Doing a Joint Show With Other Direct Sales Organizations

Click For Summary

Discussion Overview

This thread explores the experiences of participants regarding joint shows with other direct sales organizations, particularly focusing on the dynamics and outcomes of such events. Participants share their personal experiences, challenges, and strategies when collaborating with other vendors.

Discussion Character

  • Anecdotal
  • Opinion-based
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • One participant, identifying as a consultant, expressed concerns about a joint show with a purse vendor, questioning the effectiveness of combining product demonstrations.
  • Another participant shared positive experiences from dual shows with various vendors, noting significant commissionable sales and the opportunity to reach new audiences.
  • One participant recounted a negative experience with a joint show, describing it as a failure despite their efforts.
  • Several users mentioned focusing on bookings and recruitment rather than immediate sales during multi-vendor events, highlighting the importance of networking.
  • One participant shared a successful experience with a wine consultant, emphasizing the need to adapt presentations based on the event's structure.
  • Another participant described their preparation for a show that unexpectedly included another consultant, noting that the collaboration turned out well despite initial concerns.
  • One participant discussed their plans for an upcoming mystery host show with a Mary Kay vendor, expressing excitement about reaching a new audience.
  • Another participant indicated a willingness to proceed with a joint show despite initial reservations, aiming to maintain good relationships with fellow vendors.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Views differ on the effectiveness of joint shows, with some participants sharing positive experiences and others recounting challenges. No clear consensus emerges regarding the overall success of these events.

Contextual Notes

Participants share a variety of experiences from different types of joint shows, including holiday events and mystery host parties, reflecting diverse approaches and outcomes.

Who May Find This Useful

Consultants considering joint shows with other vendors may find these shared experiences and insights relevant as they navigate similar events.

bkwrm said:
Hi, I had posted earlier about having a show with a Mary Kay consultant. My show ended up being over $800 and 4 bookings. I know the Mary Kay consultant got at least 1 booking plus quite a few sales. I would say it was a great success. Now on Sun. I am going to the Mary Kay Consultants house for open house. Hopefully I will get more contacts. I think it was awesome and would recommend it to anyone to try.

HOw many guests were there? How did you structure the night and what did you demo? (Thanks! I have a close friend who does Mary Kay).

:)
 
pamperedalf said:
Well I just got off the phone with a friends sister who sells Body Shop, I am crashing her open house and hopefully drum up some sales for December. I will let you ladies know after it is over and done with. I am excited right now because of all my cancelations. I hope that everything works out great.
Amanda

Good Luck Amanda!
 
The only thing I will say about multi-show parties is this:

If you do them at a function hall, make sure everybody has CLEAR instructions on how to get there and make sure it is easy to get to. Before selling PC, I went to a multi-rep function and there were 6 vendors: jewelry, cosmetics, PC, housewares, candles, tupperware. It was held in a hotel function hall but aside from me, my guest, and my husband only one other group showed (less than a dozen people TOTAL) and I know the reason was the place was so out of the way nobody could find it. My husband, who is from this area, couldn't find it!! The flyers, which we put out in our store, said, "the hotel is just behind the (newspaper office)" so we went to the newspaper office and drove around for a few minutes. Couldn't find the place. We decided to use the directions we got from the Internet. Got back on the freeway and drove for a good 5 minutes before getting to the exit. We then backtracked, went through another town, down a few side streets and FINALLY found the place, which (surprise, surprise) was about 2 miles from the newspaper office. Fortunately, my friend and I are big spenders, so the reps didn't go away empty-handed.
 
guest totaled..
its_me_susan said:
HOw many guests were there? How did you structure the night and what did you demo? (Thanks! I have a close friend who does Mary Kay).

:)
'


My guest totaled 20 adults. My plan was to have all food except 1 cake completed but I was so busy it didn't happen. That is one thing I will work on next year. Basically I had invited 75-100 guest/past hosts. Then I turned it into a mystery host show. My food items were Tempting Tappas, Family size burrito, brownie bites/cream cheese icing in the easy accent decorator, turtle fudge cake in the cookware and the bundt microwavable Sunshine cake. I talked just a few minutes thanking all the hosts for helping me in my business and then let Mary Kay do a Satin Hands treatment on everyone. Then I demonstrated the Sunshine cake and invited guests to eat. Then I started totaling orders and handing out tickets for the mystery host winnings. Actually I divided the winnings between 2 lucky guests because the show totaled over 500. I also gave away door prizes to everyone that attended. If you have any more questions, please feel free to email me. Sorry this was so long. Thanks Kim
 
Well, I had my own open house on Sunday and it went well. However, out of about 300 flyers 5 people showed. I know that more would have come but most were sick. I at least had people call or email they couldn't make it. My only thing is I know my home is not easy to find, so I might move it across the way to the club house. There is more room. I did $150 in sales so at least it was a show. I am not disappointed, just working on how to make it better. I know it didn't help that there was a craft fair at the local park and there were signs plastered everywhere.
I myself handed/mailed out 200 flyers. I stuffed the holiday mini-catalog with the flyer. There were two other vendors who handed out too. DO NOT get resealable stickers to close the flyer. I didn't know I had that kind and they kept on opening. I know I need more signs, but being in an HOA neighborhood. I need to ask permission next time to have the signs out earlier. Phone calls will be a must next time. I didn't have time to do phone reminders this time around.

