Is Anyone Else Having Problems Booking July?

[noradawn]

I've consistantly been booking 7-10 shows/month, but I'm having a hard time getting anyone to have a show in July. I have 3 on the calendar so far, but at this point, I'd like to be booked up! For those of you that have been doing this for a few years- are there months that are difficult to book? Is July one of them? I was thinking maybe that's why they have the conference in July!

Nora

 

[pamperedbecky]

Summer can definitely be a little slower. It seems that most people take vacations in July as a halfway point of summer. I think you need to be creative in the types of shows...meaning different theme shows. Do shows that include kids since they're home from school. Do a Christmas in July show and talk about various gift ideas. I don't know...I'm just brainstorming! The reason some of the guest specials are so awesome in the summer is for this reason. With the 4th of July falling on a Monday, it'll be hard to get any bookings before then and even that week I think. My only bookings are toward the end of the month. Luckily that works for me, since I'm going to Conference the 11-13th anyway.

Summer is a great time for county fairs and various summer festivals. This is a great thing to explore and get your cluster involved in to split any entry costs. It may not pay off in bookings right away, but it definitely could down the road. Good luck!

 

[Deborah Czarnecki]

CancellationsI've noticed that a lot of hosts are having trouble getting guests to say definately that they'll be there. My sister-in-law, who is also a Consultant, has had several cancellations of shows in July.
I wonder if August is better?
D.C.

 

[PCJen]

It will get betterHi Ladies,

Yes, summer is very, very hard. Things will get better come Aug. and Sept. Now would be a good time to do customer care calls and ask if you can share the awesome host specials in July-Aug. or whatever month you need to fill first. Also, this is a good time to get some extra training by listening to training tapes. Oh, wear your Pampered Chef shirts, pins etc. everywhere you go. You never know, but someone may just book a show. That is what happened to me. I got a booking in July by just wearing my shirt to the store and handed out 3 business cards.

Keep your chins up! It will get better!

Consultant of 4 years!

 

[Stephanie S]

Do you obtain so many shows per month by being on the phone all of the time? How many "yes" responses do you get vs "no"?

I've consistantly been booking 7-10 shows/month, but I'm having a hard time getting anyone to have a show in July. I have 3 on the calendar so far, but at this point, I'd like to be booked up! For those of you that have been doing this for a few years- are there months that are difficult to book? Is July one of them? I was thinking maybe that's why they have the conference in July!

Nora

 

[noradawn]

Yes, I follow up with every lead, and continue following up until they either set a date or tell me "no"! I try to call everyone who has checked "maybe" once a week or so. I really don't know what my "yes" to "no" ratio is. I'll try to keep track.

 

[JenniferH]

calling potential hostsI feel like a stalker when I call more than 3 or 4 times. Do you just keep leaving messages until you get someone?

 

[pamperedbecky]

The "Pampered Pest" messageHere's a great way not to feel like a stalker when you've made three or more calls to someone and they're not calling back. I learned this from someone in my cluster.

When you call for the third time, here's what you can say in your message: "Hi it's ___________ calling from Pampered Chef. I'm following up with you since when we spoke awhile ago, you expressed some interest in hosting a Kitchen Show. I'd LOVE to tell you what the great host specials are coming up, so feel free to call me if you're interested. Since I haven't heard back from you yet and I don't want to become a "Pampered Pest", if I don't hear from you by the end of the week (or something like that), I'll take you out of my data base so I don't keep filling up your answering machine."

That's a very rough draft of what I'd say. Maybe even make it more brief. Then put that contact in "Contact Management" or however you track your calls, so you know you've left that specific message and don't call again. I truly think some people just get so busy and really won't make the effort to call. Although if you happen to reach them by phone, they're actually still interested. Then there are those who really aren't interested but were just saying they were initially. The director who suggested this has had several people call the next day when she left this message who said "Oh don't take me out of your data base! I've just been really busy." I haven't really had that response, but I've probably only left this "Pampered Pest" message for a handful of people.

I've also gotten in the habit of not leaving a message every time I call someone if it's the 2nd or 3rd call. They may see it on their caller ID that I called, but it doesn't seem as "stalkerish." Then when I actually reach them, I've had better luck. Good luck!!

 

[SusanK]

I am having a really hard time with July -- August and September look promising. You have to remember that 4th of July hits on Monday and a lot of people take vacation that whole week. Also, we are on vacation the last week, so I couldn't schedule anything then. I also turned my open house into a book show because no one was around that day to attend -- all of my friends leave in the summer. So I am going to do my kick-off party in September when the new products come out. Doing some extra training is a good idea (mentioned in someone's previous post). The telelasses (I listen to the recorded ones) are great.

 

[janel kelly]

I have only one show booked for July as well. I have some booked for August and September but July only got one taker and that is because she cacelled in June and rescheduled in July. I'm hoping to get more bookings from her show though.

 

[sOhSherri]

Here's a great way not to feel like a stalker when you've made three or more calls to someone and they're not calling back. I learned this from someone in my cluster.QUOTE]

I leave a minimum of 3 messages on machines with potential hosts. After the 3rd message, I'll give it a week or so then send them a postcard from Nancy's Artwork (You expressed an interest or I've been unable to contact you by phone.) This is the last contact I have with them...if they call me back great...if not, then it's time to move on.

 

[Stephanie S]

Out of The Box CallsDoes anyone have a brief script for "out of the box" calls? I have a list of people to call. It's the first day after a long weekend so I'm not sure if tomorrow night would be better....

What do you think?

 

[pamperedbecky]

Out of the Box Calls

Does anyone have a brief script for "out of the box" calls? I have a list of people to call. It's the first day after a long weekend so I'm not sure if tomorrow night would be better....

What do you think?

If you look on Consultant's Corner under "Downloads" there is a heading for "Customer Care Script." One of the examples under "building rapport" is about an out of the box call. Obviously you can tailor it to meet whatever need you have, but it's a good basic starting point.

 

[janel kelly]

Stephanie,
here is another script I found that might come in handy as well.