Try this: Assemble a nice basket or gift box of your products. Make it very attractive. Take it to a small local retailer and ask if you can set up a daily display raffle. Set up a table with raffle tickets for participants to fill out. Get their name, phone number, email, etc. Be sure to ask: Would you be interested in more information about XYZ company? This will open the door to allow you to contact them to set up future bookings, send catalogs, etc.

If your products are enticing, you can gather a huge number of raffle slips in a short amount of time. You should let the winner know they’ve won and then keep the rest of the slips and contact the people to set up bookings. This is a very successful method of getting lots of bookings in record time!

If you do not wish to set up a table or leave the products, you can take a nice digital photo and put it in a flier with the offer. Be sure to put it in a plastic menu-type holder (available at most office supply stores) and display it prominently next to your raffle slips. You can return to collect the slips.

Selling can be fun, challenging, profitable and frustrating.
It order to make it a little easier, be prepared with responses to
some common objections:

Can you get it with the same advantages
(ingredients, etc.)?

Is it actually the same thing that you are buying
elsewhere?

I can't afford it

Let me show you how it would be more cost-effective
in the long run

Let me show you how long it will last

Let me show our payment options

We do offer discounts under the following
circumstances

There will be a price increase on this soon

Let me show you how you could get it at a
big discount (recruiting prospect)

It won't work for me

Tell me more about what you need

Why do you feel it won't work

We offer a money-back guarantee

I'll think about it Is there additional information
I can give you to help you decide?

Here's a sample you can try

We have a special promotion for a limited time

What questions do you still have?

I don't like _________ about it.

Can you tell me specifically what you don't like?
 

In what way would you like it to be different?

Once you have prepared yourself for most of the common
objections you hear, you can counter them easily and
help your prospect make an informed decision.

A large part of selling is listening, assessing and making
recommendations to your customers. If you really care about
helping them solve a problem versus just making a sale,
they will be more comfortable buying from you...again and again.

Your "warm" leads (leads who have already met you/ bought from you, etc.) are the best source for new business...and new recruits. If they have purchased from you, then be sure to put them on your priority list for follow-ups. If you contact each warm lead each month (by phone, email or mail) you will certainly find yourself with higher sales.

It's easy to forget, get busy, get re-focused, etc., however if you establish a "tickler file" to keep yourself on track you will find it much easier. These files can be physical or electronic and will keep you in constant contact with your customers and potential customers.

Another method is to send out a monthly newsletter with a special promotion that expires by the 25th of the month. By having it expire by the 25th, it will allow you to end the promotion, send out all orders and develop a new promotion/newsletter for the next month.

If you are offering your customers catalogs, fliers, coupons, freebies, etc. you are selling to them.

However, if you are offering your customers information to meet their needs, you are educating them. No one likes to be sold to. We all like to know how to solve our particular problems.

If you are not providing an information-based marketing program to your customers, consider doing so . It can be as simple as a newsletter sent via mail or email. Write a one-page solution to a
common problem targeted to your product line.

For instance, acne can be relieved by various methods--list several, including your product line of acne items. Or, child development milestones--what should you expect at one, two, three, etc. You can
also provide the appropriate toys from your product line for each age group. You can find the information to include by just surfing the web. However, be sure to write your newsletter in your own words. Do not
plagiarize or cut and paste topics into it.

If you give your customers relevant information plus a little sales &
marketing, you will likely get a customer who not only actually reads your newsletter...but appreciates it, too!
 

Many sellers we consult with offer to help their new recruits with their first party or two. Once the recruit has a party booked, the recruiter attends to assist and guide them until they feel comfortable. However, some of the most successful sellers we work with go one step better: they offer a
New Recruit Practice Party.

Each of your new recruits could be invited to such a "practice party." This party would involve each of the new recruits you've signed up that month. Each of these new recruits should invite two people to attend the practice party. Having friendly faces in the crowd always helps to steady jitters.

The party should include their friends/relatives and possibly a couple of your own more successful and seasoned team members. The team members can offer valuable advice and tips to newbie recruits for boosting their sales, how to present, ideas for party games, etc. They will be excellent at "critiquing" the newbies and
offering useful and applicable tips.

These parties should be segmented so each recruit gets the chance to do a part of the presentation. The presentations should be divided up and each recruit does
a separate item, service, etc. They should each be involved in the sales part of the presentation (usually toward the end).

These parties are fun and relaxing and perfect for new recruits to "get the bugs out" of their presentation skills, sales skills, etc. The guests should be informed that it is
a practice party and everyone will feel more relaxed knowing that fact. Guests are at ease and the newbie sellers will feel more freedom in giving information, showing the products and practicing their sales skills.

Recruits will feel much more comfortable knowing that they have this practice party (or even two) in order to develop their confidence and skills before setting off themselves.

Since it won't be billed as a "real" sales party it will set them at ease. Of course, it should be a selling situation as well. It should be productive financially but very casual and easy-going (read: lots of laughter, a few goof-ups, but ultimately a confidence builder!).

As their recruiter you can attend the party to offer them tips, suggestions on their techniques, etc. This can be done after the party at a personal consultation session
or as a group session after the party. This is when the seasoned team members should offer their own ideas on how to run a profitable party. Recruits can learn from others' mistakes and their own triumphs.

Some sellers even go so far as to pair up a newbie with a seasoned team leader. They work together until the new recruit feels comfortable on her own. Using this
tactic helps get the newbie off to a faster start, earn more at her parties and streamline her party/presentation skills. Remember, an earning recruit is a happy recruit!