Weathering the Storm! Cheryl Rickard Leads the Way in May with $4,350 in Sales!
In a month with two holiday weekends, Cheryl Rickard was still able to post impressive numbers and make her Consultant Dashboard sing for joy with incoming orders.
She rang up $4,350 in sales in just... wait for it... four parties, which means she averaged over $1,000 a party.
What's crazy about that is... back when the pandemic began, I projected that the average Zoom party would be around $250. Geepers, was I ever off! The average Zoom Party is over $500 and several consultants are doing way better than that. So, in the month of May, Cheryl averaged over FOUR times my early estimates. It's still hard to get your head around being able to do that while sitting at your dining
room table.
Cheryl is finally getting the momentum back that she lost last fall. If you weren't around then, it was due to a perfect storm of Americans doing all of their holiday shopping online, the postal service being sabotaged by Donald Trump, and EE switching over to our fulfillment center right in the middle of all of that.
The result was a lot of late arriving orders, disappointed customers and cancelled parties. And Cheryl's calendar, that was just starting to take off, fell apart and so did her momentum. But Cheryl, who is made of some sturdy stuff, was able to weather the storm and continue crawling through the sewer pipe like Andy in the Shawshank Redemption. Now she's flying high through clear and sunny skies, throwing
down 4-K months... and making over $1,000 in just four parties.
Simon Sinek says, "the stronger your why is, the stronger you are." Cheryl has two strong why's for building her business.
On the "laying brick" level, her short term goal is paying for a kitchen renovation that she's doing. You do know that kitchen renovations are among the most expensive renovations don't you?
On the "building a wall" level, her long term goal is to build a business that will allow her to retire early and retire in style. Since she earned six figures in EE 1.0, she knows she can do it again in EE 2.0.
Let's all congratulate Cheryl for a good month, but also for persevering and being tenacious when the going got tough. So join us with the shout out, "You go girl... you're starting to do the same things you did in EE 1.0, but you've got to admit... it's a whole lot easier!"
There She Blows! Donna Houston Continues to Roll in May with $3,118 in Sales!
When she started her EE business in February, Donna Houston came in like a mighty, rushing wind. May was no exception. Even with two holiday weekends, Donna still managed to uncork a $3,118 month... pushing her to over $20,000 in sales in just 4 months. Yowser! Yowser! Yowser! (I know, that's corny.) Donna was able to put together her 3-K month in just 5 parties, which means she averaged around
$600 a party.
If you own a home you know that upkeep and maintenance is a big expense. One of Donna's main goals is to make some serious money that she can use for home renovations, upgrades and improvements. And, you can see from her numbers that she's doing exactly that.
There's an old direct sales industry saying that goes like this; "If the average direct seller worked their job like they work their business, their boss would fire them. And, if they worked their business as hard as they worked their job, they could fire their boss."
If you're wondering what Donna's secret sauce is, I don't think I'll get in trouble if I spill the beans. She simply puts in the work. She treats her business like a business... not just an amusing play thing that she pokes with a stick every now and then. She's just as busy as anyone else, but the difference is she manages her time well and always uses some of it to stay on top of her EE business. The results
and her checking account speak for themselves.
So, congrats to Donna Houston for a solid May, for doing over 20-K in 4 months... and for doing all of that from home on a laptop computer! That would have been unimaginable a few years ago. So congratulations to Donna for being a quiet storm and making the unimaginable happen!
Rock Steady! Denise Hill Is the Second Runner-Up in May with $3,067 in Sales
Like Donna Houston, Denise Hill has also been rock steady and consistent as a clock all year.
Denise normally schedules a lot of parties each month. But she (along with her sister) are caregivers for their aging parents... and her father had to undergo surgery in May.
Nonetheless, she still managed to do four parties in May, and still managed to clear the $3,000 mark. That means Denise averaged $750 per party!
Denise also went over 20-K for the year and is coming up on her one year anniversary in July. And what a year it's been. After a slow start, Denise has been throwing down with regularity.
What can you learn from Denise? For one, she has a burning passion for Black culture, Black history and Black people. But in addition to that, Denise has a remarkable attitude. Whether it's car accidents, surgeries, driving 2 hours to her parent's home every weekend, or the craziness of doing business during a pandemic, Denise has been steady and unflappable. Perhaps it's because of her career in law enforcement, but
wherever it comes from, it's the stuff that winners are made of.
Congrats to Denise for continuing to do the dang thang, come hell or high water, and for continuing to inspire her fellow Harriet's and Frederick's!
