Did you ever wonder why some people do well in Direct Sales and others do not? Attitude is of course the first ingredient, but after that, it's education. You can develop relationships that lead to lifetime business!

Social media is a new tool that you can use to meet new clients and collaborate with others. I can give you a recent example of this. I met Trish Forant of emailourmilitaryon twitter. We collaborated on a projuect to send care packages to the troops in Iraq. We called this "Operation Soldier Care".

The summer climate is really harsh in Iraq. My husband is a retired army officer. I knew how much something from home meant to the troops. So we put together a month long project to do just that. I agreed to match every care package with another one so it was non profit for me.

The project started out really well, but stalled at about two weeks. At that point, I met Phyllis Zimbler Miller, author of Mrs Lieutenant, a Sharon Gold Novel. She agreed to offer a signed copy of her book to the top five contributors. Everything changed at that point! We were able to find other businesses to offer prizes. By the time that the project ended, we had over $1000 in prizes for the top five contributors and an end result of over $6,000 in care packages sent to the troops!

This illustration is just one way of demonstrating the power of collaboration and creative marketing to solve a problem, or fulfill a need. Operation Soldier Care would never have been a success without the time spent developing relationships using twitter and blogging.

Top Five Ways to Stay Motivated in Direct Sales-

When you have a home business in Direct Sales, one of the biggest challenges that you have to deal with is motivation. In my Direct Sales Blog I covered how to be your own boss and still manage to get the job done without someone looking over your shoulder.

1. Share your clear and concise goal with others.. There is no such thing as a “secret goal”. The first time that I made a decision to attain Court of Sales in my business I started by announcing it to my unit. I had a consultant who set that goal and the year was half over and she was way off track. I picked up her goal and decided to run with it.

2. Look for someone to be accountable to who will not accept your excuses. As women, we always have drama in our life. If you make a decision to allow those dramas to stop you, failure is lurking around the corner. There is always a way to work around any obstacle.

3. Understand the reason for your goal and be passionate about it. Know your "why". I have never seen a goal with a reason behind it not become a reality. The year that my youngest son started school, I made a decision to move into leadership in my company. My reason was simple- I wanted to be a WAHM. I wanted to be there when they got home from school, attend field trips with them, and spend summers at the pool with my children. A home business allowed me to do that.

4. Make sure that your goal has an end date to achieve it. A goal without a deadline is just a dream. Even the most audacious goal must have an end time. The worst that can happen is that you need to extend the deadline. But be clear on when you want the goal to happen.

5. Learn from your mistakes and share that knowledge in mentoring others.. I give myself permission to make mistakes along the way, and document it. The year that I was first runner up in personal sales, it was not my goal. It was a result of massive effort and documentation for one of my consultants who had that goal. Every action was scripted, recorded and shared with her. Whenever you have the ability to take others to places that they have never been before as a result of your efforts, it motivates you to give more.

K.I.S.S (Keep it Simple, Sweetie- Your focus, that is)

The year that I achieved Queen of Personal Sales, I limited my focus to only five things. This is what is most important to keeping your focus simple-

Five Simple Things to FOCUS on-

· 1. Being face to face with at least one customer per day showing the product. (Sales goal of $500 a day) Some days you might see ten people, other days only one. If an appointment postpones, you MUST use that time to be in front of another client, demonstrating or sharing career information.

· 2. Broadening the usage of each customer to increase $$ per customer average. This can be done by offering Product of the Month specials, Birthday Pampering Appointments, and scheduling update appointments.

· 3. Prospecting for NEW CUSTOMERS daily both online and face to face. It’s important to balance your time both online and offline networking. Social media and New Media are excellent tools to build relationships and find new customers. Networking organizations like BNI provide a structured environment for growing referrals. Look for opportunities to collaborate with other businesses.

· 4. Providing superior customer service and build relationships. Look for every opportunity to serve them thereby building customers for life. Make them feel important. That will keep them wanting to spend time with you.

· 5. "Hitch your wagon to a star" Unleash the power of following someone who has already gone before you where you want to go. Have a Power Partner, Coach or Mastermind group. Be accountable.

As a Beauty expert, and a lifetime of working with women, I am passionate about empowering others to reach their full potential. I have earned the title of Queen of Personal Sales. You can do it too! I can show you how. I am still working in my own direct sales business as an Independent Sales Director and still work in the field with my personal sales.

I leverage my lifelong experience in business with the same direct sales company into being a business advisor for other women who are willing to do the work and move their business to the next level. I don't take credit for their success or failures. Are you frustrated with your own direct sales business? Have you mastered the skills necessary for building a solid customer base that has the loyalty to follow your for life and eagerly share their family and friends with you? I have so much to share with you. Do you have dreams that I can help you achieve?

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