What Do You Say? "Saturated Market"

[esavvymom]

I was recently at my folks in Ohio this past week and a half. I saw my SIL one evening. She brought her forged cutlery over for me to 'sharpen' (hone)- since I brought my gadget up for her for that purpose.
Somehow we were talking about PC stuff, and she said "I was thinking about selling Pampered Chef, but it seems my area is just saturated with consultants. I'm always running into people who say they sell PC. So maybe I'll look at something else, maybe Tupperware or something." I didn't have a response really ready for her. I did say that it's highly unlikely it's oversaturated and 'no business'. Plus I pointed out that she does have 3-5 towns within 30 miles that are large or largER that she could pull from too.

I KNOW that she'd probably work her business about like I do- because jsut because I'm in a larger metro area, business isn't crawling up my driveway! I have to work to find it- just like I would if i was in a smaller community.

But I was wondering what do you say to someone who thinks that? I have to find the workshop- but a past audio workshop the speaker addressed that- with math stats and everything (using an example of a town size). Her town size is about 6-7k. The two closest cities to that are 12k, and 35k in size- this doesn't include the county population of course, and several other similar sized towns around her.

What I don't know is if those consultants she met were 'friends', or just people she met....I'd think that might make some difference. How different of a social circle is she in related to those she's met.

 

[kdangel518]

Tell her that statistics show that over 50% of people surveyed in any given area have never even HEARD of PC. So there really is biz everywhere. There are SO SO many consultants in my area, but I am not running out of biz!

 

[BethCooks4U]

How many different people is she actually running into or is it the same few more than once?

They did a thing at conference a couple years ago and graphed all the shows in a certain time period in a Chicago area and found that even in the place where the company was started there were large areas that had no shows. Everytime I'm in Chicago I meet people who have never heard of us. Business is out there.

 

[kdangel518]

Also reinforce to her that while you can't speak to other DS companies, you can tell her that PC is really a recession proof biz b/c people have to eat, regardless of the state of the economy, and when things get bad people bring the family together and start eating at home more often so they're more likely to invest in QUALITY cookware with a name like PC to back it up vs. something else. Also that PC has been in biz for almost 30 years now and the rewards programs for new consultants and hosts are beyond phenomenal, so people LOVE PC!

 

[esavvymom]

She's pretty familiar with PC as a customer/host. She's young (early 30s), and had a PC Bridal Shower.I also am concerned (as family) that she'd sign with someone else NOT so ethical....like we all know those DS companies that say "we pay 40% or 50% commission!" but fail to mention that the reason they pay so high is because you have to buy your own Host Gifts, or carry inventory, or pay a membership fee, etc. (Borders on FRAUD to me to hide that info). I was thinking of sending her a packet, and include a FAQ- and encourage her that if she decided to look at other companies- be sure to ASK those same questions- so she was comparing apples to apples. I thought I'd search on here for some info that I know others have shared as well. I wouldn't normally do that with a recruit (bash or put down a company) - but this is family. Can't let her walk into something blindly assuming all DS companies are created equal! I know there are other good DS companies- but you're right- EVERYONE has to eat. Why not help them do it and do it with a company you love!I just wanted to give her the options- plus with the Mini-Kit, I think that might help. Iw as thinking I'd give her my packet of info, plus encourage her to just TRY it for 4 shows! If she couldn't book 4-6 shows for the first 30-days of her biz, then she'd have her answer about the market in her area. But keep the ideas coming!

 

[lockhartkitchen]

When I started PC I lived in a town of 10,000. We had my director, two other directors, and all their downline. I NEVER once ran into an issue with shows. People come from other circles, my shows brought me outside of the small city. My director still lives nearby this city and she consistently has a nice income.

 

[NooraK]

I've heard it addressed a couple of different ways.

I heard on one recording a gal say that she lives in a town of around 6000 with 4 consultants on her team, all in the same town. She said they all work in different places, they all have their own families, they all have their own activities, and in her case they all went to different high schools. They all have different social circles, and all have enough business without stepping on each others' toes.

