used the line that my calendar books fast and I can't promise them that they will get a date..... still won't date the show. I am open to any suggestions anyone has.

 

[aPamperedBride]

Ideas to share...these are things I've done in the past as I'm currently focused in other areas of my life and am pleased to get by with one show a month.Make sure you are planting booking seeds throughout the show. Paint some word pictures that might get them to book in sooner. Ask your host which friend's house is always perfectly decorated for the holidays. Suggest to that guest that she have a party so she can show off all her decorations! When there's "No way" because of the company, find out if she likes the people that are coming, but do it subtly! (IE: "The week after Christmas is a great time to have a show when your mother-in-law is in town because it gives you something to do when all your suggestions outside the house are turned down! Besides, you've already cleaned the house since she was coming! If you have it on the calendar and have already invited your friends, she can't say no!") For the ones who insist 'sometime in January', suggest to them that first weekend while their decorations are still up!When people say "I don't have time!" ask them how long they think it takes and/or tell them that they found time to come tonight and hosting is so easy, they don't need much more time than that! You can offer to send out the invitations if they give you their guest list. You can also offer to pick up the groceries and have them reimburse you when you arrive (you know you have everything you need and they don't have to hassle w/ the grocery store) OR offer a FREE party to the first person who books that night (you'll pick up the groceries. You also pick out the recipe so you can make it an economical one.) I'm not familiar with Rae Bates cooking show format, so some of my ideas might not work, but you can promote doing a December Cookie show/cookie exchange, where you use the spritzer cookie recipe and make some w/ the press, some into thumbnail cookies & add the jelly, some w/ chocolate chips as drop cookies (3 different types of cookies from one recipe). If the response there is that they don't need the cookies, suggest taking them to the local Fire Department, Police Station or assisted living facility.To counter the objection that they don't have the money, ask early in the show "How many of you regularly receive cash for Christmas so that you can pick out exactly what you want?" Hopefully you have at least 3. You can then respond by saying "OK, be thinking now about which one of you wants to host in January so that you can make your dollars go even further with the discounts you'll receive! You can see who else will have Christmas money to spend and I bet they won't be purchasing everything they want tonight!"The main thing is that you need to find a benefit for them to do it sooner instead of later. The 12 Days of Christmas is great! For January, you can also do "Price of the Day" if you like. I would give them a choice between the Food Chopper and the Medium Bamboo Round Bowl (for instance), letting them know that if they book on the 2nd and have a qualifying ($400) show, they can purchase it for $2, etc! That might get your bookings earlier. One trick here is to make sure that you have a hot seller and a new product because the person who bought a Food Chopper at their first show isn't going to care about the promotion. Ask during checkout "did you have fun tonight?" Make sure they realize they'll have fun hosting too! You can even be proactive in this sense by asking your host, "Was it hard to host? Besides the time we've been here tonight, how much time did it take you to host? would you do it again?" in front of everyone if you think she's had fun. This gets over the mental hurdle that hosting is too much work!Hope these suggestions help you!

 

[winklermom]

Great ideas, aPamperedBride! Thanks for the suggestions. Some I have done already but some are new ideas that I can try to implement into the show.Any suggestions as to how to book shows when you aren't at a show? I have one on the 28th (not sure what kind of turn out she will have) and one on the 30th. Is there anything that I can do in the mean time to book something in December?

 

[pampered1224]

You had 4 cooking "PARTIES" this month. I can not help with the immediate future as I too have one party in December and that seems to be my norm in 10 years, but you should in reality have 5 shows booked. 4 without dates but no more than 5 months out. When most of us set up a show in P3, we automatically rebook the host 5 to 6 months out. This way, when we hit that 5 month mark, we can call on those past hosts and offer them a DOUBLE HOST BENEFIT. It is a great bribe to host a party and it will not cost you a dime! PC foots the bill.

 

[winklermom]

This way, when we hit that 5 month mark, we can call on those past hosts and offer them a DOUBLE HOST BENEFIT. It is a great bribe to host a party and it will not cost you a dime! PC foots the bill.

What is a "Double Host Benefit?" I haven't heard about this yet?

 

[ShelbyMichalek]

What is a "Double Host Benefit?" I haven't heard about this yet?

If you book a host off her own show, she can get the Past Host Benefit for being the show it was booked from and the current host benefit for..being the current host! (the 60% off items)

 

[winklermom]

Okay, that makes sense. I haven't thought about that but I'll have to start mentioning it to my hosts before we close their shows. Thanks for the help.

 

[raebates]

I ask each of my hosts if they'd like to pencil in a date for 5 months from now. I assure them that I'll call as we get closer to make sure the date still works for them. I also assure them that if it turns out that it's not a good time for them to have a PC party the Pampered Chef Police will not show up at their door and force them to have a party. Most of my hosts rebook.

 

[winklermom]

When does the new Spring line come out? They may want to be able to take advantage of that.

 

[sherri lynn]

I'm pretty new, but I heard (and have been telling my host's) that the new spring products should be out in March. I hope I'm not too far off with this.

 

[raebates]

That's March.

 

[winklermom]

Great!! Thanks y'all!