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Director Stretched Thin: Trying to Balance Sales Director Demands & Personal Shows

In summary, the speaker is struggling with balancing all the tasks and responsibilities that their Sales Director expects them to do. They have tried various methods of training and hosting events, but have found that some are not effective and take up too much time. They are trying to prioritize and focus on what works best for them and their family.
cookingwithlove
Gold Member
885
Do you do them? I have been trying but they just seem to flop. Nobody comes and I get stressed out. I feel like I am stretched thin with everything my Sales Director wants me to do. Step up program, New consultant training, individual training calls to team members, Monthly meetings, attending Grand Openings and now a Recipe night. I tend to have at least 8 personal shows a week. I feel like I never get a break. I have worked everyday for the last month.
 
I don't have any advice for you but I can chime in and say I feel the same way! I can't do all of that and honestly I need to quit beating myself up when someone doesn't succeed by thinking oh if I had just done one more training with them. Because it is not me it is them, if they want to succeed they will. I have attempted many times to do consistent new consultant training with my team, but honestly most of them never answer when I call and I end up giving up. I do call my team usually at least 1 or 2 a month. I do meetings. I QUIT doing grand openings. I tried for a year and tracked my results and it didn't make one difference for if they qualified and how long they stayed with Pampered Chef. I would have to pay a babysitter for every grand opening and I just can't do that when I am going to get a $10 activity bonus and 3% of their sales. I know this goes against alot of the training but I have to continually remind myself that I have to do what works for me and my family. That is why I am with Pampered Chef in the first place. I have to make a certain amount of income and balance that against the time I spend so I have to look at what I am doing and cut out the things that are taking too much time or not helping me earn money. Now that doesn't mean I don't work with those who want to work because I do!! How on earth do you do 8 shows a week?! I keep a full show schedule, about 12-15 shows a month and I feel like I never stop. Give yourself a pat on the back and just do what you can and what works for you:)
 
I did a recipe night last month and it was SUPER easy! Just follow the planner HO gave us. It was well received but we didn't sign anyone. I put it together in too much haste and the leads that one consultant brought weren't leads at all. (Don't you love that when that happens?)I am trying to put together 3 for this month in 3 different parts of town. I'm emphasizing the "last promo of the year" and earn cash for the holidays. It's the coordinating of it that I struggle with, not presenting the actual event.
 
cincychef said:
I don't have any advice for you but I can chime in and say I feel the same way! I can't do all of that and honestly I need to quit beating myself up when someone doesn't succeed by thinking oh if I had just done one more training with them. Because it is not me it is them, if they want to succeed they will. I have attempted many times to do consistent new consultant training with my team, but honestly most of them never answer when I call and I end up giving up. I do call my team usually at least 1 or 2 a month. I do meetings. I QUIT doing grand openings. I tried for a year and tracked my results and it didn't make one difference for if they qualified and how long they stayed with Pampered Chef. I would have to pay a babysitter for every grand opening and I just can't do that when I am going to get a $10 activity bonus and 3% of their sales. I know this goes against alot of the training but I have to continually remind myself that I have to do what works for me and my family. That is why I am with Pampered Chef in the first place. I have to make a certain amount of income and balance that against the time I spend so I have to look at what I am doing and cut out the things that are taking too much time or not helping me earn money. Now that doesn't mean I don't work with those who want to work because I do!! How on earth do you do 8 shows a week?! I keep a full show schedule, about 12-15 shows a month and I feel like I never stop. Give yourself a pat on the back and just do what you can and what works for you:)

In the Training New Consultants workshop I took at conference, the top recruiter who was doing it (can't remember her name now) said almost the exact same thing. She talked about how much money it would cost for her to do the Grand Openings, and give the show away to the consultant, and that it didn't make any difference in them qualifying or being successful.

Personally, I was really burned by doing a "grand opening" for a recruit in June (so much so that it still smarts when I think about it.) and decided then and there to NEVER do one again.
 
I did 4 grand opening shows in September and one qualified and the other 3 are within 200 of qualifying. It was super easy and I used Lydia Martin's format. 3 of the 4 have their first recruits ready to sign as a result of the Intro Shows. I'm loving it. They were super easy to do as well!

I'm going to attach here the info I use...

1. Intro show e-mail which I adapted from Lydia's
2. Chicken Fajita recipe we do at the show
3. My intro show script

Hope it helps a little. :)
 

Attachments

  • Intro Show Chicken Fajitas.doc
    35 KB · Views: 275
  • Intro Show E-mail.doc
    60.5 KB · Views: 279
  • INTRO SHOW OUTLINE.doc
    24.5 KB · Views: 296
  • Thread starter
  • #6
I offer grand openings and most of my consultants take me up on it. They appreciate me being there for them and helping them get started. The ones that do not want me to come tend to be the ones who do not last very long on the team.
 
Chefbeckyd said:
In the Training New Consultants workshop I took at conference, the top recruiter who was doing it (can't remember her name now) said almost the exact same thing. She talked about how much money it would cost for her to do the Grand Openings, and give the show away to the consultant, and that it didn't make any difference in them qualifying or being successful.

