It's been almost two years since I started selling Scentsy. I was happy to break even the first year and this year I made some extra income thanks to my Scentsy business! What I didn't expect when I signed up to sell this wonderful product was that I would also sign up to sell another Scentsy Family of products called Velata. Velata will launch on May 1st, it is a new way to chocolate fondue--Scentsy style! Picture a Scentsy warmer with a silicone dish full of the finest Belgian chocolate available! There will be 14 styles of warmers and they each come with a set of four matching fondue forks. Velata is a whole new brand, brought to you by the Scentsy Family of products.
I'm not sure where this new venture will take me, but if it is anything like the ride with Scentsy it will be fun! Imagine getting to go to work and have a chocolate fondue party! What a blast! I'm still learning a lot about owning your own business and, for me, customer service is number one! I want to make sure you are absolutely happy with your purchases!
The most fun I have had is delivering customer orders and hearing back from them about how much they love their scents, or even if they don't love a particular scent. I need customer feedback, to help grow my business. If a scent just isn't right for you, don't worry, I'll trade you for another scent you will love. In addition, I am available for parties, home shows, and house calls. Yes, house calls. Want to smell all the scents but don't want to host a party? I can bring the scents to you!
Whether with the new Velata line or Scentsy products, I want to make your shopping experience fun and build good relationships while doing so. Customers are great, but friends are even better!
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Party Time
One of the ways you can earn money selling Scentsy is to book home parties. You find someone who will host a party and invite friends and family over to see your products. The parties can be big or small, even 4 people makes a good party. It's fun to share Scentsy with new people, and they are happy to hear what you have to say. Scentsy is a simple system, so there's not too much need for a long talk about how it works. So, it sounds pretty easy to have a party. The hard part is getting that party booked!
It turns out for me that two hosts contacted me about having a party! I have only had one party and that was my launch party that I held in my home and no one showed up. So needless to say I was rather ecstatic that two people wanted to do parties with me! The parties ended up being scheduled for 2 weeks in a row.
The date of the first party was drawing near, we made a list of the things I should bring. The night before the party, I loaded the van with everything that wouldn't melt, including an 8 foot table. The next day was party day, so after work I loaded everything else I would need. We arrived at the home of the host, she even let me have her parking space that was close to her condo. It was then that I realized she lived upstairs! Stairs and me do not mix very well, I always get nervous when I have to carry anything up or down stairs. But, she was a sweet host and helped bring in a box or two.
My Scentsy partner, helped with set up and decorating the table. I set up the sample testers. We realized we should have brought an extension cord and luckily the host had one handy for us to borrow. That night extension cord went on the Scentsy party supply list! The set up was beautiful and everything was working the way it should be, now all we had to do was wait for guests to arrive!
The guests began to arrive, I greeted each one and handed them a door prize ticket to fill out. Each person seemed to really like how the house smelled and they were interested in the catalogs, too. When it seemed like all the guests had arrived, I started my presentation. I described how Scentsy worked and how they could use it in their homes. Pointed out the various products from room sprays to perfumes and warmers. After about 5 minutes my presentation was over and I invited them to come take a look at the warmers to get an idea how they look in real life versus a catalog picture. Then the ordering began, people had questions about this or that and needed help with figuring the tax. It was fun to help each person figure out their order. Others were having fun smelling the scents and had questions about types of scents and if I had a specific type of scent. The ordering began to slow down and guests began to leave, after they had all left we started to clean up and go home.
But my party wasn't over yet, there were orders to input into the company website, checks and cash to deposit in the bank, and stuff to unpack from the car. After all that was done, I waited for the party order to arrive at my house. When it did, I brought it in immediately and got to work unpacking the two boxes. I labeled all the boxes and bars of wax with my name and phone number, so people would have my information and hopefully reorder. Next came sorting all the items into customer orders and putting them into bags. I put a thank you sticker on each bag with the name of the guest whose order it was. It didn't take too long to get all the order organized, so after I was done I called the host and let her know her order was ready to be delivered! I dropped it off that evening and then finally, I was done with the party! It was a great experience from beginning to end, in all the party was over $500 in sales! The host earned about $70 in product credit and 3 half price items to purchase! Very successful party and fun was had by all! And then I got to do it all again the next week! Fun!
It turns out for me that two hosts contacted me about having a party! I have only had one party and that was my launch party that I held in my home and no one showed up. So needless to say I was rather ecstatic that two people wanted to do parties with me! The parties ended up being scheduled for 2 weeks in a row.
The date of the first party was drawing near, we made a list of the things I should bring. The night before the party, I loaded the van with everything that wouldn't melt, including an 8 foot table. The next day was party day, so after work I loaded everything else I would need. We arrived at the home of the host, she even let me have her parking space that was close to her condo. It was then that I realized she lived upstairs! Stairs and me do not mix very well, I always get nervous when I have to carry anything up or down stairs. But, she was a sweet host and helped bring in a box or two.
