Direct Dealings

You can’t put 10 pounds of potatoes in a 5 pound bag, but all my life  I gave it a good try, and had a lot of interesting life experiences. I thought of ideas for a small, part time business venture that might provide a new opportunity to explore my creativity, with a flexible work schedule.

I got my chance— a neighbor invited me to a home demonstration party she hosted for a Beauty Consultant who sold cosmetic products.  I found it interesting and something I might have a natural  affinity for.  I was self-motivated and enjoyed meeting people.

The products emphasized skin care with a complement of a few basic make up items. They were quality products, attractively packaged and priced at an affordable mid-price range. But little did I realize I had wandered into a field known as Direct Sales. Of course I wasn’t aware of all the pitfalls—you don’t hear much about those, and sometimes it’s best not to hear.  Would any of us embark on anything if we knew what hurdles we would have to overcome?

The company, however, provided you with high level training and unlimited support.  They had a successful business model and I  learned from other consultants who  were kind, respectful, and helpful.  All I had to do was sell. Figuring it all out was the challenge, especially for someone who never sold anything before. A common mantra was “fake it ‘till you make it.”

I had my own little business; started with low investment capital, mainly to pay for my own inventory.  Customers sampled products, got individualized attention, and went home entertained, enlightened and satisfied. I  never touched the women who participated in the demonstrations but would walk them through giving themselves an actual facial.  They loved it.

It was an age thing too.  My most enthusiastic customers were around 40 years old—the age the first lines around the eyes begin to appear and aging becomes a reality.  Care of the skin becomes a priority.

Meanwhile, finding hostesses for the demonstrations was an ongoing quest. I had to be inventive there.  I developed several methods to assure enough bookings and I put everything I had into a given session.  Since my best candidates came from women at the presentation, I took advantage of the captive audience.

No matter the product or service, selling is selling—but first you have to sell yourself.  Everything depends on your resourcefulness.  A prospective hostess would size you up and decide if you were someone they would invite into their homes to meet their friends in an intimate setting.

I achieved a level of success and especially enjoyed the fellowship among the consultants.  But real success requires hard work and building networking relationships.  The real money was in recruiting  and training new consultants for which you received additional compensation, but that also required more time, effort and attention.

The demonstrations were held at night.  I  had to be on my toes at all times, never wavering in any aspect of product knowledge, and confident in my delivery.  Putting it all together required longer hours than I had anticipated.  I wasn’t making very much money.  But I gave it everything I had.  I learned to overcome obstacles and increased my level of comfort in speaking to a group.

Nothing, however, remains stagnant.  You either forge ahead and advance your position, or assess the future.  And my reality was that it was encroaching on my obligations at home—everything came in second to that.

Once you decide something is not really for you, the endgame begins. But I learned so much about the psychology of selling and human behavior, and met many interesting people who invited me into their homes, trusted and befriended me.

It was a positive experience which added to my personal development and provided invaluable insight in how to engage positively with others. I learned so much about selling and marketing skills. And I had some memorable adventures along the way—no regrets—But no Mary Kay pink Cadillac.