WAHM Tips

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about ways I can improve my business and leadership skills and one of the traits I’ve realized I am lacking is duplicability. Duplication in this business is simply the ability to have others do what you do. Ideally, you will see this in your customers, hostesses, and most importantly, your team. Not being duplicable can hurt your sales, booking, and sponsoring if people feel they can’t duplicate what you do. I have had to admit that this is going on in my business. Is it in yours, too?

In customers, it shows up as them being able to use the products without a lot of instruction – they see you demonstrate a product at a home party, they purchase that product, and they go home and what you did on their own. It’s simple and easy enough to be successful, so they want to buy more. When we complicate our demonstrations by adding embellishments or altering the products or presentation with the general public, we reduce our duplicability.

At our home parties, duplicability shows up in both our hostess coaching and our presentations. Think of your home parties as a job interview – your hostess and guests are thinking about whether they would like to do your job, or if they would like to ‘hire’ you to come to their house. Is your presentation simple enough so that anyone could do it? Is it fun enough so that others want to repeat it with their own friends? Do your parties appear to be easy on the hostess, or are you letting her get complicated with refreshments and entertainment? Not keeping your parties easy, simple, and fun, is one way to damage your duplicability and prevent others from booking with you, or thinking about doing what you do.

When you are sponsoring others into the business, and then helping those you sponsor to grow their own businesses, duplicability is perhaps the most important trait we can have as Consultants. Lacking duplicability in this area results in less recruiting, or in feelings from your team that they can never be like you. When you conduct business, are you doing so in a way that can be easily repeated by others on your team? Are you working your business in a way that makes them want to do what you do? Or are you complicating things so much that they feel inadequate in comparison?

This month I’d like to ask each of you to write on a post-it note, “Is this duplicable?” and before every task you do, every interaction you have, every decision you make about your business, ask yourself that question. Let’s go back to the basics and keep our jobs simple and duplicable so that others will want to and be able to do what we do, with pleasure! Have a great month!

Simplify For Duplication:
• Demonstrate and display products in the same state as they are sold from the company.
• Use the Hostess Coaching Guide provided from the company with every hostess.
• Use more company-made materials and less home-made materials so customers and prospects know the work is done for them.
• Use the Party Step Cards at your parties, even if you know the routine, so your guests see that if you can read, you can do this job!
• Conduct most of your business through phone calls and in person, not the Internet. Use technology sparingly and when you do, make it something others can easily do or learn from you.
• Do not overspend on advertisements, gifts, booth fees, inventory or other ‘extras’ that give the impression this is an expensive business.
• Read and re-read your manual to stay in touch with the information new Consultants will be reading when they get started.
• If you do want to do ‘extras’ that would not be considered duplicable, share them only with experienced customers, hostesses or team members who have already mastered the basics.
• Remember: Simple, easy, and fun!

Independent Story Time Felts Consultant

Independent Story Time Felts Consultant
Executive National Director

I am involved in many social and business groups, locally as well as nationally such as the Direct Selling Women’s Alliance, where leaders of the group or invited guest speakers address the members. Additionally, in a home party business such as the one I represent, Story Time Felts, we speak to groups every time we conduct business - through our interactive home parties. Although I am not a professional speaker, I’d like to share some tips to help improve your public speaking efforts:

• Most people should speak louder than normal and use larger gestures than you are accustomed to using in smaller interactions.
• Take some time to analyze your audience before you speak and be prepared to tell them something they don’t already know.
• Do not read a speech to the audience. Prepare a brief outline and trust yourself! Remember, reading to people puts them to sleep (just like when you were little!).
• Move away from the podium as much as you can, this will help establish rapport with the audience.
• Practice, practice, practice! In front of the mirror, in front of your kids, or in front of a camcorder. Video recorded practice is the most valuable in showing you areas for improvement such as little mannerisms that are distracting to the audience that you weren’t aware of.
• As you speak, move from person to person after spending 5 or 6 seconds looking at them. If you move your gaze too often, you risk appearing nervous or desperate.
• Delete the “ums” and “ahs” from your speaking. Pauses, even long ones, are much more welcome by the audience. Give yourself, and your audience, the time needed to think.

Good luck!

Independent Story Time Felts Director

Independent Story Time Felts Consultant
Executive National Director