What I do with leads

January 25, 2008 at 12:42 am | In leads | No Comments
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What I do with leads depends on how I received them so, I will just give you a basic outline.

My leads usually arrive in my email, they make the first initial contact with me. Lately, the leads have been for scent samples and more information about Mia Bella’s Candles.

I make sure they know about Mia Bellas free candle drawing. If, I got their information from them entering the drawing, I make sure I offer them a scent sample in the Candle of the Month scent. This is obviously going to vary based on your direct sales company. I think the basic point is to get your product in their hands. Very few people throw away samples, so your information will stay with them longer if a sample is attached to it.

I mail out their samples, after they have confirmed what scent they want or type of scent they are interested in.

No matter how much information I get from a lead, if they don’t email me back about a sample, I don’t send them information. When I say information I mean, address, phone number and email. If they are interested in my candles, they will respond to wanting a scent sample. This is for those who entered the candle drawing for other leads I just send them an information packet.

After the scent samples have been sent, I wait about a week and then email them asking about the sample and how they liked it etc. I get to know them. This usually leads to finding out they have blogs, forums and other various things that can be of benefit to me and growing my business. I think this step is very important, it isn’t all about selling a candle, I am building a business and that is going to take a lot of bricks. I sound so wise…..(sarcasm)

For the leads that didn’t email me back about a scent sample, I may give them a phone call. I am still trying to overcome my phone fears! I sound so young on the phone, but I am working on that. Moving on….Ahem.

When I call, I remind them that they entered my drawing and want to know if they enjoy candles or know anyone who does. I make friendly conversation, I keep the call short and sweet. I give them my website again and tell them they can enter the drawing every week if they want. End call and breath into brown bag. I kid! I kid!

Then, every month I send out the Candle of the Month flyer, its an email, to all the contacts who were intertested in the candles. I don’t send it to people who just entered the drawing and I never got back in contact with them, I leave them be.

I learned this after chasing, ignoring and abusing leads. This is just my way of doing it, it works for me. It seems to be the least stressful way for me and low budget.

Why don’t I lay in bed today and relax, kick back, sip a margarita, isn’t that what this is all about?

January 24, 2008 at 6:38 pm | In Motivation | No Comments
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This post is about something we all need every once in a while, Motivation.

We love our products, we love working from home but, lets face it, sometimes we get complacent or lax in advertising, calling leads, emailing prospects or in just running our businesses in general. 

Here are some tips to help you stay motivated:

  • Write down “why” your in your particular business, to most this is  their “why?”
  • Do you have any goals you can set for yourself? If you have already set goals how far along are you in reaching them?
  • Do you have confidence in yourself and in your business plan? If not, go over the compensation plan and the basic ins and outs that you would send someone who had just signed up with you. Remind yourself of all the positives you saw in this business when you joined.
  • Make a schedule. It doesn’t have to be hour by hour, it can be day by day or month by month, of things you want to get accomplished in a year’s time. Stay on schedule.
  • Take action. Get off your fannie and get moving, make samples, write emails, call prospects who have your information sitting in their junk drawer, remind people about you and find new people to tell.
  • Rearrange your office or your website. Looking at the same things day in and day out can be boring and tiring, so keep it FRESH.
  • Last but not least- Fix you hair, brush your teeth, change out of your pj’s and into your usual “Wal-Mart” attire and eat a nice balanced meal every morning. This will help you to feel alert and get in a “working” mode, because if your in the “comfy” mode you will die out fast.

Just keep in your mind that even-though you work from home, right next to your  humongous California King sized bed or big comfy cushiony couch, this is still serious business. It has the potential to make you financially free and who wants to play around with that kind of investment?

 I have played with it for long enough…..

We are going to have some guests!

January 24, 2008 at 1:58 pm | In Uncategorized | No Comments
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I have found some candidates to interview. These WAHMs are going to tell us what they do at home, all day at the computer. They are going to tell us the ins and outs of working from home at their computer, all day and what WAHM hopefuls can expect when they leave the corporate world.

 Sound interesting?

Stick around! Bookmark me!

Etiquette, oh it is needed

January 24, 2008 at 10:46 am | In Advertising, Etiquette | No Comments
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Anyone and everyone who has an email address has received SPAM. I can’t stand email spam or canned spam and when either one is placed in front of me, I have to say a prayer on the givers behalf. Seriously.

It didn’t take me long to learn what was appropriate and inappropriate when finding leads and prospects.

Here are some do’s and don’ts:

  • Always ask yourself, did this person give me their email address for this purpose?

If you are a part of a forum, Yahoo! group or any other community, where you interact with others, you will receive various emails for various things. If someone in that Yahoo! group is asking about children’s clothing and you sell candles, why would you email them about your candle business opportunity? Its like going to a store and asking for the shoe section and someone sends you to a coat rack. You would wonder about the saleman’s mental state, I would.

  • Did they ask you for that information?

