I Need Bookings NOW!

In a perfect world, you're keeping your direct sales party calendar booked anywhere from four to six weeks out, giving you and your host time to plan her party at a nice, leisurely pace. In reality, however, there will always be times when, either because of a cancellation or just a dry spell with bookings, you find yourself with empty spaces in your calendar within the next few weeks. What can you do? Is it even possible to "pull a party together" in just a week or so with any success?

Well, take if from someone who planned a wedding for 350 guests in less than six weeks, anything is possible if you put your mind to it. It will require that you work fast and a little harder, but in the end, if it adds to your monthly paycheck, bookings, and sponsoring results, the extra effort is worth it.

Here are a few tips for securing those last-minute bookings and making sure they are successful for both you and your host:

• Since you'll be asking your host to work a little harder (and faster), you'll need to sweeten the pot for her. I called my close-in dates "bonus" dates. When a host chose one of my bonus dates, she got a special gift (usually worth at least $25.00 retail) when I showed up to do her party for her. IMPORTANT!! This gift is given at the party, not before. Part of the idea is to ensure that the party actually holds. If it didn't, I wasn't out the item.
   
• Normally, I advise that you set up a host coaching appointment within about a week to meet with your host either over the phone or in person to get her guest list and plan her party. Since you're looking at a short time frame with this type of booking, however, you'll probably have to do this host coaching at the party she's booking from or on the same phone call from which she's booking.
   
• Be sure you have a self-addressed, stamped envelope to give her so she can mail you her guest list within the next few days. You'll want to send her invitations out asap. In this case, I also recommend that you encourage her to invite people via e-vite and over the phone.
   
• Choose a fun theme for her party and teach her how to get outside orders and follow up with her guests to ensure good attendance.
   
• Follow up often and make sure your host feels supported. Pulling together a party in such a short period of time can be stressful and your job is to alleviate as much of that stress as possible.

Work a little harder, give a little more, and you'll be surprised at how easily you can go from no bookings for the next month to a full calendar by next week!

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Julie Anne Jones is a direct sales consultant and trainer, an ICF accredited coach, and the CEO of Julie Anne Jones, Inc. She is known for her authentic and easy-to-use scripting and specializes in specific language and tools for success in direct sales. To learn more about Julie Anne and her products and services, and to read her blog, visit her at www.julieannejones.com.

The Best Place to Get Booking is At Your Parties

I've made no secret about the fact that I didn't like creative bookings when I was working my party plan business. It was just no fun to pick up the phone to get bookings. That's why I always made it my goal to get as many bookings as I possibly could at my parties. There is an art to this, however. Today's home party guests are smart and, frankly, a little jaded. They've heard every "canned pitch" to book a party you can think of and don't want to be leveraged (which is what they expect).

I also only booked with hosts who were at least a little enthusiastic about doing a party with me. I had more than one conversation with someone who was being bullied by the host to have a party in which I actually talked them out of it. I would look at the less-than-enthusiastic host and ask, "Do you really want to do this?" If the answer was any variation of "no," I offered to hold a catalog party instead. The point is, you want to make sure you're not only getting bookings, but you're also booking parties with quality hosts.

Here are some simple tools to make sure you're getting enthusiastic new hosts from every party you hold.

• It's all about the experience! Make it fun for your current guests and they'll be excited about creating the same experience with their friends. If someone isn't having a great time at your party, there's no way they'll want to book one of their own.
• Use tools that support communication with potential hosts. I talk a lot during my trainings about the Guest Care Card (which gauges your guest's interest in booking a party and learning more about your opportunity using a scale from 1-10) and a Wish List instead of an order form so that you can see all of the products they like and offer to help them get many of those things for free or 1/2 price by booking a party.
• Create a booking commercial and make sure you do it at every party you do, NO MATTER WHAT! (You can learn more about creating an effective booking commercial here).
• Use the language of offering instead of asking. That means offer to come spoil your potential host and her friends with a great experience that's all about her.
• Find a fun way to display your open party dates (I used a Booking Tree. What's that? You can read about it and see what I'm talking about here)
• Most importantly, make sure you're dropping booking seeds throughout your party, focusing on the next month's host special and all the benefits your current host is getting as you go through your presentation. Just make sure they're seeds you lightly sprinkle, not full grown trees you're bashing them over the head with!