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May 2021 Leaderboard ($400 and above)
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Cheryl Rickard (NJ)
Donna K. Houston (NJ)
Denise Hill (NY)
LaTonya Merchant (NJ)
Chicqueta Britton-Nutt (NJ)
Theresa Wynn (NJ)
Patricia Johnson (GA)
Rich & Tajuana Allen (NJ)
Carol Manigault (MD)
Bernadine Kirkland (MA)
Rhonda Bazile-Griffin (GA)
Sandy Payne (TX)
| $4,350
$3,118
$3,067
$2,648
$2,140
$1,568
$1,465
$1,266
$1,082
$ 790
$ 527
$ 405
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Year to Date Leaderboard (1/1/21 thru 5/31/21)
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Denise Hill (NY)
Donna K. Houston (NJ) Cheryl Rickard (NJ)
Chicqueta Britton-Nutt (NJ)
Theresa Wynn (NJ)
Carol Manigault (MD)
LaTonya Merchant (NJ)
Tara Pinckney (PA)
Bernadine Kirkland (MA)
Christine Davis Rutledge (CA)
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$20,785
$20,610
$13,640
$ 9,702
$ 8,742
$ 7,829
$ 6,040
$ 5,914
$ 5,845
$ 5,126
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Champagne Shows - May 2021
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Cheryl Rickard (NJ)
Cheryl Rickard (NJ)
LaTonya Merchant (NJ)
Patricia Johnson (GA)
| $1,544
$1,301
$1,162
$1,016
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Top Bookers - May 2021 (Based on Party Portal)
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Cheryl Rickard
Denise Hill
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New Consultants on the Block - May 2021
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Marveen Barnes (NJ)
Cheryl Stephens (NY)
Tara McCleod (GA)
| Sponsored by Cheryl Rickard
Sponsored by Denise Hill
Sponsored by Donna Houston
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Let's GET Busy Award Winners ($1,500 in first 30 days.)
Rich & Tajuana Allen (NJ)
Let's STAY Busy Award Winners ($6,000 in first 90 days.)
LaTonya Merchant (NJ)
Theresa Wynn (NJ)
New! Monthly Host Special Booking Aid
There's a new booking aid that will help you keep your calendar where you want it to be. It's a monthly host special that will change every month, or every other month in some cases.
What's different about this special is this:
Limited Shelf Life
It's only available for hosts who have a party during the month that the special is running. So each special has a shelf life and won't be around indefinitely.
Free
It's completely free to the prospective host. So there's no partial payment or shipping expense. If they miss out on the special, they're missing out on a perk that they could have had at no cost to them.
Consultant Co-Pay
So that we can offer compelling specials at no cost to the host, there's a co-pay for consultants. It will vary depending on what the special is. In July for example, the Dashiki T-shirt Dress has a cost of $6.00 to the consultant. If it's something extremely valuable, like it will be in August, the cost will be $12.00.
The reason for the bump in value in August is strategic. It will prime your calendar so you can head into the fall months with some momentum. Important! Consultants won't be required to offer the special. If you wish to opt out, that slide will be taken out of your presentation.
Guests Must Book Within 24 Hours
This special maps onto a new 3-way call technique, which is a call to a prospective host that you and your host make together. Its' purpose is to help your host get the one or two bookings needed for the Step Out In Style and Deck the Walls bonuses.
These 3-ways are about going over the Hostess Plan, step-by-step and in detail. They are not about pressuring or coercing the prospective host. And, that's where the new monthly special can help. The pressure comes from letting them know that the special expires 24 hours after the end of the party. In order for that to be effective, you will want to stick to your 24 hour window.
Party Requirements
The party requirements are not onerous and are as follows:
- The party must be at least $400 in retail sales.
- The prospective host must book within 24 hours, even if the date is tentative.
- The host must have their party in the month that a specific special is running. For example, to receive the August special, their party will need be held in August.
Theme Party Ideas List
A great way to add fun and pizzazz to your Zoom parties is by doing theme parties. Combined with the Party After the Party, you will see an increase in your bookings and sales. That's because the more fun everyone has, the more they will buy and book.
A list of theme party ideas can be accessed by clicking on the link below. But don't stop there. Talk to your fellow consultants about what they are doing and then "rob and duplicate".
After you've gathered some ideas, talk to your hostess about the various themes her party can have and pick one together. Then pour yourself into making it a great party.
We did some preliminary training on theme parties in the June 15 Power Hour. We'll be doing more training on this topic, but a link to a recording of that Power Hour is below.
Frequent Hostess Program
An environment-smart consumer recycles as much as they can. A smart consultant will recycle as many of their hostesses as they can.
With that in mind, a special program has been created to help you get more repeat hostesses. Frequent hostesses can pick a print or tapestry from a special selection of art at a deeply discounted price. Here's the criteria for them being able to do so;
- Their party must be at least $500 in retail sales.
