Creative Direct Sales Party Ideas

Creative Direct Sales Party Ideas

Sometimes, we tend to think everything is black and white. What do I mean by this? Well, many direct sellers believe that the only way to make more money is to host parties, parties, and more parties. But there are so many other ways to make money in your direct sales business if you just throw in a pop of color once in a while and get a little bit creative. So, today, I want to share my favorite out-of-the-box sales strategies that … gasp … are NOT home parties!

Okay, I love a good party, don’t get me wrong, but you need to diversify how you manage your business if you want to GROW. We tend to get comfortable and forget that we can think outside the box and do things differently. This can be scary!

It’s easy to go into analysis paralysis when you start thinking about implementing something new. You may be scared to step outside your comfort zone. You may be worried that things won’t go as planned. You may worry that you don’t know how to do it, so you’ll mess it up. But it’s not that serious, I promise.

Usually, in direct sales, you’re surrounded by sweet, sweet people who will give you grace as you learn—and you should give yourself that same grace and go for it!

So that’s my challenge to you. Be scared; do it anyway!

Don’t wait for your upline to teach you something new. Don’t wait for a friend to do it first. Just try it! Now, you may be asking what the “it” is, and I’m going to give you some ideas right here! Let’s dig into some super fun direct sales party ideas for your business.

Workshops

I like to think about this in terms of the fun events I would take my kiddos to when they were younger. You buy a ticket, and they give them a cute kit with all the tools and an apron so they can feel like the real deal. Then, they spend some time tinkering and learning how to make something. Super simple, super fun, and super easy to implement for your direct sales business!

One of our Pampered Chef customers loves to host monthly workshops, and it is one of the best ways to propel her business forward. It was born out of total panic, but it worked. She looked down at her calendar one December and realized it needed a little TLC, but she doesn’t work the last two weeks of December. So she put together a little kit of Pampered Chef tools to make pies, got the ingredients, and invited her top hostesses and their friends over for a workshop on making a homemade pie from scratch (no Pillsbury Doughboy here, friends).

They loved it so much she turned it into a series. It left an impression, it was memorable, and they came back every single month to learn something new.

So, here’s what you can do to implement this for your business:

Step One: Decide on a Topic

Think about what’s trending right now that applies to your business. If you’re in the cooking world, maybe it’s a banana bread workshop. For crafting and décor ladies, how to decorate your house for Spring and walk them step-by-step through creating their own décor items. Maybe a workshop on how to create an at-home spa night for beauty friends.

If you’re stuck, go to Pinterest. It’s a gold mine!

Step Two: Create a Kit/ Bundle

Once you have your topic, come up with a product bundle you’ll use for your workshop. For our customer above, she asked what price point her people would be willing to spend monthly, and their answer was about $30, so that’s what she capped each kit at. They purchase ahead of time, and you ship it to them in time for the event!

Step Three: Let People Know!

It’s not going to sell itself, friends. Advertise the heck out of your workshop. Put it in your VIP customer group, send an invite to every previous hostess, add it to every follow-up email, or even your email signature. Just get the word out and let people know about this super fun way you can hang out soon and learn something new!

Step Four: Have Fun & Teach Them Something New

Alright, now it’s workshop time! Gather all your goodies, walk your friends through how to make something step-by-step, and have fun together. You can even record it to extend your sales a bit, promote the bundle with the video, and have passive sales while you sleep. Can I get a heck yes!?

These workshops are so beneficial. Not only are they fun, but they help you book those parties, recruit new team members, and give you the opportunity for passive income. I recommend offering a “bring a buddy” discount, so if your customers bring a friend, they get $5 off their kit.

Your friends will love creating something together in this unique social/learning time together. You could even do it for family-oriented activities and invite the whole gang.

My tip for you is to map out your workshops for months at a time and promote them! You can have that calendar in your VIP customer group and promote the next one during your workshop; that way, it helps your business in the long term. And since we’re living in a really virtual world right now, can you imagine how much you can expand your reach!?