Do you all have any pointers? I know I would like to have a holiday open house every year. I am also thinking of a spring open house too. I feel if I just keep up with it the neighborhood would know that I host these multi-vendor open houses and they will come.
I love going to vendor fairs now. I like meeting the other consultants and seeing their products. The only thing is I don't get time to shop :eek:
 
Rebecca,
I did an open house of my own last August (a week after we moved into our new house, YIKES!) and I didn't have a huge turnout...maybe 5 or 6 people. I invited the whole neighborhood (about 70 homes at the time), as well as past customers. Then this past September, I did another thing hosted at my house, but it was a Stoneware Workshop, which I've talked about on here before. I didn't have time to do reminder phone calls either, although I did it through the evites I sent out through my website. I had a few customers come, but this time I had a huge response from my neighborhood. I think it's partly because now they know me personally, but I think because it had a "educational" spin on it, it got better response than a regular open house.

I've done multi-vendor ones too and you just never know how well they'll go. I think if you do this year after year or each season new products come out, people WILL start to think of it as an annual event of sorts and you'll probably get a better turn out. I think those neighborhood signs are a good idea if you can do it. One I did earlier in the month at a Mary Kay reps house lacked that, but last year we did a lot more signs and I think that accounts for some of the low turn out this year.

I bet yours will get better each time! Good luck! :)
 
pamperedbecky said:
Rebecca,
I did an open house of my own last August (a week after we moved into our new house, YIKES!) and I didn't have a huge turnout...maybe 5 or 6 people. I invited the whole neighborhood (about 70 homes at the time), as well as past customers. Then this past September, I did another thing hosted at my house, but it was a Stoneware Workshop, which I've talked about on here before. I didn't have time to do reminder phone calls either, although I did it through the evites I sent out through my website. I had a few customers come, but this time I had a huge response from my neighborhood. I think it's partly because now they know me personally, but I think because it had a "educational" spin on it, it got better response than a regular open house.

I've done multi-vendor ones too and you just never know how well they'll go. I think if you do this year after year or each season new products come out, people WILL start to think of it as an annual event of sorts and you'll probably get a better turn out. I think those neighborhood signs are a good idea if you can do it. One I did earlier in the month at a Mary Kay reps house lacked that, but last year we did a lot more signs and I think that accounts for some of the low turn out this year.

I bet yours will get better each time! Good luck! :)

Becky how did you title your thread on stoneware workshop???? What a GREAT idea! I want to see all the details :)
 
The last two years I have done a multi vendor show around this time. I promote it as my Hostess appriciation event. I send special flier to all of my hostesses from the past year and offer them an additional 10% off orders placed on this show. And I make reminder calls to everyone. We also handed out about 350 fliers to the homes in the area. Last year I think I had about $650, this year I am at about $800.
 
I'm not sure what I put it under, but I bet if you do a search with "stoneware workshop" some will turn up.
 
Dual ShowsHello,

I have done 3 dual shows, A good friend of mine is consultant for Home Interiors. We work it to where she sets up her displays in the living room, I set up in the kitchen, I demo a product, she shows a piece, we go back and forth like this. It has worked pretty good for the both of us. Remember tho, two different demos doesn't mean the guests will bring twice the $$$$$$. The neat thing is that my half of the show is usually higher than hers. I had a $600.00 show in December and hers was around $250....

It's fun. :)
 
Dual ShowsDoes it take a long time with the pc & home interior? I was wanting to know because i have a friend that does Home Interior. What kind of games do you play? I was thinking about to see if she would like to shows together. What kind of invites do you send?


Thanks
 
Dual ShowsHi,

The shows take probably about 1/2 hour longer, only because, as I am doing a demo, such as the pull apart pizza, i put the pizza together, then when it goes into the oven, she does her part. She will show a few products then hand it back to me, I talk some more about the products and maybe do a quick vegatable demo with the various tools and hand it back to her. I have never been big on games but Connie will do her H.I. games, It is alot of fun.

If you have any more questions you can email me direct at [email protected]

Mark
 
Dual showsAlso....