My Scentsy partner, helped with set up and decorating the table. I set up the sample testers. We realized we should have brought an extension cord and luckily the host had one handy for us to borrow. That night extension cord went on the Scentsy party supply list! The set up was beautiful and everything was working the way it should be, now all we had to do was wait for guests to arrive!
The guests began to arrive, I greeted each one and handed them a door prize ticket to fill out. Each person seemed to really like how the house smelled and they were interested in the catalogs, too. When it seemed like all the guests had arrived, I started my presentation. I described how Scentsy worked and how they could use it in their homes. Pointed out the various products from room sprays to perfumes and warmers. After about 5 minutes my presentation was over and I invited them to come take a look at the warmers to get an idea how they look in real life versus a catalog picture. Then the ordering began, people had questions about this or that and needed help with figuring the tax. It was fun to help each person figure out their order. Others were having fun smelling the scents and had questions about types of scents and if I had a specific type of scent. The ordering began to slow down and guests began to leave, after they had all left we started to clean up and go home.
But my party wasn't over yet, there were orders to input into the company website, checks and cash to deposit in the bank, and stuff to unpack from the car. After all that was done, I waited for the party order to arrive at my house. When it did, I brought it in immediately and got to work unpacking the two boxes. I labeled all the boxes and bars of wax with my name and phone number, so people would have my information and hopefully reorder. Next came sorting all the items into customer orders and putting them into bags. I put a thank you sticker on each bag with the name of the guest whose order it was. It didn't take too long to get all the order organized, so after I was done I called the host and let her know her order was ready to be delivered! I dropped it off that evening and then finally, I was done with the party! It was a great experience from beginning to end, in all the party was over $500 in sales! The host earned about $70 in product credit and 3 half price items to purchase! Very successful party and fun was had by all! And then I got to do it all again the next week! Fun!
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Festival Day 1
August 20, 2011--Day 1 of the downtown Fairfield,CA Tomato Festival and my first big Scentsy booth!
Set up began around 7am, it took us a while to figure out where vendor check-in was located, but after asking a couple of people we found it. We drove to our booth site and unloaded the boxes from the van, several other booths were busy with boxes,bags, and bins, too. Festival volunteers and helpers from the local Boy Scout troop were there to help unload if we needed. The night before we had set up the canopy and left tables and chairs at the booth. We decided we should try to put up the sides of the canopy, but since we're only borrowing the canopy and haven't used it before it took some work to get it up. Thank goodness for velcro!
Next came setting up the display table. Since we had set up the table at home to practice, it was easy to replicate the set-up. The warmers and testers we set on on the table, along with one warmer that was melting a wonderful scent called Camu Camu--a blend of lush mandarin, camu camu, and passionfruit. There was a lot of extra space in the booth, so we decided that we could use a small table to put out the raffle box and gift basket on. But, we didn't have a small table to use. That's when it's time to call your mom! She brought down a small TV tray and a cloth to cover it. I love my mom! The set up was done, now it was time to wait for the festival to begin.
The crowd began to appear! A few at first, then more and then in the afternoon it was a pretty good stream of people walking by. Some people would not make eye contact, so no opportunity to talk to them. Others would make eye contact and that's when I would say,"Hello, have you heard of Scentsy before? We're a candle company that uses a light bulb to melt wax." A lot people really like that idea, some just shake their heads and move along, but a lot of people are open to the idea of actually looking at my display. That's when you can tell them a bit more about how the warmers work and ask them if they want to sign up for the raffle prize. Most of my day was spent saying,"Hello." to people and talking about Scentsy, of course!
My first customer was someone I actually knew because they are an aide on the bus that picks up my daughter. She didn't know I sold Scentsy and loved the idea! She placed a large order, which surprised me since I had product she could have bought right then. People came and went, some people came back twice to the booth, which leads me to believe they really are interested!
Overall, it was a great first day! After the Tomato Festival was closed we started to pack up, we didn't have to take down the tables, but we too all our our product back home. There was one box that seemed to collect a lot of junk throughout the day, so I brought that home to sort through. Tomorrow I will re-pack the cooler with ice packs and the Scentsy bars and we'll have a fresh start!
I can't wait! To be continued...
Set up began around 7am, it took us a while to figure out where vendor check-in was located, but after asking a couple of people we found it. We drove to our booth site and unloaded the boxes from the van, several other booths were busy with boxes,bags, and bins, too. Festival volunteers and helpers from the local Boy Scout troop were there to help unload if we needed. The night before we had set up the canopy and left tables and chairs at the booth. We decided we should try to put up the sides of the canopy, but since we're only borrowing the canopy and haven't used it before it took some work to get it up. Thank goodness for velcro!
