My name is Cassie and I am your independent consultant for today.
Thank you for having me in your beautiful home with delicious snacks and beverages to indulge in while I share with you the reasons you should buy the products I represent.
Does this sound like me? It could, I guess. Lately, it's been weighing on my mind heavily whether or not it is me.
After Annaliese's birthday party in October, Justin and I decided that if we wanted to stay on track to buy a house next year, that it would be best if I went back to work. *Boooooooooo!*
Buying a home is a huge deal and it's been a goal of Justin and I's since we got married. Little did we know that it was in God's plan for us to have a baby before buying a house...which we're okay with. ;)
I know, I know... Going back to work is not the worst thing in the world. I guess I just didn't see myself going back to work until after we were done having kids and possibly even after I finished school. But as you know every household is more financially stable with 2 incomes, so a mommy has to do what a mommy has to do.
So with that being said, I have been on the hunt keeping in mind our 2 options. I could go back to work part time in the evenings and weekends and make a couple hundred dollars a month extra, still stay at home with Annaliese during the day, and lose our family evening and weekend time OR I could go back to work full time Monday - Friday making a decent amount of money, take Annaliese to a babysitter, and pay a small fortune for daycare while trusting someone else to help discipline and raise my child while mommy and daddy are at work. UGH! Both options sound hard to swallow, especially after being a stay at home mom for almost 14 months. I have applied for a few part time evening jobs prior to Black Friday and played phone tag with people for weeks. Then I started applying to my old employer hoping to get a full time job there, but so far no luck.
However lately I have been wondering about becoming an independent consultant. You know, those people (usually women) who sell Avon, Pampered Chef, Longaberger, Tastefully Simple, Mary Kay, Thirty-One, Scentsy, Tupperware, Lia Sophia ...just to name a few. Ahem. The sad part is, I know someone who sells each and every one of the brands I just mentioned. My sister in law, Jenn, just began selling Thirty-One. Click here to check out her website and contact her with any questions you may have about their fun and stylish products. AND while I'm here, my mother,Teena, sells Lia Sophia Jewelry (which I LOVE). Click here to go to her website and see if any of their stuff catches your eye. Both Thirty-One and Lia Sophia always have awesome monthly specials! I own a lot of both! What girl doesn't love bags and jewelry?!
So why turn to sales? Well I have never considered myself to be a sales person before. In fact, I am not good at all at pushing a product down someone's throat and convincing them to pay top dollar for my product because it's the best. Well then again I have never tried to. I have been considering it because I know there are so many 'women' out there who sell this stuff and make a good living from it. I know it's hard work, I know a lot of it is networking (which I'm becoming better at), but I am passionate about some of these brands and have used them for years and I believe that I could learn to be a good sales person. Plus I would get to make my own schedule!
I think it would also benefit me by allowing me to work on my public speaking skills. I have always had stage freight, but did really well in speech class (finished with an "A", thank you very much) probably more so because I HAD to in order to graduate. This also applies to me when my friends like to write down a song to sing at Karaoke Night, and to my surprise when my name is announced, I can't possibly back down now, so I sing, and I do really well. I guess it's that initial believing in yourself that I have an issue with...
Being a direct seller/independent consultant isn't your typical "work from home" job, because with the title, comes a lot of travel (depending). I think that it would be a great thing for me to get out of the house more (other than my weekly trip to Target) and meet new people. I love meeting new people! I have always been very friendly and always had many friends and acquaintances so I think a job like this would allow me to take advantage of being physically social again.
Anyway, my head has been spinning about this for weeks now. I have chatted with some friends that sell products, had conversations with "strangers" on Twitter about it, and even met with some over coffee to talk about it. I think I have made my decision, but I want to ask you first.
Have you (or someone you know) ever sold a product as an independent consultant? If so, how did you fair? Did you enjoy it and all of the benefits? Or did you not feel that the squeeze was worth the juice?
Still pondering...
Ha ha, well, if u wanna do 31, I can certainly help you or answer any questions!
ReplyDeleteI know, Thanks Lindsey! Like I said, my SIL sells it, but thank you for the offer!
DeleteAs per your request, here I am. Let me tell you, I absolutely positively 100% totally LOVE selling Scentsy. There's just something about talking about a product that's safer and smells better and is prettier with WAY more scents than a regular candle, and when people walk into the party they smell my goods immediately. Even at 'boutiques,' where there are other vendors in addition to me, they smell me and are drawn to me. There are otherp products like you've mentioned, but the thing about Scentsy is it's affordable. A plug-in and a bar is $25. Merry Christmas Mom. On the 10th I'm expecting a check for over $900. Now that's not the norm. I'm sure things will slow down come January (I've been at this since July), but see come January is also when I'll start getting more repeats. So many people by a warmer and one bar. You need at least three. One scent isn't enough. I've had to re-buys and I expect more after the holidays. If you're interested, I would LOVE to bring you onto my team (you could be my first!!). It doesn't matter where you live because I can give you all the tips you need and the support and the cheers via email, phone, text, Twitter, etc. Since you've been to my site, you likely have all of my info. Call, text, email, Tweet. Whatever. I'd love to have you. This stuff is SO addicting. It's $99 plus tax to join and you get a great little starter kit. If you're interested I'll tell you more about it. If not, good luck in WHATEVER you choose. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Kim!! I appreciate your input! I have a couple friends who sell Scentsy and that's actually what I'm leaning towards selling. I am doing a catalog party right now to try to earn my starter kit through my friend, so wish me luck! I appreciate your offering to help me too. I have had so many offers to join their team...that part seems very competitive. lol But doing as well as you are in the last 6 months is great! I hope I am as successful as you are! :) We can be motivational buddies :)
DeleteMy sister sold Mary Kay in college, but I think she was young and thought the rewards were easier than the agent made them out to be. She did ok for a year or two, but eventually gave it up. The college crowd isn't exactly the type to keep buying MK products...Now, she's a real estate agent, which is also an independent employer type of thing. She worked very hard for many years, and still does, to have the success that she does. So...my advice is whatever you do, know that it'll be hard in the beginning, but if you work hard, it will pay off. Also, with independent work, you can only get back what you put in, so know how much time/effort you are really ready to invest. Me? My personality is not suited for independent work and flexible work hours. I like my 9 to 5! Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThank you Lisa! I am going to give it a shot. I am sure I will still need to get a "real job" (or one without a variable income) but this will be a good source of extra income! :) Thanks for the luck! I'll need it!
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