Gina's Quest to Find Pampered Chef Consultants!

[PCGINA]

I know this is for PERSONAL WEBSITES - BUT...

Has anyone else seen this or am I just the last one to notice it~~~

On the PC homepage under Host a Cooking show there is a NEW button "Contact a Consultant"!!! I entered my last name and zip and my name came up - HOWEVER - if I enter the name I use "Gina" not my true name"Regina" NOTHING!!! I have a few consultants that don't use their real first name at all !! AND what is up with the "enter the code" deal - I can barely read it myself!!!

Give it a try....

I am glad that HO is making it easier for guests to find us - but - I hope this is not the final version of this feature.

Quiry by state like we look up PHD numbers would be nice. What do you think? I am sending my thoughts and suggestions to HO.

 

[KellyTheChef]

They need to make both this feature and the host lookup feature to NOT BE SO SPECIFIC. If a host's name is entered as Suzanne and you try to look up Sue, nothing will come up. You should be able to enter S Smith and the state and come up with a list of hosts (or in this case, consultants) to choose from!

But...this certainly is a step in the right direction!!

 

[pamperedbecky]

That's cool!! Those codes that you have to enter prevent automated programs from getting info, etc. Someone more experienced than me with computers probably knows more. Does it prevent spiders and stuff like that from accessing info? Who knows.

But that is a very cool feature. I would like it too if you could search by first OR last name and zip code. Chances are if someone can't remember your first AND last name and they track it down somewhere, they'll find something with your # on it like a receipt or a business card. Hopefully if someone takes the extra step to call the HO, they can assist and give them more options of something, for example like a "Becky in Geneva, IL" or something. Very interesting!! I hope they improve upon this!

 

[chefann]

The letters are to prevent webbots from submitting the form. They're pretty common. Just name or just ZIP would be better, but it's a start!

 

[Mwalker]

Thats great.
But you're right, the code is way too small. Had to try 3 times to get it to work. Also is doesnt do an "area" search (ie, within so many miles). People who live on the border of states wont get contacts from the other state. Technically I live in WV but my town is soo small that all my activity is in Ohio. Ohio customers wont find me if they dont look across the river.

 

[kearstin]

I'm glad to see this new feature! It would be nice to be able to just search by zip code though... particularly in an area where there are several consultants - a customer might recognize a name if they saw it, but not necessarily remember it. Like others said though, it's a start! Thanks HO!!

 

[rennea]

I don't come up when my postal code and last name are entered

 

[janetupnorth]

It came up correctly for me one, now it doesn't at all...it's not working well...

 

[janetupnorth]

It would be neat to "find consultants in a 50 mile radius" or something like that too. In case they don't remember your zip.I actually have a show in 2 weeks about 70 miles away.I don't think they want it too simple because they really don't want people seeing 50 consultants in one zip code and having that deter people from signing or other things.Moral of the story - get your name out there! Get a business card in their hand, etc.

 

[vwpamperedchef]

I dont come up either!!!

 

[ChefKrisB]

Very cool...hopefully they make the code a little easier to deal with.

 

[PCGINA]

On a Directors loop - they were discussing all of the above.... I certainly think it is a step in the right direction....

BUT - REMEMBER - if HO doesn't hear from us - they don't know how we feel. It takes less time to cut and past your fantastic comments into an email to HO than it did to type it here... You guys have some great ensight and ideas - PLEASE let HO know your ideas...

What I don't like is the code thing - I know it protets me - BUT - it is frustrating for those of us who have trouble enough reading legible writing - much less crooked letters LOL !!!!

My .02

 

[adventurechef]

I've tried this a few times and have found me once. I'm still trying to figure out if this is case-sensitive and, for us Canadians, postal code "space" there or not sensitive?

I didn't like when it said you've typed the "secret" code in wrong and when I went back I had to re-type everything. I was getting frustrated.

My 2 cents, Linda

 

[straitfan]

I live in a rural area and my personal zip code is different from that of my customer base. I put in my last name only and the zip code for the bigger town, my my address and my name came up (along with 2 others, one who's from a town about 60 miles away.)

 

[Chef_TK]

I am not coming up at all, nor are any other consultants I know in the area.

 

[etteluap70PC]

It is definetly a start! My only complaint is it requires a name and everyone misspells my last name. If they had my name they would have all my info.

