How to Grow Your Direct Sales Customers
We are headed into another year, are YOU happy with your direct sales business? Or do you feel kinda “meh”?
What is the biggest question you have about your business right now?
It’s possible that you are wondering how to grow your direct sales customers in the year ahead. Believe me, you aren’t the only one wondering how to do just that!
Growing your direct sales customer base is the foundation to consistent income. The larger your loyal customer base is, the more opportunities for your income to grow.
But, HOW do you grow your customer base?
Throughout the past 3 years, I’ve realized there are two main strategies to growing your business. I call these strategies Push vs. Pull.
You’ll see why by reading more below…
Push Strategy
When you start your direct sales business, you are quickly thrown into the traditional methods of selling.
Reaching out to family and friends.
Creating a list of 100 people you know.
Looking for daily opportunities to share your products or business.
These methods work, but you will find you are back to square 1 in a short amount of time.
The reason why is because with these methods YOU are the one to PUSH your products and business on others. Whether they are interested or not.
You know where I’m going with this right? Over eager “pushing” of your products and business can quickly lead to being viewed as spammy.
This is why the direct sales industry is notorious for being labeled as being spammy.
Millions of consultants, pushing. Every day, day in day out, dropping links, sending texts, sending messages, over and over again.
With this method, you will see some level of success. Getting 99 no’s but 1 yes is gratifying, but is not sustainable over time.
There HAS to be a different way!
Spoiler alert…there is!
Let’s take a look at the opposite end of the direct sales strategy spectrum and learn more about the pull strategy.
Pull Strategy
Pulling customers to you is not widely used in the direct sales industry. (It should be!!)
The core of the pull strategy is that you are capturing those customers who are already looking for your products and your business.
YOUR online content is PULLING those customers to you. This is where the sales and the relationships begin.
The simple act of creating content that your prospective customers are looking for helps to lead the customer to you and your website.
Some ways you can create your own content to capture those customers who are seeking your products are:
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Write a Blog Post
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Join a Directory
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Pin to your Pinterest boards
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Instagram Hashtag Strategy
Scenario: Madeline is a customer who is searching for gift ideas from Pampered Chef. Considering the 4 content ideas above here is how she will find you and potentially complete a purchase:
Google: Madeline goes to Google and types in “Pampered Chef Gift Ideas”. Your blog post appears on page 1 and she appreciates the full list of gift ideas and captivating pictures! She clicks on one of the links in the blog post and purchases a gift set. Score!
Directory: Madeline goes to Google and types in “Pampered Chef + Madeline’s City”. You are listed on Sassy Direct and the Mommies Hiring Mommies Directory and your name appears on Google page 1. She reads your directory profile and reaches out to ask about your gift idea suggestions. The connection is made, you answer her questions, and a sale is made. Yes!
Pinterest: Madeline pulls up her Pinterest app and searches for “Pampered Chef Gift Ideas”. As she scrolls the pins, she finds one about a crockpot that makes her stop her scroll and click. When she clicks on the pin, she is brought to your website and continues to make a purchase. Booyah!
Instagram: Madeline loves Instagram for finding products from different companies. She ends up searching the hashtag #pamperedchefgifts and happens upon your Instagram post. She clicks the link in your bio to find your contact information and website and sends you a message. #winning!
Follow-Up (A Must for Any Strategy)
No matter how you approach growing your direct sales customers in the next year, you need a solid follow-up strategy to turn those new customers into repeat customers.
Establish a connection right away with your customer. Send a message or craft a friendly email. Let the customer know that when they made their purchase, there is someone on the other end of that transaction…YOU!
Use a different method the second time you reach out. A hand written note in the mail is a great idea. This solidifies in the customer’s mind that you are their personal consultant.
Keeping notes and providing additional helpful information to the customer will again strengthen the relationship and increase the probability that they become long time loyal customers.
Revisit your past customers and see what new products or helpful information can be of value to them and continue fostering your individual relationship with each and every customer.
The formula of the Pull strategy plus solid follow-up means you are consistently able to grow your direct sales customers over time.
So tell me, which method are you currently using and what changes are you looking to make in the new year?
Stuck on what to do?
Start by subscribing to the Direct Sellers Toolbox to find all the free and premium resources you need to grow your business.
What to Read Next: Direct Sales Tips
- 50 Blog Topic Ideas for Direct Sellers and Home Based Business Owners - April 5, 2019
- How to Create an Automated Email Sequence in Mailchimp - March 31, 2019
- 75 Direct Sales Tasks to Grow Your Business - March 3, 2019
Click to purchase Advanced Pinterest Strategies. You know the basics of Pinterest but have been wondering how to increase your website traffic and possibly grow your direct sales business. This course is for you!
I just started in the biz & I don’t really want 2 do the parties or videos
How can I grow quickly
Hi Kristi! Nice to meet you! 🙂 You can really work your business however you feel comfortable. One of the best ways for new customers and team members to find you is by utilizing the Premium Membership on Sassy Direct. You will have a public listing plus access to write articles about your business and your products. Sassy Direct and Pinterest are the only 2 channels I use for my Origami Owl business. For more information about Sassy Direct visit here: foreversparkly.com/sassydirectsignup
Hi Kristy, I ran across your very interesting information in Pinterest today. I started Magnolia and Vine late last year. I noticed a post that someone wrote that they don’t want to do the parties or videos and want to grow quickly. I work full time and time is limited. Can you tell me more about foeversparkly.com/sassydirectsignup and how effective this would be for me
Hi Carol! Congrats on your new Magnolia and Vine business! Like you, I have limited time to work and Sassy Direct is one of the ways I grow my Origami Owl business. With a premium membership, you have the ability to create and publish articles. Sassy Direct has a strong authority when it comes to Google so your articles have a great chance a being found on Page 1 when a search is made. Take a peek at this video about writing a microblog post on Sassy Direct. Then feel free to email me at kristy@foreversparkly.com
Looking forward to chatting more!
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2oO1nNJI3ug
I’m doing pretty much all of the above except for the blog, I’ve not noticed too much of a difference yet but I’m trying to not be impatient lol. I should stop procrastinating and get on setting up that blog that I’ve been meaning to do for months 🙂
Keep going, Karen! One option if you find a self-hosted blog too big of a project is to look at Sassy Direct. Their premium membership makes it super easy to publish blog posts and you have the benefit of their strong SEO presence with Google. Check out foreversparkly.com/sassydirectsignup and be sure to email me with questions! kristy@foreversparkly.com
Thanks for the tip!! I will look into that option 🙂