Next came setting up the display table. Since we had set up the table at home to practice, it was easy to replicate the set-up. The warmers and testers we set on on the table, along with one warmer that was melting a wonderful scent called Camu Camu--a blend of lush mandarin, camu camu, and passionfruit. There was a lot of extra space in the booth, so we decided that we could use a small table to put out the raffle box and gift basket on. But, we didn't have a small table to use. That's when it's time to call your mom! She brought down a small TV tray and a cloth to cover it. I love my mom! The set up was done, now it was time to wait for the festival to begin.
The crowd began to appear! A few at first, then more and then in the afternoon it was a pretty good stream of people walking by. Some people would not make eye contact, so no opportunity to talk to them. Others would make eye contact and that's when I would say,"Hello, have you heard of Scentsy before? We're a candle company that uses a light bulb to melt wax." A lot people really like that idea, some just shake their heads and move along, but a lot of people are open to the idea of actually looking at my display. That's when you can tell them a bit more about how the warmers work and ask them if they want to sign up for the raffle prize. Most of my day was spent saying,"Hello." to people and talking about Scentsy, of course!
My first customer was someone I actually knew because they are an aide on the bus that picks up my daughter. She didn't know I sold Scentsy and loved the idea! She placed a large order, which surprised me since I had product she could have bought right then. People came and went, some people came back twice to the booth, which leads me to believe they really are interested!
Overall, it was a great first day! After the Tomato Festival was closed we started to pack up, we didn't have to take down the tables, but we too all our our product back home. There was one box that seemed to collect a lot of junk throughout the day, so I brought that home to sort through. Tomorrow I will re-pack the cooler with ice packs and the Scentsy bars and we'll have a fresh start!
I can't wait! To be continued...
Friday, August 19, 2011
Festival Eve
The time has come, the tomatoes are taking over downtown Fairfield,CA!!! That means it's now time to put into action what I have been practicing and preparing for the festival this year. The set up and display, the signs, the tables, chairs, and canopy all have to be in order for the big day.
The vendors are allowed to set up tables and canopies the night before. So, tonight we drove around the block (we only live 2 blocks from downtown) and unloaded our van. We found our spot, and started to set up the canopy that I borrowed. A couple of other vendors were there setting up, and right away the stopped what they were doing to help us! It was so cool, I didn't even know their names and here they were helping out when they could have been working on their own booth. It felt real now, the booth was coming together.
Tomorrow we will set up the rest of the booth, put product out, and signage. All the preparation that went into the booth will be worth it!
To be continued...
The vendors are allowed to set up tables and canopies the night before. So, tonight we drove around the block (we only live 2 blocks from downtown) and unloaded our van. We found our spot, and started to set up the canopy that I borrowed. A couple of other vendors were there setting up, and right away the stopped what they were doing to help us! It was so cool, I didn't even know their names and here they were helping out when they could have been working on their own booth. It felt real now, the booth was coming together.
Tomorrow we will set up the rest of the booth, put product out, and signage. All the preparation that went into the booth will be worth it!
To be continued...
Friday, August 12, 2011
Practice Makes Perfect
My house is a buzz with all things Scentsy and Tomato--I'm getting ready for the 20th Annual Tomato Festival in downtown Fairfield,CA! Inventory blankets the dinning room table, the living room is asunder with products and an 8 foot display table, the office is a lined with boxes, and more!
I set up the display table to practice and see how we want to set up at the festival. Want to get it looking just right! Brightly colored silk sunflowers draw your eye towards the display of warmers, the scent of the highly fragrant wax also draws you in, the raffle items neatly displayed in a basket beckon you over to the Scentsy display! Hopefully, that is what potential customers will see. The display is simple, and so are the products-making it easy for people to see how Scentsy works and how beautiful the warmers are. For this festival, I have limited the choice of warmers to 5 and the wax bars to 11 scents. By choosing the top selling bars and warmers I hope to offer only the best products for purchase! Plus, if someone wants to place an order for another item they can.
Getting the display just right took several days, and a trip to Michaels and PartyCity, but it will be worth it. Setting up the display before hand means on the day of I'll know what I'm doing and how it should look. Practice makes perfect. How do you prepare for an event? Do you have everything all ready to go, or do you wait until the last minute?
I set up the display table to practice and see how we want to set up at the festival. Want to get it looking just right! Brightly colored silk sunflowers draw your eye towards the display of warmers, the scent of the highly fragrant wax also draws you in, the raffle items neatly displayed in a basket beckon you over to the Scentsy display! Hopefully, that is what potential customers will see. The display is simple, and so are the products-making it easy for people to see how Scentsy works and how beautiful the warmers are. For this festival, I have limited the choice of warmers to 5 and the wax bars to 11 scents. By choosing the top selling bars and warmers I hope to offer only the best products for purchase! Plus, if someone wants to place an order for another item they can.
