DSWA Elite Certification

I recently signed up for the DSWA's new direct sales certification course called "The Elite Leaders Certification Course". I have found pretty much everything that the DSWA produces is top notch so I decided I better jump into this new program. And I'm glad I did. Although it's an intense 6 month study, I believe at the end I'll be a far better leader to my direct sales team and probably just in general too.

I'll post my comments about the course as I go along here but if you're interested in finding out more check ou it out here: DSWA Elite Course. And if you sign up, please put my name, Annette Yen, in the referral field. THANKS!

More later-
Annette

Direct Sales, Network Marketing and Multi Level Marketing... What's the Difference?

I had a friend ask me this today and thought it might be good to post it here for you all to comment on.

Direct Sales - selling direct to the customer either via a one on one relationship or in a party plan type situation.  The seller earns a commission off of the sale of product.Often Direct Sales companies (like ours) have a multi-level element to them in the career plan. 

Multi-level marketing - a business where one can earn an income from those they sponsor into the business. Can be direct sales or via a network marketing channel.  In a direct sales situation, like ours, the parent company pays the recruiter a percentage of the sale of product (not to recruit the person - that's not allowed) for their help in building the company and hopefully leading that person in their business.   For instance, in NA, our career plan pays out for THREE levels of downline... and the percentages are based on the recruiters personal sales, recruiting activity and leadership (helping others grow their business).  I've attached a copy of the career plan again in case you didn't get one earlier.

Network Marketing - Marketing your business via networking.... similar to direct sales but as I understand it usually in a real Network Marketing business, most of the reps are recruited as wholesale buyers of the product and not necessarily going to actually sell the same product to other individuals at retail price. Most of the time a Network Marketing business is multi level.. in fact I can't think of one that isn't as it wouldn't make sense not to be.  Amway was the leader of this model really... people signing up people who ultimately would use all the Amway products and tell their friends about it.

Now I have no idea if the above definitions are correct and I'd love comments or suggestions on how to describe it better.  Let me know!

technorati tags:direct, sales, network, marketing, multi, level, marketing

Five Tips on Emailing Customers

Here's another good article from tne New York Enterprise Report. Anne Holland, the author, has some great tips on using email effectively in your direct sales small business.  Thanks Anne for a thoughtful article!

Here's the start of the article...then click on the link to read more

Five Tips on E-mailing Customers October 13, 2004

By: Anne Holland

Good news for small-business owners: According to e-mail usage studies, consumers are most interested in hearing from local businesses they support. In fact, it’s the number one kind of email message people like to receive. Here are five specific tips to help your campaign succeed: 1 Don’t send email to a list of more than 50 people from your own PC or your company’s email server. Email services such as Yahoo! specifically look for bulk sends by amateur mailers and block them automatically as suspected spam.

There are many inexpensive e-mailing services that minimize delivery problems. You upload your list and they send the mail for you. Plus...

Read more by clicking here for The New York Enterprise Report

technorati tags:email, tips, marketing, direct, sales

The Difference between Direct Sales and Network Marketing

Here's a very thorough article on the main differences between Direct Sales and Network Marketing.  Some Direct Sales companies have the element of Network Marketing in them too, but it's helpful to get some clarity on the issue... Enjoy!

Direct Sales vs. Network Marketing

technorati tags:direct, sales, network, marketing, business

Generate More Online Leads for Your Direct Sales Business

Here's a great article from Alice Seba who knows more than just a little bit about maximizing the internet for a home based business! Enjoy! :)

How Do I Generate More Online Leads for My Direct Sales Business?

Here’s a question I recently received from a subscriber who was looking for more leads for his direct sales business. He wrote:

*Question*: My wife and I have been an associate for a particular company for several months now and we are indeed very happy with the products and support training.

Our problem is getting other people to view our link or getting them to open it at all, I suppose. We need to expand our effort to new associate recruiting and would like your input as to how we might do this. Thank you for reply to this letter.

*Answer*: Thanks for the question. I know that the problem you face is what many direct sales reps face as well. Right now, you are using the website that the company provided to you. It’s the same site that the other reps are using and it really doesn’t say much about the two of you as unique people.

Your site also makes people enter a code before even viewing it. I understand that this is so you can get credit for any referrals, but you’re creating an extra step for your users. People have to remember the code, type it in or even copy and paste it, which unfortunately, is something a lot of people won’t bother to do. People use the Internet because it’s easy and they want to surf around quickly, without having to jump through hoops. You want your information right in front of your prospect when they get to the site.

Obviously, this is the way the company has set up the website and they probably aren’t going to change that…but honestly…I don’t think that matters. The two of you need your own unique online presence and need to generate your own leads.

Here’s why:

Who knows what will happen with your relationship with your company. They are a highly reputable company that’s been around for well over 100 years, but you have no idea what the future holds. If the company decided to no longer offer the direct sales opportunity or one day, the two of you decide you just don’t want to work with the company…what happens? Your business is gone! That’s no good.

I recommend that you keep your online presence separate from the company you are working with, so it really is your OWN business and you can maximize your income. You can generate leads that might be interested in your opportunity and you can make them other offers through affiliate programs or you might even want to create your own information products down the line.

Think of what unique perspective you give to your business. Are you great cooks who can show people how to make delicious meals with those products? From the recruiting side, you can also figure out a unique perspective, but make it a product focused one. Your best recruits will be people who have the same interests as you…not just people who want to make money online.

You can start by creating a list to promote your products and another to find recruits. I’d create two separate websites for this because some of your best customers will never be interested in the opportunity, so don’t confuse your visitors. For the product list, you can share recipes, information about using the right herbs and spices, etc. For the recruiting one, you can give information about starting a home business, show how fun it is to sell these types of products, etc….all from your own perspective.

All these subscribers you gather now belong to you. If you decide to move in a new direction with your business, you still have these subscribers and you can continue to deliver quality information to them…and earn an income too.

Just remember, this is your business and you want to have complete control AND maximize your income.

----

Alice Seba is a full-time Internet marketer that helps direct sales reps maximize the performance of their online presence. For more online direct sales lead generation tips, sign up for free at http://www.quicksales.com/app/?Clk=1495231

If you're looking to start your online presence with your own website but don't want to mess with the time and energy it takes to learn html, figure out hosting, domain names, etc... just quick and easy... try the 10 day trial here at The Internet Based Family. They have a VERY easy website builder and you can have your website up in minutes!

Using Articles in Direct Sales to grow your business

I love article marketing! It's fun, unique and best of all FREE!

Enjoy the article below for more info:

Using Article Marketing in Your Direct Sales Business Posted By : Annette Yen

By writing a content rich, helpful and informative article you can set yourself apart as an expert in your field and generate traffic to you and your Direct Sales business.

Starting in Direct Sales

Here's a quick read from Stephanie Fauquet on some benefits of starting in a Direct Sales Business. Click the link below and enjoy. And many thanks to Stephanie! :-)

Direct Sales – A business of your very own Posted By : Stefanie Fauquet

Getting an extra income, or quitting your job and working from home might be closer than you think!

technorati tags:direct, sales, business

Here's another great site with information on our industry!

Direct Selling News

I was tooling around the internet today and found this site with some interesting information and news about our Direct Sales industry as well as some specific company news. Worth bookmarking!

Enjoy-

Annette

Here's how audio looks and sounds on your blog

Resources referenced in this post:
Blogger and Audio Blogger: Click here for Blogger.com
Audio Acrobat: Click here for AudioAcrobat.com