Brand and Market Yourself, NOT your Direct Sales Business

When marketing your business online, YOU must stand out. Hundreds of people are probably joining your company or the one you are considering every single day. You have to put a plan in place that maps out what is going to make your business different. And then, the day comes.

You did it! You have finally started your own business so you can work from home. You have received your start up materials, great tips to launch your new business from your sponsor and you are excited and ready to go!

You have a grand opening launch event and even made your first few sales…you are on a roll! You have big goals and an even bigger vision knowing you can expand your business by using the internet to market your business online.

So, you take all the training you’ve learned from your sponsor and company and use it online armed with your beautifully designed company replicated website. And then…

You Make the BIGGEST Direct Sales Mistake Most Representatives Make…

You start promoting the “H.E. double hockey sticks” out of your company products and business opportunity.

You post to your Facebook page (and every other social network you belong to) informing everyone you started a new business.

You also let everyone know you are in a “challenge” to do “( you fill in the blank) ” and have a goal to complete it by (date) and would like to know who wants to “help” you complete the challenge.

Or better yet, you want to share this month’s amazing ‘Special’ with all your friends and followers.

Does this sound like you? Are you wondering how in the world do I know all this? Well, it’s because that used to be me too. It took a rude awakening for me to finally realize what I was doing was not working at the capacity I had hoped. But, that’s a whole other story.

Now, before you get all mad at me, I want you to understand that I’m not telling you NOT to promote your business online, what I want to share with you is that there is a much more effective way to go about it.

That way is to Brand & Market YOURSELF!

I want to give you a few tips to help you actually start to reap the reward of all your hard work and effort online. Before you apply these tips, I want you to grasp the fact that you are an INDEPENDENT business owners. You may promote someone else’s products but this business model requires you to build an independent business, aside from the company you represent.

With that being said, you have to learn how to brand yourself based on your skills and talents, to attract customers and clients who will in the end, benefit from the products you recommend. Trust me when I tell you, the harsh reality is…no one really cares that you are an XYZ Rep with such-and-such company.

Ask yourself a few questions: What makes YOU different than every other Representative of your company? Why should someone buy from YOU instead of another Representative? What will people learn about YOU when visiting your company website other than the products you sell?

If you are constantly offering the same promotions that everyone else is…what makes you unique? Nothing.

Tip # 1 – Consider your skills in relation to your business. More than likely you partnered with your company because you feel a connection to their mission and love the products and services they provide. So, if you are with a cosmetics company, what are you most passionate about that attracted you to the company? Do you value skin care? Have a love for color?

Take that passion and share it with others about skin care or color. Build Brand YOU.

Tip # 2 – Stop identifying yourself as a rep of your company. Shift your focus to marketing what you do for others instead of what you sell. Start introducing yourself to people as someone who can help them achieve a desired result. Whether that is to get clear skin, have a chemical free home, or lose weight naturally, you have to start letting people recognize you have the answers or solution to their problems.

Become a source of knowledge and information. Build Brand YOU.

Tip # 3 – Show prospects the benefit of working with you. If you are looking to build your team and leverage your earnings, help potential prospects see the value of partnering with you in business as opposed to starting a business with your company. Direct Sales is a people business and people do business with other people – ones they like, respect and trust.

Be willing to teach others how to do what you do. Build Brand YOU.

Tip #4 – Be consistent, passionate and committed. This is a big one. Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither will your Direct Sales business. Work your business every day by setting attainable goals and building quality connections to start experiencing network marketing success. Be fully present by consistently building ONE business to the point you are making a steady and growing income…which is easily achievable by following tip # 3 – building a team and mentoring them along their journey.

Commit to your business growth and gain credibility online. Build Brand YOU.

Tip # 5 – Create your own platform to market yourself. Having a company website is great but before you send people there, build a relationship with them first. You can do this by building a blog for your business. As an independent business owner, you have to build a network of prospects on a regular basis, your blog is a way for you to 1) Build your brand 2) Share your expertise 3) Establish credibility in your industry, and 4) Create a network community of dedicated followers and loyal customers.

Set yourself apart to display your expertise. Build Brand YOU.

When you begin to learn how to brand and market yourself online by aligning your passion to serve others with the products and services you offer through your direct sales business, you will find this to be a more effective avenue of creating the kind of income you desire.

If by chance your company was ever to close up shop, you can rest assured you will still have the ability to sustain a thriving and solid business because you took the path to building Brand YOU.

More Reading at..www.theceomamma.com 

When it comes to building business, I not only share Scentsy with people, I share everything I am involved with from social media, branding, nutrition, fitness, etc. I may not be the expert in any single one area, but I can certainly offer to help people in a variety of things that surround Scentsy. It is important to set yourself apart and offer people what you are good at, share your time and build relationships. Making a difference in people's lives will make you special and make YOU a brand that no one can duplicate. People buy you and then your product. When you need something, you don't buy from people you don't like, you buy from someone you connect with.

Here are some of my favorite ways to brand yourself.

1. Show what you are experienced in as much as possible.

2. Help other people in your industry such as bloggers, tweets, anyone who asks questions, etc.

3. Be helpful by sharing links and resources.

4. Create a personal blog besides your business blog.

5. Have an email signature

6. Select the right social media outlets for you and master them. Don't just sign up for everything just to have them and then become inactive on them.

7. Make sure these social media outlets are branded the same.

8. Leave helpful comments on other blogs.

9. Interact online. Then Stick to the websites and communities that will help you reach your goals.

10. Be Yourself.

These are just a few ideas to help you get started. Create Goals. Start Small and have fun. People are buying you, not your products.

