How to Succeed in (Your Avon) Business Without Really Trying

Hello, blog-of-mine-I’ve-ignored-for-four-months!  I hope you’ll take me back!  Pretty please?

The last time I published a post was just before Christmas, and I’m ashamed that I haven’t kept it up.  To be honest, I haven’t been this busy since final exams in college (which, by the way, will soon be a year ago).

The great news is I started my career in New York in January!  Since then, all my efforts from the moment I have my Grande Nonfat No Whip Mocha in the morning to when I come home on a late train after the sun goes down, have gone toward my media job.  I love my media career, and so I work hard during the day and dedicate a few nighttime hours and most weekends to running my Avon business.  I’ve been so busy selling the products themselves that writing and reflecting on those sales feels like an exhausting task.

All that hard work paid off though; I’ve reached President’s Club!

Here’s where you ask, “What’s President’s Club?”

Avon’s President’s Recognition Program (PRP) awards the top sellers in the company for achieving a set standard of goals.  The first level, known as President’s Club, is attained after selling $10,100 worth of Avon products within one sales cycle.  Because I started in Campaign 16 2011 (July), I only had 17 two-week campaigns to reach that amount (instead of the full 26).

Only a small percentage of representatives make the PRP in their Avon career, so I’m honored to be receiving such an award.

Anyway, I recently saw the revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying on Broadway with a few of my closest college friends, and it’s amazing how the advice in the script of the show can be implemented in my everyday Avon business!  (If you haven’t seen it yet, you should!  It was a great show.)  I won’t get into plot details, but I spotted three main ideas that I use to sell Avon.

How to Succeed in Your Avon Business Without Really Trying

Step 1:  Find out your customer’s interests.

I’m one of the first employees at work every day.  Because of my commute from New Jersey, I have to wake up much earlier than my city coworkers in order to get to work on time.  I get into the office at around 8:30 and chat with my favorite receptionist, Pat.  One day I was wearing the blue mark Lighten Up earrings, and she complemented me on my style.  I told her that I was an Avon/mark representative on the side and she was ECSTATIC.  It turns out this self-proclaimed “Avon junkie” was looking for a new rep because her previous one was rarely around.  I found out that she was a big fan of Avon’s jewelry line, and now Pat orders the new jewelry pieces that come out nearly every campaign.

Step 2:  Slip in your business in everyday conversation.

You’d be surprised how easy it is to switch from a listener of a conversation to the leader.  When you absolutely love a product, it’s only natural to share it among friends (unless you’re in some sort of beauty pageant against your BFF, but that’s a completely different story).  In media planning, sales reps from other companies take you out to eat or treat you to mani/pedicures on a Friday afternoon.  When those reps talk about how their nail polish chips two days after a manicure, that’s when you step in and give them your Avon testimonial.

I truthfully tell them that when I use Avon’s Nailwear Pro, my polish stays on for two weeks without touch ups.  The frequent response, “do you type on the computer at all?!?”  Why yes, I am on the computer all day.  I also use my nails as tools, and I play guitar once in awhile.  The stories I tell about my nail polish amazes them.  The best part is that I don’t have to lie about Avon; the product sells itself if I just listen for the right moment to talk about my hobby.

Avon Nailwear Pro in "Illusion"

Step 3:  Product placement is key.

The more in tune you are with your brand, the better you’ll be able to sell.  I’ve become a walking, talking human Avon cosmetic experiment, and I’m proud of it!  I get compliments on my mark outfits, ladies ask where I get my jewelry, and others want to know how to get great skin like mine.  Sometimes I think that my love for Avon is a little bit obnoxious, but then I remember that if i didn’t model the products I sold, potential customers might not have faith in ordering.

I not only wear everything there is to wear from Avon, but I love to find press clippings relevant to cosmetics or mentions of the products in some of the biggest media publications out there.  My neighbor, who purchases Anew Rejuvenate from me, saw an article in a magazine about Anew Genics and immediately wanted the night treatment cream.  I had given her samples of it before, but sometimes people have a trust in the media.  The timing was perfect.

