How can I keep my business going after having a baby?

[jennuone]

Hello! I am looking for some brilliant ideas to keep my business rolling after I have my baby. She is due in May and I don't want to lose touch.

 

[jenwallace]

I'm anxious to hear ideas...I'm due in April!

 

[chefjen80]

I am also looking for some new show ideas as well!!

 

[chefann]

Bear in mind that I don't have any children, but these are ideas that I've heard others use with great success.

Do more shows while you still can, and really book the month you're due - but with catalog shows.
Remember that many people will want to see the baby, so you can use that to your advantage and book "see my baby" shows.
Try to do shorter shows when you do return to demos - one recipe, and have a lot of prep done ahead. Then you can get back home to the baby (or a nap!)
Let eveyone know that you're going through this. Some folks will be more willing to help you stay active with a catalog show than if you weren't in the situation.
Offer a baby pool to your regular newsletter subscribers - everyone pays $1 or $2 a chance and puts in a guess as to when the baby will arrive and gender (if you don't know already). Then the person who was closest gets the money for a shopping spree. (We did something like this at my sister's shower- people picked AM/PM, date and gender, so there were 4 options for each date. The winner got half the pot, and my sister got the rest to put into a piggy bank for the baby.)

Hope this helps!

 

[RCMedic7]

My cousin who got me started and addiced to PC just had her baby the end of Dec... so I can ask her what all she did during that month... and how she has been doing since and bring back some ideas...

One show idea that I can think of is to have a Catalog Show for an office... my cluster calls it a "Pamper you Business" and all you have to do is you make your contact the host and you bring in an already made treat of some kind and do a little demo of the products and leave the treat and the order forms... and let your host work the order forms for about 4 days and then come back and figure out how much free products they get and you get a great sale!!!

 

[KellyTheChef]

These are some really great ideas!

Schedule catalog parties over the period of months that you feel you need them. Your last mo. or two of pregnancy- keep shows scheduled. If something happens that you aren't physically able to "do them" ask them to change it into a catalog show for now, and rebook them down the road for once you have the baby. Get catalog shows on the books NOW for when you have the baby and for however long you want to be "off work" Like said earlier, people are sometimes willing to help you out in this situation even if they normally wouldn't want to do a cat. show.

Sit down with DH and make a plan for after the baby comes...how many shows per month or per week is HE ok with...so you are both on the same page and you can start to schedule NOW when you are going to return to doing kitchen shows!

One more piece of advice: enjoy every day! Focus on your pregnancy and all of the wonderful changes that you are experiencing (even if they aren't all enjoyable-I know!!) and then once the baby is here, make sure you "stay in the moment" and enjoy your new baby! They are only small like that for an instant (even though it feels like forever at the time... ) so enjoy every part!

 

[janetupnorth]

How about this one:

On all your shows from now 'til then, have a contest...on their door prize slips have them try to guess the day and time you'll have the baby.

The closest will win "X" (maybe a show after the baby is born with free ingredients and a "grand prize" item)

Next person wins X% off an item, or X item...

Be creative with rewards and try to encorporate them into building your business. Be open about you would love to do catalog shows in your last month and first month after pregnancy...kind of what Kelly is talking about...

If you make the rewards decent enough to get people to play, you have their names, etc. to keep in contact with them.

 

[ChefBeckyD]

I followed my director's lead, and took my baby with me for the first month after he was born......he went to his first PC show at 8 days old!......however, I only scheduled shows with friends for that month, and my hosts knew that he was coming with me - they were actually all excited, and Micah mostly just slept. I was nursing him, so I would nurse just before guests were due to arrive.
Oh - he was born in June, so my shows that first month were all "Ice Cream Socials" - I would bake a pan of brownies ahead of time, and then show some of the tools, and have an Ice Cream Bar set up for people to make their own sundaes - I used the chopper, egg slicer, ice cream scoop, crinkle cutter, small bamboo spoons, small saute pan (sauteed some bananas) SA pieces for serving. It was mostly a Walk Thru The Catalog show.....I had such a "mommy brain" from lack of sleep etc....that I don't think I could have done a full blown demo. People were very understanding, and had some great turnouts from everyone wanting to see the baby!