Always remember that guests and potential hosts are smart and they've probably all had a bad experience at a home party in the past. Never talk "down" to them and don't patronize them. Best to just be yourself and relax. I guarantee, more people will want to sign up to spend more time with you if you're focused on that.

How about you? What booking tools work best for you at your parties?

Listen to This!

Sometimes blogging is a lonely past time, especially since so many of you began subscribing to my blog via e-mail. That means you don't have to navigate to the website to read it and are less inclined to leave comments. All in all, it can sometimes make me wonder if anybody out there is really reading what I write. (If you feel like it, I'd love to have you comment now and then, just so we can connect).

Last month, I had a powerful reminder that you're not only reading, but using the tools I'm giving you. I was tagged in a Facebook post by Tanya Hommes regarding a 24 bookings in 24 hours challenge she had given herself and the amazing results she had experienced. My ears perked up because last year, I wrote a popular post called "24 Bookings in 24 Hours." (You can read it here).

I immediately contacted Tanya and asked if she would be willing to let me interview her about her success. I've posted the link so you can listen to our interview below. The most funny part about this is that Tanya didn't realize that the original idea for the challenge had come via my blog because her upline Jackie Ulmer had shared the challenge with her after reading about it here. I love how social networking works!

Take a listen to Tanya's impressive results (10 bookings for January and 4 for February as of a week ago). During the interview, she shares not only how she did it, but how she overcame her fears of picking up the phone and the actual script she used during the calls. (And to think she started her business not even liking the idea of doing parties at all)! Thanks for sharing, Tanya! You ROCK!

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WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE FOR FREE IN PRINT OR ONLINE?

Julie Anne Jones is a success language consultant, a direct sales coach and trainer, and the CEO of Julie Anne Jones, Inc. She is known for her authentic and easy-to-use scripting and specializes in specific language and tools for success in direct sales. To learn more about Julie Anne and her products and services, visit her at www.julieannejones.com or check out her blog athttp://julieannejones.com.

How Much Can You Say in 1 Minute?

I was on a Q&A call last night and someone asked me how to put together an effective one minute commercial that would increase her bookings. These are often necessary if you're participating in a networking group or sharing at a Chamber of Commerce meeting, or if you just want to know exactly what to say to someone who asks about your business during a one minute elevator ride. I came up with a cool formula that I want to share with you. This would work for a one minute sponsoring commercial as well.

1. Name the pain – This is a simple and effective marketing technique I've learned and used quite a bit this year. What is it about what you're offering that's missing in the listener's life now? For example, if you're focused on bookings, start by identifying what they don't have now that your products could provide. Example: if you sell cooking tools, you might say, "You know how everyone hates that question "what's for dinner?,'" or "You know how frustrating it can be to spend a bunch of time preparing a meal and then have it end up burned because your pots and pans are old?" You get the idea.

2. Share the solution – Now that you've named the pain, provide the solution. This part of your commercial generally starts with "what if," as in "what if I could teach you 5 simple recipes that each take less than 1/2 an hour to prepare that your family will actually eat?" or "what if I told you that it's virtually impossible to burn something on the stoneware I sell?" 

3. Tell them how you'll do it – Finally, let them know the easiest way to get your solution, which would be by booking a party with you. It might sound like, "The best part about what I do is giving you the opportunity to get your friends together for a fun night out" or "I can teach you all of this in less than an hour and you and your friends will leave saying "that's the most fun I've ever had at one of these home parties."

So, (and here's the key to success with this), now that you have this very simple system, I'm going to challenge you to take 30 minutes and create your own 1 minute booking and sponsoring commercial and then practice them until they comfortably flow out of your mouth when you need them.

Let me know how it goes!

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Julie Anne Jones is a success language consultant, a direct sales coach and trainer, and the CEO of Julie Anne Jones, Inc. She is known for her authentic and easy-to-use scripting and specializes in specific language and tools for success in direct sales. To learn more about Julie Anne and her products and services, visit her at www.julieannejones.com or check out her blog athttp://julieannejones.com.

NOW is the Time to Focus on January Bookings!

Julie Anne Jones is a success language consultant, a direct sales coach and trainer, and the CEO of Julie Anne Jones, Inc. She is known for her authentic and easy-to-use scripting and specializes in specific language and tools for success in direct sales. To learn more about Julie Anne and her products and services, visit her at www.julieannejones.com or check out her blog athttp://julieannejones.com.

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