So, that’s how I succeeded.  That is, when based off a Broadway show.

If you would like to succeed in business, please email RedheadedAvonRep AT yahoo DOT com.

Fundraising to Raise Funds

There are many strategies to attract new Avon customers, but I learned about one that could boost my sales and give back to the community.  Did you know that Avon has a fundraising program?  I didn’t until I became a representative!  It turns out that Avon’s fundraising program is easy to organize, profitable for both the representative and the organization, and offers quality products at an affordable price.

Check out the two flyers I used below:

Avon Color Fundraising Flyer

Avon Best of Fundraising Flyer

I asked my high school art teacher if Glen Rock needed any help with fundraising.  I brought in all the full size products that would be featured on the flyer, pitched why my fundraiser would be beneficial to the GRHS Class of 2013, and they accepted!  This was back in October, and as soon as I emailed the PDF file over to the school they got started.

Avon Color Fundraising Flyer

The Rep’s Benefits of an Avon Fundraiser

1.  The Avon rep can potentially make a lot of money with little amount of work involved.  Once the organization has the flyers, all you have to do is fill out the tax exemption forms and wait for your orders to come in.  It’s up to the organization to sell the products!  By registering the fundraiser with Avon, the rep automatically earns 50% commission for the placement in a given campaign.  Of the 50%, the rep decides how much of a cut the organization earns.  Because I was just starting out, I made 20% of total sales and GRHS made 30%.  I hoped the school would make at least $1,500 in sales, which would give me $300 and GRHS $450.  That’s a nice chunk of change!

2.  A rep can gain new customers for the future.  Let’s say the school sold the $1,500 from above.  They could achieve that amount by having 10 students selling to 10 customers with the average sales of $15 per customer.  So here’s the equation: 10 x 10 x 15 =1500.  Not only are you selling to the students, but they are selling to the people they know, so from this example I would gain 100 new customers.  If these customers love Avon, then I’d be in luck and be able to make a lot of money in the future when they order from me again!

3.  Fundraising helps boost sales volume and to reach President’s Club.  Avon’s President’s Recognition Program awards top sellers with many benefits once they reach total sales of $10,100 within a year.  These benefits include guaranteed 40% commission every campaign, free products, ability to order more demo products at a lower cost, etc.  Many women aspire to reach President’s Club every year, and with a fundraiser or two, the goal is easily attainable.  Every campaign invoice shows the rep’s total sales and how much more is needed to reach $10,100.

The Organization’s Benefits of an Avon Fundraiser

1.  The fundraising flyer makes it easy to run the fundraiser.  I remember being a Brownie Scout and going around the neighborhood to sell Girl Scout cookies.  It was a simple form to fill out, and Avon’s fundraising flyers remind me of my youth.  Just add up the quantities and the total amount of money collected, and you’ve got yourself a fundraiser.

2.  The products are well-known.  Avon turned 125 this year, and it still has a fantastic reputation.  The popular products featured on the flyers include Skin So Soft Original Bath Oil, Bubble Delight, Naturals sets, Nailwear Pro, Foot Works, Glimmersticks, and fragrances.  They are of high quality, and comes with a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

3.  The products are cost-effective and affordable.  If you do a t-shirt sale, you might charge the $20 per shirt and the school would only make about $2 each (10%).  With Avon, if we use the GRHS example, if someone buys a Foot Works set for $10 the school gets $3 each (30%).  If I was offering the school a 40% cut, then they would get $4 each.  Also, all the products are full size so you get more for your money while supporting the school.

So how did I do on my first run?  Thanks to the snowstorm on Halloween (homecoming weekend), Thanksgiving, and the teacher’s convention in November, it was tough for the teachers to get the kids to sell.  About $200 was sold, so the school made $60 and I made $40.  Yes, it’s a little frustrating.  I hoped for more sales, but I’m $40 richer during the holiday season, I have new customers, I learned how to file for a tax exemption, and I learned how to start a fundraiser.  The selling part was out of my hands, but next time I want to be more involved to really boost my sales.