Okay, that was a lot. But I love a good workshop and am so passionate about adding them as a creative sales tool to grow your business! Now, onto the next…

Classes

So, classes are a new take on a party. They’re primarily for education so you can share your hottest tips and tricks with your customers! All you have to do is pick a theme as you would for a party, hop on a video call to give a little tutorial or how-to showcasing your products and provide some serious life-changing tips and tricks. Some ideas we love are:

• Knife Skills
• Cooking Skills
• Steamer Cooking 101
• All Things Pressure Cooking
• Sautéing 101
• How to Make the Perfect Charcuterie Board
• Learn How to Revamp Your Skin Care Routine
• An Easy Way to Pair Colors in Your Wardrobe
• Let’s Jazz Up Your Outfit with Jewelry
• How to Decorate Your Home for the Holidays

See a trend there… it’s “how-to” do something that could really add value for someone and make their life easier! Again, hop on Pinterest if you’re stuck. I guarantee someone has written a blog or filmed a YouTube video with a skill you can teach yourself, and then you can let your favorite ladies in on your secrets in a class.

With this format, while they’re not buying a kit upfront, you’ll nearly always get sales from classes. They’ll realize they can’t live without something. And it’s super easy to get people to attend because you offer them for free.

Does anyone else have the life mantra, “If it’s free, it’s for me!”?

These classes are value-based. You are just serving your people, which comes across in all the right ways to grow your business!

You can also use your class videos for sales tools or as a part of your follow-up for a value add when someone purchases that product. It’s super useful for team training, too. Your team needs to know how to use a product to sell it, and if they don’t have it, this is the best way to teach them.

Learn New Ways to Sell as a Direct Seller

Zoom Parties

Zoom parties are great for those parties where you want to demonstrate certain products. Plus, it has the added benefit of allowing everyone to see & chat with each other in real time.

Express Parties

Express parties, which can be done either through texting or Facebook Messenger, are fast and easy, perfect for a host who wants a quick party experience and is willing to try something new.

Instagram Parties

The beauty of an Instagram Party is that you can use what’s working for you on Facebook and reimagine it in the Instagram world.

Social Glow Parties

Built by the folks at Post My Party, Social Glow is an alternative to Facebook parties. You can run your online parties fully automated using your Post My Party templates.

Email Parties

If you currently use an Email app (Direct Sidekick Messages), you should try an email party. One of the benefits is that rather than your host’s guests having to come to you, you go to them. For example, if you are currently doing a 5-day party on Facebook, you send an email a day with the same posts you’d do on a Facebook party. Easy Peasy!

Mystery Host Parties

Everyone loves attending a good product party, especially one with a fun theme. Parties that have a bit of mystery have always been a huge hit! Who will get to keep all the goodies? No one knows! It could be anyone, which is why they’re always a popular choice. Learn how to create your own Mystery Host party.

Fundraisers

If your company has a fundraising program, make a list of organizations near and dear to you and reach out. Many organizations look for creative ways to hit their goals.

Office Lunch or After Work Parties

Find local office buildings and set up an express party during lunch or right after work. Do a quick demo, and let people shop. You’re in and out in less than an hour, and they knock out some shopping and don’t have to leave the office.

Vendor Events

Vendor events are one of my favorite ways to get outside your circle, which can be hard to do. Think about searching for local church events, farmer’s markets, flea markets, town fairs, etc. Learn more about how to succeed with Vendor Events.

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to creative ways to sell in your direct sales business. You truly never know when you’re going to find a new way to work your business that reignites your flame, gets you super excited, and makes you lots of money and connections. So, keep trying. Don’t be afraid to fail, and get it, friend! I believe in you.

FYI: Direct Sidekick is accounting software built for direct sellers, network marketers, crafters, vendors, VRBO owners, and many other home-based business owners. Create an account and start tracking your income, expenses, and inventory.