Should Direct Sales Consultants Eat at a Home Party?

The question often comes up as to whether or not a Consultant should join in on the goodies when having a home party. We have to remember that this is our business and as much as we'd like to join in on the fun, we are not the guest, we are the professional conducting the party for the guests. We need to make it about them and hosts and not about us.

Some tips when this issue comes up:

Politely decline – Thank the hostess for the offer but decline. You can combine this with stating that you had eaten before hand and that you are not hungry. This is what I tend to do myself.Eat before going – This way you are full and do not feel the urge to snack

Just have a nibble – Another suggestion is to stick to the healthier items that are available, if there are any.

Bring a Snack – Someone suggested that you could bring your own snack to eat while the others are having something. This way you are guaranteed to have something that is better for you.

Do you have refreshments when you are doing an in home party? If not, how do you handle it when the hostess invites you to help yourself?

Using Fundraising to Grow your Direct Sales Customer Base

If you have been in direct sales for a while, sometimes finding new customers can become a chore, if you let it. You may be having a bad day and you don't want to talk to someone, or you think you have run out of people that are interested in your product. Never fear! There is a way to find more customers and that is through fundraising.

Many direct sales companies and thousands of direct sales reps have been successfully using fundraising in their business. There is a fear sometimes associated with it for some reason. But it is a viable method of growing your customer base. The reason is that through fundraising you are in contact with so many other people than you probably have talked to or have reached in your regular methods.

When you host a fundraiser, you are putting into people hands your books, your contact information and your product line. This is your chance to shine and reach new customers. Since you will be the one placing orders and probably packing orders, you have access to these new contacts names and addresses. Now this is not an opportunity to hound them to death to buy your products again, but it is certainly considered a warm contact and you can add them to catalog lists, email lists, if they okay it, and other contact methods.

If you have been involved in a school or little league fundraiser, you can imagine how many people participate in those. If you work hard and land a few small events, you can and grow into larger events. Learning how to smoothly and effectively run them is a key point. But once you get going, your customer base will continue to grow right along with it.

Do some research today and see if fundraising with your direct sales business is an option for you and your company. You are going to love watching your sales and customer base grow!


About the Author: Jill McCarthy is a Scentsy Director from Florida with Scentsy Flameless Candles. She enjoys helping others start and maintain a candle business in the US, Canada, Puerto Rico, and soon Deutschland and the UK. You can find Jill at http://www.WicklessElite.com All articles are free to use as long as you keep the author bio intact and provide a live link to the WicklessElite.com website

Branding your Business In Direct Sales

Joining a direct sales company is a fabulous way to start a business for a small amount of cash outlay. When you start your business you may realize that there are a lot of other representatives in your area or online that is selling the same type of item. So how do you make a name for yourself in a sea of similar products? The answer is called branding.

What is branding? It is usually the logo, colors, or tag line of the business. Most businesses brand themselves and it is also very important for a direct seller to be branded as well. Since the company that you are working with has the rights of the brand for the main company, you as an independent consultant need a brand that we can market to others.

So where to start? Well, one of the best brands that you can market is you. You are you and no one is quite like you. Sounds like Dr. Seuss somehow, but it is true. You want to be effective in getting your message across that you are an individual business, not just a consultant. To start branding you, purchase a URL that represents you or your business. If your name is available, then by all means get that. You will be able to use it the rest of your life. If you want to create a special URL for your business, you can do that as well. Make it something that you can brand for example, Sally’s Sewing or Jill’s Jewelry or something like that. Try and make it memorable as you will use that in your marketing.

So now you have your URL, start marketing yourself as your URL name. If your company has representative websites, redirect your site to the new URL. Your main goal and purpose is to set you apart from the rest of the consultants out there. Get business cards, tag your books with your brand, some even have a design and specific color scheme. You need to become the brand and people will remember you. So instead of being yet another representative out of thousands, you have become the individual business owner. Now that is branding and a smart way to market your business.

About the Author: Jill McCarthy is a Scentsy Director from Florida with Scentsy Flameless Candles. She enjoys helping others start and maintain a candle business in the US, Canada, Puerto Rico, and soon Deutschland and the UK. You can find Jill at http://www.WicklessElite.com All articles are free to use as long as you keep the author bio intact and provide a live link to the WicklessElite.com website

5 Simple Steps for Big Results in Direct Sales

CLICK HERE FOR STEP 1

The Beginning of My Quest to Sparkle

Everyone wants to Sparkle. They want that glow and shine about them when they walk down the street. We all want to be described as someone who is always smiling and standing with their head held high staring the world in the face as if to say, "Bring it on, I can handle anything you throw at me!" Sometimes it is just not that easy. Life throws us curve balls and sometimes we just don't feel quite right.

Well finally after reading a thousand blogs and trying to figure out why people actually have blogs, I have decided to launch my own. Why not, right? Of course I don't know if people will read it, although everyone tells me I have good ideas and things I should share but I definitely know at this very moment in my life, there is no better time and could actually help me through some very rough moments. I have amazing family and friends and I seem to be always traveling and participating in the most awesome events that I simply do not want to forget.

My quest is to always Sparkle and to do it from the inside out. I want to build relationships and there is not better way than through Social Media, one of my most favorite things. This grouped with my business in direct sales. My quest is post information about how to Sparkle and Shine through Social Media and have it boost your business. Perception is 100% of the reason people do or do not build a relationship with us. Are people attracted to you, your brand? Do you have information and things people want to hear about? Are you separating yourself from other Direct Sales Consultants. Forever Sparkling will focus on ideas, thoughts and tips that will help us do just that.

Until next time, keep on Sparking,