5 things to consider before doing Party Plan

Party Plan was all the rage when I was a young girl back in the 1960s and 1970s. I remember my Mum hosting a few parties and being invited to some in the neighbourhood. I absolutely loved it when she hosted a party. The food was always so good. Special party food. When I grew up, I started being invited to many parties too. It could’ve been homewares, jewellery, perfume, candles, just about anything. I always loved the social aspect of it too, especially since I became a stay at home Mum and found this was a great way to get out of the house and mingle with adults.

At every single party I ever went to, I always thought “I could do this”. I could demonstrate these products in this type of social setting. I’ve never been afraid of public speaking or standing in front of a crowd and talking about things I liked. Such an opportunity presented itself to me at the end of 2014 when I was tossing up what I was going to do to support my children. Trouble is, there is quite a lot more to it then just getting up in front of a crowd and talking about products as I found out. Here are five things to consider before signing up to be a Party Plan consultant.

1. You are a salesperson

The particular product I was demonstrating really resonated with me. I love homewares and protecting the environment. What I was selling ticked all my boxes. The only thing was, not everyone was in love with the product as much as I was. As well as not getting off to a great start with party bookings, I discovered I had to ‘cold call’ prospective clients, bring up my sales ‘spiel’ in conversations with complete strangers, consider expos or events to drum up new clientele or just hit up family and friends to book a party. A salesperson I am not. You’ll find most products being sold via party plan sell themselves but it’s getting your foot in the door is the hardest part. Unless you have that ‘sales’ streak, party plan is definitely not for you.

2. Most people are time poor

Back in the 60s and 70s, or even up to 20 or 30 years ago, there were a lot more stay at home mums around who were craving to get together with other Mums to socialise and hear about products that ordinarily weren’t available in shops. These days the majority of ‘mums’ are out there working and the last thing they want to do is organise a get together with other mums after a hard day’s work. Their weekend time is just as precious, spending it with their partners and families. You might just be lucky enough to find a group of people who do still love this type of social event but my group of friends are all very busy. The last thing I wanted to do was hassle them to organise a party.

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3. Party Plan companies develop a ‘culture’

There’s nothing better than feeling like you belong to a group of like minded people who are so positive, all the time. I found that sales leaders and their ‘upline’ are all very positive people who, at the end of the day, want you do to well because they will do well. There is a definite culture amongst these companies that promote rewards, bonuses, extra help and training to help you to succeed but at the end of the day, they will do well if you do well so they ‘train’ you to succeed. If you aren’t a salesperson or you are finding it difficult to book parties, and if party plan isn’t your ‘thing’, no amount of training will help you fit into this culture and do well.

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4. You have to sell a lot to earn the rewards

Every month, the party plan companies promote special monthly incentives or end of year overseas trips, for example. Some of them are quite good but really, you have to sell a lot, you have to have a lot of parties booked and so many other conditions. Refer to points 1 and 2 above. It’s hard work and if you haven’t got it in you to really ‘push’ your product, you aren’t going to realistically achieve these rewards.

5. Beware of underlying costs

You’ll find the company will promote ‘free to join’ as a consultant at various times of the year. You only might need to pay postage to get your ‘starter’ kit. Little do they tell you that’s it’s really only the basics that they provide you with. If you want to sell the whole range, you have to buy it or receive it as a reward as mentioned in point 4 above. There will always be monthly specials brochures, order pads, clipboards, tablecloths, prizes to give out at parties, hostess rewards and gifts, petrol to and from parties etc etc. It would take a good couple of months before you started seeing any real monetary rewards if you factor in all these hidden costs.

I gave it a crack. I was good at getting up in front of the crowd. I proved that to myself but a salesperson I am not. There are those type of people who do have the ‘gift of the gab’ and good on them. It’s a real craft but I’ll stay on the other side of the room and continue to go to these parties, if I get invited. Hell knows, I still love to get out of the house and socialise with other adults.

5 tips for your first Party Plan demonstration

Last Wednesday evening I gave my first ever Norwex demonstration. I’ve been to my fair share of direct selling ‘parties’ in my lifetime but never had I demonstrated anything. Every time I’d been to one of these parties I always thought “I could do that” but it never went any further. It wasn’t until early December, when I went to my first Norwex party, did I finally find a product that I thought was worth selling and very close to my heart. Who wouldn’t want to know about radically reducing chemicals from your home and learning how to save time, money and the environment with cleaning products?

I offered to demonstrate the Norwex products in my own home for my neighbour who didn’t have enough room at her place so I was well practised in setting up the display before the event. As a ‘newbie’ I don’t have a lot of products in my kit but less is more I’m finding and only the essentials need be displayed I feel. 

Dream Starter Kit with Enviro Wand (wand included as a special for the month of February 2015 only)

On this occasion, I made sure I had all of the products in the Dream Starter Kit which is on special for the month of February with an Enviro Wand included. I displayed all of the products in a cleaning caddy which is available for a couple dollars from the cheap shops. I used a black single sheet to drape over my ironing board as my display table.

The best seller, the Mop Starter Kit was also on display as well as a few consumables I have. There are a lot of great ideas for setting up your display on Pinterest and I’ve pinned a few on my Norwex Pinterest board.

I also had a few of the bath and body microfibre cloths on display plus host only gifts. A few props from the op shop came in handy to hold some of the cloths and make the whole display warm and inviting and to assure my clients that cleaning no longer be a chore with the wonderful range of microfibre cloths. I have to admit that once I started up, being the procrastinator that I am, I was really unsure where to start. Once I had my first party booked, I knew there was no way of getting out of it. I had to put a plan in place to make sure the whole night went smoothly and I just wanted to share my 5 tips with any other potential new consultants to Norwex (or any other direct selling companies) to let you know it’s not all that daunting. It really is a fun experience and if you’re passionate about the product, the demonstrating part of it is actually quite a lot of fun.  So here goes, my top 5 tips for your first Norwex demonstration.

1.  Don’t rehearse your script too much.

I took the advice of my leader and followed the Norwex script but adjusted it to how I can relate the Norwex experience to my own personal life. Sure, you need to remember the facts and figures and that can certainly be referred to so you don’t misquote or forget anything. I read through the script probably twice before the party but once I started, the interaction I got from the guests kept the party flowing and it was obviously pleasing to them. They shared their own personal stories and asked their own questions.

2.  Know where everything is on your display.

Your script should prompt you to display a particular product so you should know where that is in your display. Having all of the basic Norwex cleaning products set up in the cleaning caddy, I knew that was where to look for the next product I wanted to demonstrate. Less is more and depending on the theme of the party, I’d definitely limit the number of products according to the theme. I know the first party I went to I was a bit overwhelmed with the number of products in the range. I wanted them all but didn’t know which cloth did what so was a little confused.

3.  Ensure you have current catalogues on hand.

My 2015 product catalogues arrived at the 11th hour and I managed to have them in time for my demo. I wanted to give the catalogues out at the very beginning so the guests could refer to them as I began talking about a particular product. I actually incorporated that into a game and conducted a raffle. Every time I mentioned a product the guests were asked to find the page number in the catalogue and when they did, they received a raffle ticket. At the end of the demonstration, the winner was drawn by the host and the winner received a free product I had gift wrapped. The catalogue gives the guest the chance to see the price, dimensions and other product information that may be applicable to them.

4.  Interact with the guests.

Nothing would be more boring than to sit and watch someone rattle off a whole bunch of stuff about a product they’re not familiar with. I asked a lot of questions, in particular about housework and pet hates which prompted a lot of discussion and a few laughs. No one really likes housework but when told about the great benefits using the Norwex products it will hopefully ignite the same passion that was ignited in me when I first heard about it. Get the guests using the product in your demonstration so they get to see how effective it really is.

5.  Relax.

If you’re passionate about the product your selling, whether you know your guests or not, once you start it will be easy. Honest! I never really had any nerves going into the demonstration. I knew most of the guests and I honestly felt like I was having a chat over a cup of coffee, talking about something I’m really passionate about. I think guests can pick up on that and want to know more. Who wouldn’t want to know about how you can help save the environment by only using a cloth and water to clean your entire home, save time and money doing it and perhaps think about selling it themselves? Whether you do it for the money, the fact that it will contribute to saving the environment ensuring a future for generations to come or whether you just like to get out and interact with people, that will shine through. Just breathe, relax and enjoy the whole experience.

If you’re in the South East Queensland area and would like to know more, perhaps hold your own demonstration and receive free products and just get a bunch of friends together to hear more about the Norwex range of products, you can drop me a line directly to my Norwex consultant page or on email to domesblissity at gmail dot com. I look forward to hearing from you! Best of luck on your Norwex mission!