If the answer to these 2 questions is NO, then don’t email them. You will end up either being reported for SPAMMING or leave a bad impression of yourself on them, usually both.

What impression are you leaving when you spam? You look desperate. Even if you are hoping and praying that someone will please sign up for your business this instant so that you can finally move up director of the month, don’t act like it. People can tell when someone is successful in a business, why would someone who is successful have to throw themselves at people? They don’t.

You don’t see rich people picking up pennies off the sidewalk. Why? Because they don’t need them.

You have something to offer that will change people’s lives. Either your product or your business opportunity will make someones day better, you have to convince people of this. But, there is a way to do it.

Ways to advertise on the “low key”:

  • In your email signature. You can put links, pictures, basically whatever you want in your email signature and it goes out with every email.
  • In your profiles. Wherever you register online they usually ask for a (WWW) or homepage, put your website address in it. Nosey people will click it, I know I do…..
  • In you signature in forums and message boards. Goes under every post you make. Same as email signature.
  • On your car. Goes everywhere you go, duh!
  • In blog comments. When you leave a comment on a blog, it usually asks for a (URL) put your website address.

What should you link to?

Link to a page on your website that gives people something to do. People do click on links, but that won’t get you sales. You have to capture their information. I have a free candle drawing page I link to: Here.

In order to qualify for the drawing participants have to give: Name, email, phone number, mailing address and how they found my page. Great marketing  tool. I’ll tell what I do with them later.

You can link to newsletter subscription forms, Splash pages, your online store, etc. Link to pages that get people to take action. No one wants to read about your company history just yet, you have to “Woo and Ahhh” them first and then they will want to know more. Just tell them what your business is about, what you sell and how they can earn an income doing what you do. Short and sweet, but informative.

Splash pages- I like them a little, I am still trying to get used to them. I personally get mad when someone has a link that says: “Learn about my business!” and sends me to a page with very little information about said business but want all of my information or else I can’t learn more. I feel violated…. So, I usually Google in the company name and go from there. I do my research before I give them information. I don’t want people calling me about something I have no idea about. This is just my opinion, but I think most can agree on this.

I had a Splash page and out of about 10 leads, 1 answered my phone calls. You have to be getting hundreds of leads to your Splash page in order to see much progress. If you get hundreds of leads a day or week, then a Splash page may work for you.

What do I say in my link? It depends on what you link to. I usually say “Win a free candle!” or “Free candle here” or something along those lines. If you are advertising your business opportuntiy, I usually put “Work from home selling candles” or a nice quote like “Everyone is on a path, where it leads is up to us”.

If you don’t have a “lead capture” page. You can usually get one for about $20 a month. I have heard great things about Aweber, but there are more out there. Just Google in “autoresponders” and “splash pages”.

Make sure you provide the leads with enough business information on your capture page. Don’t lead them along blindly. Because if they find out what you have to offer is not right for them, they will ignore your emails, phone calls and trash your letters. Wasted money and time which could have been avoided if they had known what your business was in the first place.

Disclaimer- all views and opinions expressed on this blog are just that, opinions.

Next post

~What to do with lead information?

Getting your name out there!

January 24, 2008 at 3:09 am | In Advertising | No Comments
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Here are some more ways to get you name out there.

Giveaways- I love doing giveaways on blogs and websites! I have learned a lot about how to do these and where to do these.

Basic guideline:

  • How much can I afford to giveaway a month? $20 worth of product or $10 worth of product?
  • What am I going to do with the leads this will generate? Send samples, call, email, etc.
  • How will I get the participant’s information? I need emails at the very least.
  • How will I get them to my website to look at my products?
  • Does this website or blog get nice traffic? $20 is a lot to giveaway for just 3 participants, it has to even out.

Since 1 jar candle is worth $20 in retail value, I am essentially paying $20 for this giveaway. I say about 30 participants is nice outcome. I am paying around $20 for 30 leads that I know love candles.

I usually offer a free  scnet sample in the scent of their choice. They email me with the scent they want and I now have: email, address and phone number of all 30 leads.

 I can almost bet they will purchase from me in the future, most are extremely glad to get a sample and can’t wait to smell them. I am getting my name out to places all over America for a small price. And most websites/blogs will leave your contest in the archives for years so the advertising essentially never ends.

This is MY winner in getting leads, but yours may be different depeding on your product.

Here is a list of 118 ways to advertise offline you can look at it for more ideas. The 3 I discussed are the most popular and the ones I have the most knowledge about. As I go along I will give my 25 cents worth on different ways to advetise.

Advertising, so easy and yet so hard!

January 24, 2008 at 2:37 am | In Advertising | 2 Comments
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I know we all know that in order to have a successful business we have to let people know about it. We have to tell everyone we see, email, call, exchange money with, do our home repairs, etc. We must never miss an opportunity to advertise!

But, are the people you talk to day in and day out, looking for your business? Example, if you sell bears, is the man who just fixed your toilet and has 15 more toilets to fix by 5:00 pm, really thinking about a teddy bear right now? No, probably not. I mean you may get a call from his wife or aunt but, come on who can build a business on that? You need solid leads.