- Their party must have at least one booking.
- Their parties must be at least 4 months apart, and not more than 12 months apart.
To see what's in the art selection and the special pricing, refer to the Frequent Hostess Brochure. You can access it by clicking on the link below...
Or, you can get there by going to the Getting Started Tools and Business Aids page and scrolling down. See link below...
Eight New Teasers Texts are Now Available
There are eight new teaser texts with updated products that are now available.
To see and download all of them to your phone, go to the Getting Started Tools and Business Aids page and scroll down until you see them.
(The old teasers are still there as well, so there are now 15.)
Computer System Stuff
(NEW) How to Add a Monthly Host Special to a Hostess Order
Monthly Host Specials need to be added to the Host Order manually on the admin side. To do this, BEFORE you enter any hostess items, email this info to bjatee@aol.com
- Party number
- Your credit card number
- Expiration and 3 digit security code
- Name on card
Product SKU's are Now on the Product Pages
Product SKU"s are now showing on all product pages. They are located beneath the price. This means the Product SKU Listing is no longer necessary. All you have to do is instruct your hostesses to provide you with their SKU numbers when they are letting you know what they want. It will save the time and aggravation of looking them up.
Hostess Shipping Address
To make sure your hostess orders ship to the correct address, always enter their shipping address, and not just their billing address, before starting their order. To do that;
- Go to Hostess Manager which is under the Parties menu.
- Find their name and click the circle next to it.
- Click edit.
- Enter their shipping address.
Make Sure Your Hostess' Selections are In Stock
Currently, the enterprise system and Shopify don't communicate on stock levels. This means it's possible to enter a hostess order for something that's out of stock. If that happens, nothing on the hostess order ships.
To avoid this, have your hostess check availability on the website before she lets you know what she wants. Then double check yourself before entering the order.
Strive for Accuracy When You or Your Hostess Enter Email Addresses in the Party Portal
Imagine having a great customer that loves the product, but their email address is in your database incorrectly. Strive for accuracy if you're entering email addresses, and stress accuracy if your hostess is.
A good way to do it is for the hostess to copy and paste email addresses from their email service address book. Then you (or the hostess) can copy and paste them into the Party invite list.
Commission Is Paid Once a Month on the 10th of the Following Month
The enterprise system is programmed for monthly payouts... not weekly, which is what we've always been used to.
We wait until the 10th to run commissions to make sure any orders that need to be moved have been moved. Once commission has been run for a month, the system locks in all orders to whatever month they are in. In addition, waiting until the 10th allows time for cancellations and refunds to be taken into account.
Commissions and bonus are paid via ACH. So make sure your ACH is setup and correct.
Repeat the Importance of Checking Shipping Addresses
During your parties, you want to sound like a broken record when talking about the importance of accurate shipping addresses. Many customers are not double checking their entries and their orders are often undeliverable.
Waking Up! What Our Tribe Has Been Reading, Watching and Listening To
Ubuntu! An Inspiring Story About an African Tradition of Teamwork and Collaboration by Bob Nelson and Stephen Lundin. (We recommend listening on Audible.)
Caste - The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabella Wilkerson. (You can listen on Audible or read.)
The Autobiography of Malcom X by Alex Haley and Laurence Fishbourne. (We recommend listening on Audible.)
The Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Women Who Started It by Joann Gibson Robinson. (You can listen on Audible or read.)
A Quote
Doing the kind of business some consultants are doing in cyberspace, without ever leaving home, would have been beyond my comprehension when I started EE 1.0. It's amazing. But the other side of the coin is you have to be willing to learn new things and develop new skills. The quote below sheds some light on succeeding in EE 2.0.
There will never be a perfect time to do something that stretches you.
That's true whether you are starting a business, having a child, changing careers, or wrestling with any number of challenges.
This is not a license to be reckless and never think things through, but at some point you have to embrace the uncertainty of a challenge... because that's the only path forward.
If you were ready for it, it wouldn't be called growth.
Questions
Television has become such a common part of our lives that most people never think about how much time they spend staring at their TV screen. New research from 2019 showed that the average adult watches 3.5 hours of television a day. So... for your private reflection only:
- Do you know what 3.5 hours times 7 days is? (Hint, it's 24.5 hours.)
- How many hours a week do you think you spend watching television?
- Is it just an ingrained habit?
- Or are you intentional about it? (A game or a special show.)
- Is there anything you could do with some of those hours that would take your life to another level?
- If so, what are you going to do about it?
Take the red pill… and I’ll show you how deep the rabbit hole goes.
~ Morpheus in The Matrix
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