CB106470I'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?