Parties are important to us because:
- How we grow our business
- How we grow our customer base
- How we expand our network
- How we add new teammates
What to do before the party begins:
One to two weeks before a party, have a conversation with your Hostess and make sure that they:
- Know the expectations of the party
- Know what you are going to be doing
- Know what you are going to need from them
Keep it as simple as possible. If it is too complicated, they will feel like there is too much involved. Later down the road, if they would like to join, you want to make it feel simple and duplicatable to do it with their own Reps.
“Our Hostesses are gifts to us, and we’re here to serve them and make sure that they have the best party possible.”
Your pre-party to-do list:
Communication: Make sure you know the best way to communicate with your hostesses. Some may not be on social media all the time, and you want to keep in good contact with them leading up to the party. Communication is huge leading up to the party.
The attendee list: The first thing to have them do, is make their party list. Make sure that they share the list with you to make sure that they have done the work. You don’t want to be surprised when you get to the party and find that only three people are attending. If that is the case, it is fine. You just want to be aware beforehand.
Tell your Hostess to shoot for a list of about 30 to 40 people. This is your sweet spot—not too big and not too small.
Tell them no mass inviting. When I get an invite, and the person has not personally reached out to me, I will ignore it.
- This is a huge pet peeve of mine.
- Make sure your attendees feel like it is a personal invite.
- Have them put an invite on their personal page telling others about their personal experience about how their friend introduced them to these leggings, how amazing they fit, and how much they love them and ask to have friends comment below if they would like to be invited to the party. Give them a sample picture to include on this invite.
- When your Hostess doesn’t feel like they have anyone to invite, remind them of people they know. They could invite people at work, church, their kids’ sporting events, and teammates’ parents.
The wish list:
Have your Hostess fill out a wish list of products, so you can help mention favorites during the party and say something like, “Oh, Sarah is hoping that she can earn the Black Light n’ Tights.” To make it easier for her to create posts throughout the party, say that this is her wish list, what is yours? Have them comment below with their wish list to be entered to win a $10 gift card- or something else like that. When your Hostess has their wish list made out, it’s easier for them to start engaging with their party right away.
Goal setting: Make sure they understand what they are striving for. Make sure that they know the rewards levels and what that means.
Always try to have them shoot higher than what is expected. That way, if things aren’t going that well, you can say, “Well, you only need one more order, and you will have your $200 limit.”
- Set their goal up to reach the $1,000 level.
- Let them know how many leggings need to sell to get to that level.
What to do during the party
Thank your attendees: When your invitees start to join the party, send them a personal message thanking them for joining the party and let them know that you are there to help with sizing, the fit, or any other questions they might have.
- This helps them to feel comfortable with you right from the start and allows you to connect with them personally so that they don’t feel like you are just a stranger helping them find a pair of leggings.
- Have your Hostess also send them a personal message to thank them for joining the party as well.
Engagement:
If your Hostess is not engaging during the party, you will not have a good party. They have to like and engage during the party and may need extra coaching and encouragement to post or get on and comment.
- If someone purchases something during the party, I like to use Word Swag to create a little thank you for that purchase.
- I personally also offer free shipping for purchases. This gives me another way to connect with them. I will thank them again for purchasing and ask them how I can reimburse them for their shipping. You don’t have to pay for their shipping. This is what I do, but make sure to go in and personally thank them.
- A thank you goes a long way. Recognize them with a thank you in the party and a private message. A simple thank you will make them feel valuable and appreciated.
- If your Hostess already owns Zyia clothing, this is a fun way for them to engage by sharing a picture of themselves wearing their Zyia favorites. Attendees love seeing their Hostess in the actual clothing.
Facebook Lives:
Facebook Lives are a great way to kick off a party. Show one of the outfits and what you love about it, the sizing and fit. If your Hostess and you both do a Facebook Live, they can see how it looks on different body types. Just know that some hostesses may not be comfortable with this, and that’s okay.
Wish list:
Make sure that your Hostess uses their wish list to create posts during the party.
Should you talk about becoming a Rep during the party?
I usually won’t spend a lot of time talking about this, but I definitely sprinkle it in throughout the party. This will help your Hostess hear you talk about it many times about what it means to be a Rep, how much you love being a Rep, what you love about it, along with the benefits. This makes it less scary to ask afterward, as they have already been thinking about it.
What to do after the party is over:
- Make sure to thank the attendees and have your Hostess thank them as well.
- Find out if your Hostess is planning on enrolling or not. Make sure that they understand what it means to enroll.
- If they have a great party and have at least $150 credit, make sure that you are talking about the opportunity and how they can use the $150 credit towards their enrollment kit.
- Don’t be afraid to ask them about becoming a Rep. I was scared at first and oftentimes just thought, oh, they’ll let me know if they want to join. They usually won’t. They are generally on the fence about it and just need an extra push, so make sure to ask them about it.
What If your Hostess chooses not to enroll?
- Send a thank you to the entire party with a link to your VIP group. Let them know that if they liked what they saw during the party, they can join this VIP group to be notified of the new releases or any sales or deals that are running.
- Make a little post in the party with the picture of the hostess rewards. Let them know that they will get free to half off items for hosting if they choose to do the next party.
What if your Hostess does choose to enroll?
- If they join your team, you can help them change that group from the party into their own VIP group.
- Create a post in the party stating that your Hostess decided to become a Rep and is looking for someone to earn free or 50% off to host their first party.
What to do with the new customers:
Following up with the new customers is huge! I email them from the Back Office, letting them know that I am just following up to make sure they loved their Zyia, and that I am available if they have any questions or anything else that I can help them with. If they purchased multiple items or have a history of buying Zyia, this is where I will have a chat with them about hosting a party.
Where I started and where I am now:
My first goal as a new Rep was to get one party per week. That sounded like a lot, but as time went on and I make a lot of sales through my VIP group, I realize that I still need to host parties to bring on new Reps. Now I shoot for one or two parties a month. What I found that works the best now are the multi-host parties. That is the way to go. I have a party happening in a couple of days, and I have four hostesses in it, which is like doing four parties.
What platform works best?
I have tried other platforms other than Facebook and have found that Facebook is my go-to.
Facebook is where I started and is where I am most comfortable.