Home party sales are a popular home-based business opportunity. It seems as though a month does not go by where I do not receive an invitation to one of them, I do not know all that many people and I live in a fairly rural area. I can only imagine how many parties are going on in more heavily populated areas and how many invitations other, more well connected individuals receive.
If you are planning to pursue a direct sales opportunity where you will be selling products at home parties, you will certainly be eager to get out there and sell, sell, sell. It is a good idea, though, to put some basic etiquette guidelines in place for yourself as part of your individual corporate policy. Following guidelines like the ones suggested below can help prevent your desire to succeed from being perceived as pushy and overbearing – two things that may win you a sale today at the expense of building long term client relationships that will sustain you tomorrow.
Part of your sales strategy may be to recruit other friends and family members to host parties at their homes and invite their friends to attend. Some people may welcome the idea, but if someone seems hesitant it may be better to back off rather than try to strong-arm them into committing to a date. Provide them with the information that they will need to review to make their decision, and let them approach you if they are interested. By the same token, if someone says “no”, do not be offended. It is likely that while the person who wishes to decline your offer cares very much for you, he or she may not care for home parties in general or there may be other considerations such as limited free time, living or housing arrangements that are not conducive to having a party, or something else. Accept the “no”, and don’t press them for details. In this situation as in many others, “no” means no and must be respected.
Each home party sales company trains its representatives in a slightly different way. If you are looking to choose a company and have their parties, take your time to find not only a product that fits you and your lifestyle but fits the budget of people in your demographic. Pay close attention to their sales strategies, and select a company that offers helpful hints on how to snag sales in a respectful way and host parties that guests love to attend because they feel little or no pressure to buy. By investing the time and effort in figuring out how to conduct yourself as the home party host or hostess with the mostess who annoys people the leastest you will make a name for yourself in your community as the go-to girl or guy for whatever it is that you are selling.
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