You can get solid leads many ways. They can be cheap, free, or expensive. If you Google in leads- in my case, candle leads, lots of lead companies will appear, all claiming to deliver me fresh  inexpensive leads that will sky rocket my buisness. Aren’t I glad!?! For $75-$100 I can build a team of 20+ people over night! Then I woke up.

Buying leads can be really tricky business, there are lots of lead companies that want your business. You should make sure to ask your sponsor, upline or mentor (whichever one you have) if they use leads and which ones work for them. I would NEVER buy leads without checking them out first. If you don’t have $75-100 to waste, don’t buy them. There is no gaurantee that people will call you back, no matter how fresh the lead is or how reputable the company is. Do your research and if you can’t afford to flush $75 down the drain, find a cheaper route.

Placing ads- This is basically trial and error. You have to find out what you can afford. Offline ads via newspapers, newsletters, or vaious flyers can be expensive. Here are some questions you can ask the owners of these newspapers and varoius circulars:

  • How many readers do you have? Ask about their subscribers, if they don’t have subscribers, ask for the number of places they leave their information.
  • What is the cost per line, word or paragraph?
  • How many other work at home opporuntites do you already have in your paper? You don’t want to get lost in the shuffle.
  • Where will my ad be located? If its somewhere at the bottom of the last page next to an ad for psychics, please pass. Not worth a dime.

Make sure you find out what other companies are also advertising in that particular paper. If there are more than 20 other companies in a small, 10 page paper, you will probably get lost in the shuffle unless you are at the top or have a border and bold writing.

This type of adversing can be pricey. I tend to lean towards small papers that cost about $5-10 an ad and run for 2 weeks or so. They are out there, you just have to look for them.

Online advertsing- Placing buttons and banners on websites. I follow the same criteria as above. I ask for their stats. How many hits do they get a day? Unique visitors? I ask the same questions for blogs and websites.

If they get a large amount of hits a day, I am talking hundreds, I still don’t pay more than $20 per month. Thousands, I won’t pay more than $40 a month. I know, to some this is cheap, but there are other less expensive options and my money doesn’t grow on trees.

If there are lots of other buttons and banners all over their website, I don’t even bother. Think of it this way, what is going to make my button stick out? Nothing. I would rather be somewhere clean and less cluttered = less competition and more hits. New websites and blogs are great for this, I am constantly searching for fresh blogs that have almost no advertising, these websites usually charge $5, which is in my budget.

I go for family friendly sites where moms usually hang out. That is where my product and business fit in. So if you sell s - e- x toys, I wouldn’t suggest you advertise on these sites….just saying. Your target market would be a bit different of course. Try blogs and websites targeted towards marriage and dating, you would get more hits on those.

I’ll have more advertising tips next post~

Okay so you have a home based business, now what?

January 24, 2008 at 1:52 am | In How do you do it? | No Comments
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You have successfully found something to do from home that can potentially make you some serious money, but do you have an action plan? And if you do have an action plan, are your actions going to put money in your pocket? Are they logical action steps?

When I started  working from home selling Mia Bellas Gourmet Candles, I was sent tons of emails and various files to download, all claiming to set me on the path to success. I was told that if I followed these steps I would have money in my pocket and be successful, all in time of course. So I had my plan and waited on the money and waited and waited.

 I put my candles under peoples noses, passed out scent samples, gave away jars, mailed out letters, you name it. Some bit the bait but most did not. So after about a month, I was burnt out, I had run through my “warm market”. I emailed leads to the point so much, I was scared they would report me! I wasn’t making the money I thought I would be making, I was making chump change. Chump change does not pay the bills.

I had a great product, excellent company, all the team tools, but no money. I needed actions steps that would put money in my pockets and help me build a team. Key word- ME. I had to find out what worked for me. I didn’t need to reinvent the wheel just change the way I was going to use it.

I had to find leads. Leads- people who were looking to work from home or wanted to buy candles. There are thousands of people who want to work fom home and probably millions who like candles. I had to get my name in their face and show them what I have to offer.

Next post ~Advertising~

Welcome to my blog!

January 14, 2008 at 3:42 am | In What is this blog about? | No Comments
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Hi all,

I have created this blog for all women to win, be inspired and to know that they can achieve anything! (Cliche I know but bare with me!)

 I will be hosting giveaways! Posting about work at home opportunities! I will be doing interviews with other WAHMs (Work at Home Mommies)!

 But most of all, I will be telling you how ordinary people, like you and me, can be successful in an online business. How we don’t have to spend tons of money, do tons of work to make tons of money.

Now for a little about me, my name is Jarmelia, I currently work from my home. I am a Independent Distributor for Mia Bellas Gourmet Candles. I will do many shameless plugs for my candles here and there so be prepared!

I believe that is all of my personal info that I want to share over the WORLD wide web.

So without further ado, that’s get started! 

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