Getting the display just right took several days, and a trip to Michaels and PartyCity, but it will be worth it. Setting up the display before hand means on the day of I'll know what I'm doing and how it should look. Practice makes perfect. How do you prepare for an event? Do you have everything all ready to go, or do you wait until the last minute?
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Getting Ready for the Tomato Festival
There's lots of things going on to get ready for the Tomato Festival in downtown Fairfield, CA! My house has been taken over by all things Scentsy, I think the only room without something Scentsy in it is the bathroom! There are catalogs to label, labels to print, scent samples to make, things to staple, supplies to organize, and a whole lot more. My family has been very supportive of my Scentsy business since the beginning, and even more so now that I'm taking over the house with my supplies and inventory. I can't thank them enough! It's so important to have people to believe in what you are doing, it helps inspire me when I get to feeling down or have a lull in business. But, now things are picking up and looking up!
Over the last two weeks, I've placed several customer orders from new and previous customers. When I delivered the orders, they already mentioned to me what they want to order next. I think people are realizing what a great product and value Scentsy is.
That is what I hope to show to people at the Tomato Festival, that they will love Scentsy just as much as I do. To do that I want the most simple display and inventory of products, I don't want to overwhelm customers with too many choices and products. Even though Scentsy sells more than warmers and wax, I am choosing to sell only full-size warmers and limit the Scentsy wax bars to 10 scents, instead of 80. Using data from the last three months, I narrowed down the choices of scents and warmers. I'm hoping that by choosing the top selling wax and warmers I will offer customers a good selection that they will want to purchase.
This weekend I placed my final order for inventory, there are a few loose ends that I need to tie up, I'll be working on that in the next couple of weeks! Stay tuned...
Over the last two weeks, I've placed several customer orders from new and previous customers. When I delivered the orders, they already mentioned to me what they want to order next. I think people are realizing what a great product and value Scentsy is.
That is what I hope to show to people at the Tomato Festival, that they will love Scentsy just as much as I do. To do that I want the most simple display and inventory of products, I don't want to overwhelm customers with too many choices and products. Even though Scentsy sells more than warmers and wax, I am choosing to sell only full-size warmers and limit the Scentsy wax bars to 10 scents, instead of 80. Using data from the last three months, I narrowed down the choices of scents and warmers. I'm hoping that by choosing the top selling wax and warmers I will offer customers a good selection that they will want to purchase.
This weekend I placed my final order for inventory, there are a few loose ends that I need to tie up, I'll be working on that in the next couple of weeks! Stay tuned...
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Cornerstone of my Business
Getting my name out there in the world is the biggest part of how I promote my business. There are several ways in which I currently am putting myself out there trying to drum up business and get Scentsy exposure. I blog, tweet, use facebook, have catalogs and business cards out, and have advertisement on my cars. What I've been trying to do since I started Scentsy is to get a warmer put in a business, so people can actually see what the product is. The hard part is finding the right business to display your product.
Recently, I have been volunteering with a business networking group, the Fairfield Mainstreet Association, which seeks to promote and support businesses in downtown Fairfield, CA. Since I live downtown and I have my own Scentsy business, I joined to help keep the downtown thriving and to promote my business. I've been working each week at the Farmer's Market and met a good friend who happens to also own a business downtown called Cornerstone Quilt Shoppe. She absolutely loves Scentsy, who doesn't though? After a few weeks of seeing my catalogs and then smelling the scents, she was really interested in the warmers and wax. I asked her if she'd like to pick out a warmer and I'd buy it for her shop, in exchange for keeping my catalogs and business cards nearby. A resounding yes was her answer!
It was because of a good relationship that I was able to get my warmer into a shop for display. And that is what Scentsy and any business is all about, building those relationships with your customers.
Recently, I have been volunteering with a business networking group, the Fairfield Mainstreet Association, which seeks to promote and support businesses in downtown Fairfield, CA. Since I live downtown and I have my own Scentsy business, I joined to help keep the downtown thriving and to promote my business. I've been working each week at the Farmer's Market and met a good friend who happens to also own a business downtown called Cornerstone Quilt Shoppe. She absolutely loves Scentsy, who doesn't though? After a few weeks of seeing my catalogs and then smelling the scents, she was really interested in the warmers and wax. I asked her if she'd like to pick out a warmer and I'd buy it for her shop, in exchange for keeping my catalogs and business cards nearby. A resounding yes was her answer!
It was because of a good relationship that I was able to get my warmer into a shop for display. And that is what Scentsy and any business is all about, building those relationships with your customers.
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