 

[Jules711]

I also put in a larger city and my name came up, but there are tons of towns and zip codes around here. Luckily, mine is the secondary city! The big town for a lot of the smaller ones. Still, I think it would be nice for them to be able even put a first name and zip or something. So many may not know our last names! Think about it...we refer to people by their first name. Mine is a known name in this area (married into a BIG family) but still! I'm thrilled it's there. Tweaks are just needed. I'd personally like it if they would have another option of just putting in the zip code if you don't know your consultant's full name or whatever. I know that may affect Director's leads, but I personally feel that if I sell more than many of the directors in my cluster, I have earned the right to get some local sales too. Whine, whine! :cry: Just b/c I don't have enough people that want to really join and stick, doesn't mean I'm not a great consultant. I would think I'm better for sales than the director that doesn't do more than required each month. :cry:

 

[cathyskitchen]

Ugh - I knew I'd have a problem with this. I tried entering my full first name (Catherine) and my last name, along with my zip, and it STILL didn't recognize me. Then, it sent me an email telling me that someone named Jennifer in NEW JERSEY was going to be contacting me! UGH! NOT GOOD!

 

[lkprescott]

It's a great start. Hopefully with more suggestions they can tweak it and make it even better! It would be nice to just search an area too... by zip code. Ah well, it's a step in the right direction.

 

[cathyskitchen]

OK (BLUSH), my blonde is showing. I used the wrong search! LOL!But, I still had a problem when using the other correct search. It only recognizes me when you enter my FULL first name. I have been trying to change my first name with home office since the day I started, but since I put "Catherine" on my consultant agreement, I'm stuck with it for all eternity it seems!!! I even spoke to someone at HO when I was in Chi-Town for conference one year, and she PROMISED me she had it corrected, yet I still get everything from HO printed to "Catherine". I wish they had a way to change your first name to a nickname - NO one calls me Catherine unless I they are a credit card co!!

 

[Shawnna]

If it is very sensitive then it won't work for my customer base because my name is spelled Shawnna and nobody ever gets it right...always Shawna or Shanna. But, it is a step in the right direction.

 

[ChefJoyJ]

OK (BLUSH), my blonde is showing. I used the wrong search! LOL!

But, I still had a problem when using the other correct search. It only recognizes me when you enter my FULL first name. I have been trying to change my first name with home office since the day I started, but since I put "Catherine" on my consultant agreement, I'm stuck with it for all eternity it seems!!! I even spoke to someone at HO when I was in Chi-Town for conference one year, and she PROMISED me she had it corrected, yet I still get everything from HO printed to "Catherine". I wish they had a way to change your first name to a nickname - NO one calls me Catherine unless I they are a credit card co!!

I wanted to change mine too. My "legal" first name is Catherine, but everyone knows me as Joy (they have since birth). I spoke to HO about changing it and she said she could, but she recommended keeping it Catherine since I have direct deposit and the acct they dd into is under my legal name. I personally don't know if it's that big of a deal or not, since all my show checks (and any personal checks) are made out to Joy.

I don't like that I won't show up when they search for Joy .... b/c that's all anyone knows me as! :grumpy:

 

[climbercanoe3]

I was on the phone tonight with my NED and she said it is definitely in the first stages. They are working on lots of changes to the new system. She is recommending they get rid of the zip code search and have the names come up that are similiar. So if someone types in Shauna then other spellings will come up too and then the person should find the right Shawnna. Within the states they search instead of a zip code.I know for my bank they told me my account should be in what people were going to write checks to me. My name is spelled Keri-Lyn, but on my license it is Kerilyn. That is only because the registry can't hyphenate a first name. Huh? Some people have 2 hypens in a last name, I don't get it. So anyway, my bank changed it to have a hyphen for me. So if you can talk to your bank and they agrre to change your account to Joy, you'd be all set for HO to change your name. I hope anyway.

 

[Paula R. Lewis]

Wow! This is a great feature! But...I personally think it should be right on the front page, not under the "I want to host a show" button!

Can't wait to see it when it's done!!