Personally, I was really burned by doing a "grand opening" for a recruit in June (so much so that it still smarts when I think about it.) and decided then and there to NEVER do one again.
I have burned a couple of times too:yuck: so that may play into my choice. I am glad I am not the only one who came to this decision. I always hesitate to say that I don't do them when I am in a group of directors because so many people swear by them. Some companies pay the directors as much as $500 to do the grand openings, which I am sure there is more to it, but it would be nice if Pampered Chef wanted us to do them if there was compensation. The cost of a babysitter for 4 kids for 4 to 6 hours is a lot and I am already leaving my kids for sometimes as many as 18 nights a month which is about my limit. :blushing: I am really glad that we can make our own choices about what is best for us though!

I think that if the recipe night seems overwhelming, then don't add that, if you want to add that then cut something else and see how it goes. Or we have combined the recipe night with our meeting night, just meet at a local pizza place early one night and then start the meeting at your regular time. I have done that and it works well.
 
I think the key to doing the grand opening show is recruiting for the new consultant. When we had to have SC line, this was the only way to get and maintain enough SC lines to be 'paid as" your title. So now we are not required to have the SC lines but I still do GO shows for them. It doesn't make an impact on them qualifying.. lot of losers never qualify because they cant get up the motivation or courage or whatever to actually ask for more bookings or follow up etc. I do swear by the "if you recruit for them, they stick with the business longer" motto though.
 
  • Thread starter
  • #9
I do not have a single consultant coming to recipe night tonight. I have 1 possible customer who may be bring a friend. She wants to see the chip maker in action. So, I guess I will be making potato chips tonight.
 
  • #10
We do a recipe night each month but its not the true "recipe night' that the HO is now pushing. We get together and prepare a recipe. Everyone gets their hands on the tools, we visit and then we open it up for discussion on whatever they want (meaning training topics, struggles, kudos etc) So far no one has brought a guest so the HO version would not work for us. As I have leads, I plan on offering a separate recipe night done HO style that I won't invite the normal consultants too unless they want to come help with it.

I have done GO shows for my recruits b/c my recruiter did it for me and I remember the impression it left. I knew I wasn't in it alone. She helped me thru the jitters and gave me word choices when I was lacking in words. I don't have kids to worry about and its still legal to crate my dog :) so its not difficult for me however I do put a price on my time and it really hurt when I had 4 GOs in a month on top of my schedule. But, for the greater good, I take out the "whats in it for me" and remember, it's about them.

Whatever works best for you, roll with it! :)
 
  • #11
We will randomly do opportunity nights with recruiting specifically in mind. Whenever I see there's a strong bent on growing their teams. The rule is you can't attend unless you bring someone who's interested in the biz. We ask that each consultant who does bring someone to also bring a recruiting packet - whatever recruiting material they elect to include, a Season's Best and an agreement form. Also, we ask they bring a host packet for each guest. Team members volunteer to bring a couple of recipes already prepared. We then talk about the biz opportunity and see who's interested. For those who are hesitant and no's, we then tell them we'll give them a SB if they book that night with the consultant who invited them.

For the times we decide we want it to be a big draw...we offer door prizes for guests.

We tried the HO Recipe Night and it turned to be mainly consultants who wanted to play with a new recipe and socialize. So, I haven't tried another. I plan on asking the team if there's a need to do a recipe/opportunity event at the next meeting...but for the most part, we encourage the team to bring guests to both our monthly meeting and our New Consultant Training. That has been working well. One less meeting and if the guest is truly interested, they'll show up.

I do attend or assist with the kick offs if they want me to. It tends to start that connection and trust with the new consultant. They are for the most part appreciative and it gets the ball rolling. Only problem is that when I recruit 3-4, I was doing so many kick offs that my personal biz suffered, my pain increased and made me almost immobile and I was feeling the strain. I've noticed that I max out at 6....I know many of you will gasp. I'd love to physically be able to do 8-12 shows...but it isn't to be and I have to remind myself that it is what it is.

I have been trying to address and solve my dilemma of my limits and my goals...they don't necessarily parallel with each other.
 
  • #12
I have the same rule about consultant's attending the recipe night... they can't come unless they are bringing a guest who is actually interested in the biz. I hate imposing rules on them but I have a few who constantly waste my time.
 
  • #13
Right, it's not to be mean...but the recipe night is a chance for the opportunity to be explored and as a consultant, you should already know about it. :) If the consultants want to try a new recipe or socialize with others, the cook n book and cluster mtg is available. If they need that one on one time with me or their director or have questions, a scheduled appt time is available. If they want to connect with a fellow teammate, well FB Group Page is there.
 

1. What is "Stretched Thin: Trying to Balance Sales Director Demands & Personal Shows" about?

"Stretched Thin" is a book that explores the challenges faced by sales directors who are juggling the demands of their job while also trying to maintain a successful personal sales business.

2. Is this book only relevant to sales directors?

No, this book can also be helpful for anyone who is trying to balance multiple responsibilities and priorities, as the strategies and tips discussed can be applied to various situations.

3. Does the book provide practical advice or is it more theoretical?

The book offers a combination of practical advice and real-life examples to help readers navigate the challenges of balancing work and personal commitments.

4. Can this book be helpful for someone just starting out as a sales director?

Yes, this book can provide valuable insights and tips for anyone at any stage of their career as a sales director. It covers a range of topics that are relevant for both beginners and experienced professionals.

5. Are there any specific strategies or techniques discussed in the book?

Yes, the book covers various strategies and techniques for managing time effectively, setting boundaries, and prioritizing tasks. It also discusses the importance of self-care and offers tips for maintaining a healthy work-life balance.

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