I have joined with a Taste of Home consultant. She demos her line, the mix's and stuff as I use the stoneware or simple additions pieces. Usually at craft fairs or extravaganzas.

:) :) :)

Mark
 
Dual shows are not bad if....they are not bad if you know what the majority of the guests will want.

I did a dual show twice and each one was really different.

My highest selling hostess always does a show for me each time a new catalog is out. She is very polite and wants to help out all her friends who just happen to sell MK, Southern living, Jewelry, and me PC. I did a show with her jewelry lady and she assured me that all her guests love PC which I know because each of her shows are always over a thousand dollars. I had never done a dual show so I didn't think anything would be very different except I would probably want to prepare something yummy but fast that would show a great deal of products and would require no baking time. I did the Clubhouse chicken squares, I LOVE IT!! It worked out great and I just drizzled glaze on a torte I made earlier in the day for this show, it was a huge success. I did order a butterfly necklace for my daughter, who loves butterflies, for Christmas. And she did order a wine opener from me.
I did get my thousand in sales and she got like $150. My necklace was like $16.
I did another show with a Home interiors lady and the host was rude, and clueless to the way things worked even though I explained it to her in person, wrote it down for her and pretty much coached her on the phone many times before the show. Her guests were all about Home Interiors, single women who were all divorced and angry at men, they drank alcohol and ate and were bitter the whole time. It was ugly :eek: !!!
Here I was talking about family, great kitchen products and these ladies are seeing red the whole time, probably thinking about their adulterous husbands and fatherless children...I didn't know. This lady was booked by my friend who just happened to cross her path one day since they live in the same neighborhood, inviting her to a show. this lady mentioned how she wanted to have a show.
During the show she kept asking me if I had more FREE stuff to give out to her guests who hardly purchased anything....I told her the games were over and the other things in my bag were for other shows. She was upset and I'm not sure if it was the alcohol or what but she became really rude after the show was over because she wanted to know how much FREE stuff she would get. I told her she needed to have a minimum amount for her show, which was like only $75. She said that this wasn't a good company and I calmly opened the back of the catalog to show her the hosting benefits and that I explained to her how the benefits worked and since she didn't get any outside orders and her guests only purchased $75 worth of stuff it didn't count as a show. I asked her if she wanted to gather more orders to increase sales or I could just add her orders to another show. She said she would get back to me.
A friend of hers who wanted to do a bridal show for her sister contacted me, even after this horrible experience, and the Lord blessed me anyway. I added her $75 to her friends THOUSAND DOLLAR BRIDAL SHOW!!! In the end she never contacted me again...THANK GOD!!! But if she did I would act professional and tell her I am booked!!! Until 2020!!! LOL :D
Debbie
 
I did an open house in November and I invited two consultants with The Traveling Vineyard and Warm Spirit (great lotions and potions by the by) and it was great for me, I had $700 in sales the girl from Traveling Vineyard maybe sold $150 and the girl from Warm Spirit did like $400 (got lots of free stuff, they have a great host program). I heavily promoted it around my neighborhood and did kind of a "one stop shop" before the holiday rush kind of thing. It was great and I will probably do one again in May. Just haven't figured out what my hook will be yet.
 
Hi! I am doing a multi vender fundraiser. This is my first one I ever did. It sounds like you had a great succes. How did you do it? At this fundraiser according to the fundraiser, which is for relay for life, PC seems to be the "big" name. The other venders are selling blankets, jewelry and candles. But the candles and jewelry they dont list by name.
I really want to do well, get bookings for me and get alot for relay for life. I want them to get to the $600 so they definatly get the 15% then the 5% I am adding.
Most people LOVE PC, :D and gravitate towards it but how do I stand out, get the orders and still not be competeing w/ the other vendors?
 
I love multi vendor showsI was about to get out of PC and I got a call from a woman who found my website and was doing a show in Oct for Christmas. I did o.k. but it was what I got out of it. I did 2 more vendor shows and I did one and had a 550.00 show. Again not a fourtune, but I met tons of people who loved PC and I ended up with a gift registry and some great contacts! I think I am going to do one at my house next year!
 
Test the Water, then decide whether to swim...
pamperedbecky said:
Rebecca,
I've done multi-vendor ones too and you just never know how well they'll go. I think if you do this year after year or each season new products come out, people WILL start to think of it as an annual event of sorts and you'll probably get a better turn out. I think those neighborhood signs are a good idea if you can do it. One I did earlier in the month at a Mary Kay reps house lacked that, but last year we did a lot more signs and I think that accounts for some of the low turn out this year.


I am new to Open House/Multi Vendor shows, but particpated in my first earlier this month. It may surprise you to know that I didn't really demo anything! This Open House was one my Director could not do and she didn't know any of the women who invited her to participate - they got her name from a friend. I had no clue what to expect, but my Director w/12 years of experience said she never demo'd at any of these and I followed her lead. Fortunately I spent my time there prepping fruit and veggies for the new Chillzanne Sectional Server and SA Small Bowl Caddie with two veggie dips.. I say fortunately because there were very few guests at this "come and go" event and working kept me busy enough to draw attention from those who came through and casual enough to stop and answer questions, promote new products I was displaying and exchange catalogs for contact information.

Reps there were Longaberger, Party Lite, Creative Memories, Prestige Jewelry, the host who sold Arbonne... and me. The host admitted not calling invited guests the night before because many were from the company where she works as manager and she didn't want "to place undue pressure on them". This group of friends apparently does Open Houses like this on a regular basis - I think you are on the money about making this a community event - and so I told the manager I would be happy to call her list of co-workers for her at the next one if she would provide me with a list. Why? I am looking for new contacts and bookings and this will expose me to a whole new area of contacts.

The host told me that we were called to provide a Pampered Chef presence after another PC Consultant at an earlier Open House left them cold. She got there 45 minutes late and didn't talk to anyone!! Her loss is my gain....I am thrilled to find this group because they are in an area of the county that is new to me and they have contacts into one of the most expensive communities on that side of the county and are planning an Open House there next time.

I did not make a lot on this Open House, but I know I had more sales than anyone else there. I got the impression that they NEED a PC Consultant to make these more attractive to a larger group of people. Otherwise, why would they try again after such a disasterous experience with the 1st Consultant? Almost everyone who walked in said, "Oh I Love Pampered Chef!"..but arriving as they did by ones, any demo would have been frustrating.

My suggestion... treat this like a craft fair. But don't count on a captive audience and don't spend your time and money to make this a cooking show. It isn't. It's a booking and contacting arena! Use that to your advantage.:D
 
Has anyone done a show with a Home and Garden consultant before? How did it go. I have a friend who wants a show but she wants me to do it with the Home and Garden person. She is also worried that she won't get many people to come to her show. What incentives can we do to get a bigger crowd?
 
I don't know how much work/money you want to put into this... but we have done very well adding small wedding veils - I made two myself, but you can get them for about $14 at craft/sewing centers - and making a bouquet out of a Mix N Scraper, Bamboo Spoon and the Double Balloon Whisk. It really gets their attention and allows you to show the Wedding Registry to more people as something NEW and Different. Photos of our "brides" are on this site under Photos - PC related.
 

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a joint show with other direct sales organizations?

A joint show is an event where representatives from multiple direct sales companies collaborate to host a single sales event. This allows each representative to showcase their products, reach a broader audience, and create a more engaging shopping experience for attendees.

How can I find other direct sales representatives to partner with for a joint show?

You can connect with other direct sales representatives through social media groups, local networking events, or direct sales conferences. Building relationships with other consultants in your area can lead to opportunities for collaboration.

What are the benefits of doing a joint show?

Joint shows can increase foot traffic, provide a diverse product offering for customers, and reduce individual marketing costs. Additionally, they create a fun and dynamic shopping environment that can enhance customer engagement and sales for all parties involved.

Are there any challenges to consider when doing a joint show?

Yes, challenges may include coordinating schedules, sharing space, and ensuring that all representatives are on the same page regarding promotions and sales strategies. Clear communication and planning are essential to overcome these challenges successfully.

How should profits be divided among the participating representatives?

Profit-sharing arrangements should be discussed and agreed upon before the event. Common methods include splitting profits evenly, dividing based on sales volume, or setting a predetermined percentage for each representative. It's important to have a clear agreement in writing to avoid misunderstandings.

Similar Pampered Chef Threads

  • Laura Kavanaugh
  • Pampered Chef Shows
Replies
9
Views
8K
Niki Kate
  • flemings99
  • Pampered Chef Shows
Replies
7
Views
2K
flemings99
  • jterre
  • Pampered Chef Shows
Replies
4
Views
3K
Wildfire
  • rsmpta
  • Pampered Chef Shows
Replies
2
Views
1K
Admin Greg
  • ChefPaulaB
  • Pampered Chef Shows
Replies
6
Views
2K
ChefPaulaB
  • mpkegley
  • Pampered Chef Shows
Replies
6
Views
1K
mpkegley
  • esavvymom
  • Pampered Chef Shows
Replies
5
Views
2K
richardson3
  • TheFreddiesCook
  • Pampered Chef Shows
Replies
7
Views
2K
jbdowd0798
  • ChefetteDuJour
  • Pampered Chef Shows
Replies
2
Views
2K
Admin Greg
  • CAPCnewbie
  • Pampered Chef Shows
Replies
14
Views
2K
lisasfuncooking
Back
Top