Paula

 

[RebelChef]

Mine has yet to come up. The code is a pain because the o's look like zeros. :grumpy:

 

[sarahlegare]

I totally agree with the o's & 0's looking the same....
My name is Sarah, no nickname and I still couldn't "find" myself. I typed it perfectly, and I also tried Sara, NOTHING! That's not good if you can't find it & you know the info you type is right!! Then, if you try too many times, it comes up with a sorry, but fill in this info & we'll have a consultant contact you!
So they would be steering customers AWAY from you!!!
While I like the thought, man do they have some work to do!!!!

 

[climbercanoe3]

Ok this is going to sound stalker like, but here goes.
Sarah since you have your full name and your town and state in your email/heading. I looked it up and it came up. It said your name and linked to your website. I could not check Marisa's because she does not list her last name.

 

[RebelChef]

I checked mine again today and nothing. My director's came up fine. What I did notice is it's not on the first page today but after you click on 'start shopping' or whatever it says. I guess maybe they're trying out different things to see which works best?

I never thought about listing my last name. Nobody can spell or pronounce it and they have a hard enough time with my first so I just don't think about it. lol

 

[etteluap70PC]

I checked mine again today and nothing. My director's came up fine. What I did notice is it's not on the first page today but after you click on 'start shopping' or whatever it says. I guess maybe they're trying out different things to see which works best?

I never thought about listing my last name. Nobody can spell or pronounce it and they have a hard enough time with my first so I just don't think about it. lol

That is exactly why my last name isn't even part of my website address it's just /paulette. Most people at least spell that right. Last name almost never.

 

[climbercanoe3]

In order to search for a consultant you need to know their last name. Even if it isn't part of their website name. That is how it is listed.
So when I said I couldn't find Marisa's name it is because she doesn't have her last name listed on this site. Not that I think she should or not, just that is why I couldn't search her name.
Hopefully when they work on the new feature they will have other options.

 

[RebelChef]

Well, if you don't have anything better to do, feel free to search for me since I can't find me. lol Cloessner...77660 Thanks!

 

[Gina M]

Marisa,

I was able to find you just right now - so you're in there - I agree those numbers and letters are very hard to distinguish!

 

[chefann]

I wish it were searchable by first name. My customers won't remember my last name (and it's not spelled AT ALL like it's pronounced), but Ann is a lot easier for them to remember. Heck, First Name and Last Initial would be better than entire Last Name.

 

[Gina M]

I agree Ann - but at least my last name is Miller - so they might have a shot at remembering!

 

[chefann]

Yeah, that's a pretty easy one.

 

[PCGINA]

I was chatting with my ED yesterday, and she said this is definetly in the trial stages - she said if we wnat changes - WE NEED TO VOICE IT - i.e.: email the techies with our suggestions.....

I was thinking if our customers could search fisrt by state, then by city or zip and laslty by first/last name, it certainly would help out those of us who dont' use our true name or (as an example) Ann's last name :balloon: we just might be able to direct our customers right to us.

I could see a customer getting frustrated (like I do when searching for a PHD # and it doesn't come up b/c I am not sure of the spelling) and giving up if it is not an easy process.

~G~

 

[RebelChef]

Yay! Thanks, Gina! I found me, too.

I agree about being able to search by either first, last or both names. Even initials would be good. At the very least a list of consultants by city or zip. Requiring last name and zip is going to be too frustrating for people if they don't remember the name, spelling or zip. Where I live, most of my contacts are in other towns so most have no clue what my zip is. There's a different one every 5-20 miles. Even people who live in my town have a different zip because their mailing address is considered the next town over. When they have to look up someone in a city with multiple zips, it's not going to be easy for them.

 

[chefann]

While playing with this, I did notice that the zip doesn't need to be exact. I put in an approximation of my Director's last name and my zip (I'm 20 miles from her), and she came up. But it would be nice to have last name as an option instead of a required field.

 

[legacypc46]

I think this is a huge step forward (yeah HO for listening and trying to come up with something!).
Still, I'd like to seem them offer several search options, i.e. by state, first name, last name. For those of us who move often (military, govt, vagabonds, etc), it would be nice if our former customers could 'find' us.

 

[sarahlegare]

Ok this is going to sound stalker like, but here goes.
Sarah since you have your full name and your town and state in your email/heading. I looked it up and it came up. It said your name and linked to your website.

I could not check Marisa's because she does not list her last name.

No worries! I found myself the first time, but when i started to play around with it a bit, I couldn't get myself to come up!:cry: