Direct Sales Planning for 2011

We’re in the home stretch for the tail end of the busy Christmas gift giving season. If you’re like many direct sellers you’ve been running yourself ragged for the last 4-6 weeks. There’s something about holiday chaos that is an adrenaline rush!  Soon you will be able to breathe easy and put your feet up.
Or will you?

Direct sales is a business that needs consistent, forward activity in order to thrive.  The remainder of your last minute holiday orders will come in with little effort at this point in the season – as you’ve already booked parties and vendor events and hopefully marketed yourself well.  Therefore, by now you should be thinking about your game plan for 2011.

Will your company be offering any special promotions for January such as limited time product offerings, special host benefits or recruiting specials? If so, don’t wait until January to start spreading the word about these specials.  Promoting January during January is too late.  Do it now.


What about Valentine’s Day? That’s less than 10 weeks away.  Do you offer a product that men would love to give their sweetheart?  It may be a little early to start advertising for Valentine’s Day but it certainly is not too early to start planning.  Perhaps you can do a shopping day during lunch hour at a business that is heavy on male employees.  Have you checked to see if there are any vendor events you can book during this time?
There is a fine balance between looking ahead too far and missing out on sales and recruits that may be right in front of your face.  The key is to consistently project forward. If you do that, then you’ll already have your December and January calendar booked; so your focus will be on February.  After New Year’s Day start thinking about your Spring action plan.

It’s not much different than when you drive your car.  If you were to just look at what was immediately in front of you, you may miss that detour or oncoming traffic.  You need to constantly look ahead of the vehicle and always been looking side to side as well as up ahead.  Same is true for your direct sales business.
What is your action plan for 2011?  Have you started implementing it yet?  If not, do it now.

About the Author: Laurie Ayers is a WAHM from Michigan and a Superstar Director with Scentsy Wickless Candles. She enjoys helping others start and maintain a candle business. You can find Laurie at http://la.Scentsy.us or http://www.ThrivingCandleBusiness.com