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How to Get Back on Track When Things Don’t Go as Planned in Your Direct Sales Business
I don’t watch a lot of television, but my favorite show is “Lost”. Last night’s episode was one of the best ever, in my opinion. Without, getting into the plot, or the episode details, I think a very memorable quote last night on the show can also be applied to our business.
Anyone who has been in direct sales for any amount of time will learn that your rewards don’t always come from the same place that you put your efforts. Example, you can spend an hour on the phone calling your customers for reorders and get no sales at all, leaving you frustrated. That time is not wasted. I really believe that for every effort there is a reward. Within 24 hours of when that happened, isn’t it common to get a phone call or email from an entirely new customer?
This is an important lesson to learn, if you are to be successful. It’s okay to adjust, modify, and adapt what you are doing. Just keep going! Many who contact me telling me that they are stuck have just stopped working. Perhaps they put a lot of time and effort into something that was a complete failure (in their mind) You have to keep going! “Get up each time you fall”
Let me give you an example on how sometimes there are blessings when things don’t turn out the way you expect them to. About 20 years ago, I was rushing to get out of the house to do a party. (It had been a particularly challenging day with my 3 boys, including a trip to the emergency room) When I arrived, I realized that I had forgotten one of my bags that had facial wash cloths, mirrors, trays in them. There were 6 women already there sitting in the living room waiting for me to do makeovers. (I was late, which was unusual for me)
There was no time to go home and get them. The hostess didn’t even have a table so they were seated on the sofa, and some folding chairs. I was really embarrassed and wished that I could have just left, but I honestly explained the situation.
My hostess told me that all of her wash cloths were in the washer at the moment. Her neighbor immediately went out and took some off the clothes line for us to use. Another neighbor ran home to get some paper plates and a couple mirrors for us to use. It was really coming together.
I started the demonstration and it was going extremely well when a thunderstorm started and the lights went out. What now, I thought? Not knowing how long they would be out, we continued with candle light. Just about the time that I was finished the lights came back on. Amazingly everyone looked great, but I quickly left without even trying to take any orders.
I had planned to just forget that that party ever happened. So many things had gone wrong. It would have been easy to do that. Something inside me said “follow up”, so I did. I called the hostess the next day. When I started to apologize, she said, “I have some orders for you.” I had sold over $300 at that party, which was a big deal 20 years ago. When I timidly approached the hostess about the business opportunity, she said, “It doesn’t look that difficult, I think I’d like to give it a try.” SHE IS STILL A MEMBER OF MY UNIT TODAY ALONG WITH ONE OF HER GUESTS!
When you discover the ability to think quickly and adjust your plans, no matter how bad the situation looks, you will find blessings and success along the way! See you at the top!
February 19th, 2009 at 11:01 am
Great insights, Nancy! I had something similar (though on a smaller scale) happen this week. I was making customer service calls, and didn't get any orders. However, the next day an acquaintance e-mailed me and asked for a catalog. A potential new customer! Yay!
February 19th, 2009 at 5:01 pm
Great insights, Nancy! I had something similar (though on a smaller scale) happen this week. I was making customer service calls, and didn't get any orders. However, the next day an acquaintance e-mailed me and asked for a catalog. A potential new customer! Yay!