Often times you’ll see the tip “run a contest to get more sales!”, and general tips on how to do it, but there’s some facts you should know before holding your own.
I’ve seen countless “sign up to our newsletter and be entered into our monthly contest” and see them submitted to various contest sites. Have you ever ran a contest like this? If you have you know that it will probably bring you several hundred new subscribers. Sounds like a great idea right? Wrong. While you may have hundreds of new subscribers, you have very little that are interested in buying anything from you. What you have is a list of people that are looking to WIN something, and want something for free. That’s why they are on these lists you submitted your contest to – because they hope they will win free products and not have to pay for any of it. You on the other hand want BUYERS, not freebie seekers. Not to say there is something wrong with being a freebie seeker (I think we all love to get free items, and are always on the look out for deals like this!), but they are not your target market.
While contests can be a good thing and DO build your list, understand the conversion rate for a freebie seeker list is very, very low compared to one that is made up of current customers and people honestly interested in your product. While these aren’t exact numbers and you will need to run your own test, it may take 1,000 subscribers on a freebie list to gain one extra sale while a list of 100 targeted subscribers may produce 2-3 sales. Quite a difference right?
When you are in business for yourself, it is your responsibility to service your customers full circle. Always remember they are the lifeline to success in your business. How you treat your customers will reflect greatly on your success. Master your customer service skills because they will always have that sign on them saying, “Make Me Feel Important.”
I am heard often saying that a home party plan business is not about the home party company. A home party business is about you, the home party consultant. I would like to explain myself. Direct sales home parties are a great way to make sales, but not if you are going about it as I am about to describe. This particular was inspired by the movie How To Loose Friends and Alienate People, which I do not recommend you watch
What exactly is a candle fundraiser? Candle fundraisers are your basic order taker fund raiser, but you need to do more than just show pictures of candles. Showing samples will allow customers to sample the fragrances and dramatically boost your candle fundraiser’s results.