I also heard a recording where someone said Nancy Jo Ryan had put it this way: go out and stand on the street corner one day. Then come back the next day at the same time in the same spot. How many new people will you see between the first and second day? There are always people moving in and out of your area.

Also, I've heard someone put it this way: say you live in a town of 10,000 people, and there are 4 consultants. Evenly split, that's 2,500 people per consultant. Who wouldn't LOVE to have 2,500 customers? It would take most people years to build that large of a customer base. Even if you had two shows a week, and met 10 new people at EACH show, that'd only be 500 new customers a year, and it'd take you five years to get there. And in that 5 years, there will be plenty of new people who have moved into town.

And to expand on that, not everyone sells at a full-time, career-consultant level. Even the hobby consultant is going to tell you about her business if you approach her and ask her about it, but that doesn't mean she'll want to do more than one show a month. I think this is one of the reasons why HO doesn't tell us how many consultants are in any given area. It's misleading to give a particular number, because some might sell full-time, some might sell part-time and some might sell just enough to maintain their discounts.

In any case, remind her that she's not limited to her won area. She has no territories, and can go as far as she wants to. Encourage her to concentrate on the aspects of the product and business. there are some flyers here on CS about what to look at or what to compare when researching different DS companies.

 

[Sheila]

In life we don't notice things until we are alert & looking for it. Like buying a new car for example. You go out, choose the one you want and suddenly everywhere you go you see one. Is it that there are more of them on the road now? NO! It's that you are more alert of their presence. It's the same with direct sales. Once you consider joining or once you have joined you suddenly start realizing how many people you meet each month that do something too! It's not that there are suddenly more in the area, you are just more alert to their presence now when they mention what they do where as before you weren't really keeping count. Does that make sense?

 

[toenail1103]

Let her know that tupperware is a harder sell than PC. I know i just quit TW to do PC. plus you have to buy monthly special catalogs when you can print our offline, and they dont send you catalogs when their big catalog changes. and the amout to stay active is alot higher. I have made more in PC since I started in July than I did all last year and the year before in TW. I still love my TW but I have always loved my Pampered Chef and I am so glad I changed. and yes the hostess gifts do come out of your pocket and the colors change so often. you are always redoing your kit. Where pampered chef will just change something every so often. Good Luck!!

 

[Chefgirl2]

I could be mistaken, but I think there are less consultants now selling PC than there were 10 years ago when I started due to all of the other direct selling companies that are around now.

What ever. Saturated. Smaturated. they are looking for you to tell them it's not. How many real estate agents are in that same town? Probably 40-100 times more than PC consultants. Yet, I have several hosts that do 2 shows a year. How many times do people sell their home a year?

Whatever. It's a lame Urban Myth that is rampant...especially in Ohio...my cousin probably started it. Is her name Donna?

 

[Jules711]

I fully agree. There are SO many consultants that do not submit sales every month. So are they really competition for the potential customers? Even if they have a show, they may not be providing customer service for them. That's fine. It's being more of a hobby consultant. It's a bit misleading if she thinks that every consultant she meets does 10 shows per month. That's odd in this area anyway. Probably more like 2 per month. I figure there is NO way I can be a consultant for every person I meet so PLEASE join! I don't want certain customers to go away b/c I'd miss them, but I'm thrilled when someone IN my area joins.

 

[pampcheflynda]

I felt that same way before I joined. But I have found that I do not do many shows in my town. Most shows are in other towns. That's the great thing about pampered chef, you can sell anywhere! Don't be scared off by others in your community. There are no territories.

 

[Jolie_Paradoxe]

A teammate and I are neighbors, we literally live across the street. We both have business and our circles have yet to conflict! I did a table where I met one of the volunteers who was a consultant. I was asked to participate in the event because there were "no PC reps" in the area. When I asked about the volunteer, I was told she heard us looking for a rep and never said a thing!

When I talked to the volunteer she said she only did enough to be active....so biz is there for those who want it.