Navigating Party Exchanges: Ideas & Thoughts

[mommyhugz1978]

What are your thoughts and ideas when approached or approaching someone with a party exchanges???

 

[cmdtrgd]

I'm a horrible host...my friends don't like to come to my parties or I pick the worst day because I don't have kids and all my friends do and so I don't know what is going on....etc.

 

[jenniferlynne]

I don't do exchanges for shows.

 

[Pampered Laura]

Nope, none here either. If I want to host one, I'll host one, but I usually never ask for one in return and don't expect to be asked by my hosts either!

 

[tiffanypc05]

All the ones I have done haven't turned out so swift. I'm only 19 and my friends really are buying home interiors, mary kay, etc.

I just did an At home America catalog show and ended up having to spend $100 to make it a show. Only one person ordered, so it'll be a while before I have another show for anyone.

Also, when i first got started in pc i tried swapping a jewelry show with my cousin and it so did not work out...i had only 2 people that would come.

 

[DebbieJ]

I'm not really excited about it. I have friends who are consultants with other companies and they have both had shows for me, but I've yet to have shows for them. I'm such a bad friend!

I had a Warm Spirit consultant ask me about swapping b/c she was interested in PC, but I didn't want to get into it, so I never followed up with her.

 

[gilliandanielle]

I am the same way with my friends. I have a good friend who sell CM and I LOVE to scrapbook. I had a show with really sad sales and never expected or asked her to switch with me. She isn't in it for the money, she just likes the free products, so I didn't feel REALLY badly. Now she is having a cooking show on the 24th and I am having another CM "get-together" on the 29th. Having them so close together worries me because it will be blatently obvious that the sales are so different. She is a nurse so she already has outside orders, plus she is inviting a TON of people to the show. It is going to make me feel like crap when she sees the sales of my entire show don't match up with one of her outside orders!!

 

[pamperedgirl3]

I am the same way with my friends. I have a good friend who sell CM and I LOVE to scrapbook. I had a show with really sad sales and never expected or asked her to switch with me. She isn't in it for the money, she just likes the free products, so I didn't feel REALLY badly. Now she is having a cooking show on the 24th and I am having another CM "get-together" on the 29th. Having them so close together worries me because it will be blatently obvious that the sales are so different. She is a nurse so she already has outside orders, plus she is inviting a TON of people to the show. It is going to make me feel like crap when she sees the sales of my entire show don't match up with one of her outside orders!!

I wouldn't feel bad because they are completely different companies. Not everyone is into scrapbooking, so it may be a little harder to get a lot of people at your shows or to spend a lot. Where as with PC, everyone has to eat, so most people can find things they can use, whether they cook much or not.

To answer the above question-I personally do not do show swaps because I don't want to feel obligated to host a show for something I might not want to do, & I don't want anyone else to feel obligated to do a show for me. Plus, I just started last year & A LOT of my family/friends have had shows for me & been guests at many shows, so I would feel bad asking them to do yet one more thing!

 

[pamperedbecky]

I've really only purposely traded shows with one consultant...Stampin Up. She had a really good show for me in January this year (a $900 show) and I warned her it would be a while before I could schedule my Stampin Up show. I finally had it in July and it was nowhere near as good. I think those of you who said this are right - the companies are SO different that there's really no way to compare them. WAAYYYY more people are interested in Pampered Chef than Stampin Up, that's for sure. I invited probably over 60 people and only 6 came. I got a few outside orders and had a $450 show I think it was. I've had other consultants want to trade shows, but I really have had to turn them down. My schedule is busy enough with my own business and I too feel like I'm imposing on my friends when I invite them to too many things.

Like this year in Feb. I had a Tastefully Simple show (a friend became a consultant and she hosted one of MY first shows). Then I had the Stampin' Up in July. And now in Sept. I'm having my own Stoneware Workshop, so I feel that every few months is too much to invite pretty much the same group of friends. Another friend just started Silpada and I'll probably do a show for her, but probably not until after the 1st of the year. But then that's it!

It can get really crazy, but I agree that if you have new list of friends and people you can rotate through, it's worth it because it can build YOUR customer base.

 

[mommyhugz1978]

This is my second job...... and since I am the only consultant that sells PC in the town that I live in.. I feel that I am getting my name out their by offerig that, so I will build MY customer base and they will in turn know who to call when they need or want a PC product!!

 

[lisacb77]

I plan to do 2 holiday open houses with other consultants (one is Avon & Discovery Toys, the other Arbonne, Party Lite and a jewerly gal)...that's as close as I've gotten to trades so far.