CompaniesMerchant accounts are needed to accept credit cards payments. Signing a contract is to be expected when you obtain a merchant account.
Posts Tagged ‘direct selling’
Merchant Accounts 101
Tuesday, June 1st, 2010Ask Victoria: What Should I Do First?
Tuesday, June 1st, 2010If you have an idea for a new direct selling company, you may be asking this question.
It’s easier if you have some steps to follow. Here are 12 of them:
- Chinese proverb: “The palest ink is better than the best memory.” Write down your idea to help give it clarity and as the proverb indicates, it will not fade if it is written down.
- Begin with an outline of what you think needs to be done. Start with a list of the major points and then get into more detail.
Best Products for Direct Sales
Monday, March 15th, 2010All network marketing and party plan direct selling companies are in search of new products.
Some products are better suited for direct selling than others. Do you ever wonder about what the ideal product would look like?
We have. In all, we’ve identified 20 attributes of the ideal direct selling product.
Visit With Oxyfresh and Scentsy!
Wednesday, February 10th, 2010Join us on March 17th and 18th in Boise, Idaho at the Direct Selling Association’s “Companies in Focus” Seminar for a close-up, personal look at how three direct selling companies - Melaleuca, Oxyfresh and Scentsy - each operate.
The agenda features company facility tours, educational sharing sessions with company leadership and plenty of Q & A to get to the heart of what you want to know about what makes these companies succeed.
What About Sales Tax?
Wednesday, February 10th, 2010If you’re launching a new direct selling company, you should be asking this question!
Collection and Remittance
Most businesses register for sales tax collection authority, collect sales taxes, and remit collected taxes only in the states where the business has a physical presence (a store, an office, or a warehouse).
However, direct selling companies are regulated differently.
Ask Victoria: What Advice Do You Give Most Often To Established Direct Selling Companies?
Tuesday, January 5th, 2010As a senior consultant at Sylvina Consulting, each week I talk with many executives of party plan and MLM companies. I hear firsthand about a company’s successes and challenges. I love direct selling because it’s a people business.
Sometimes, a company has a specific issue or group of issues in which our help is requested. At other times, everything appears to be running fine, but that’s when I worry most.
Preventative maintenance is recommended for all automobiles. Measuring and adding air to tires extends their lives. Periodic oil changes extend the life of engines. If you waited until your engine seized up to change your oil, you would be too late!
Annual 40-point inspections can spot problems early and help avoid costly repairs.
Direct selling businesses need inspections, too.
The advice I give most often to established companies is not to wait until a crisis to enlist the skills of a consulting firm like ours to review, evaluate, and improve the performance of your business. To learn more, ask me about our annual business review consulting service!
Ask Victoria: Can You Suggest a Great Gift?
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009The holiday rush is on and you have been wondering what to get your wife, your husband… Oh wait, what about you?
Throughout the year, we have spouses call us to ask about our services and how we may help their loved ones.
While we provide a wide range of consulting services, my first response is to tell them about our guide, “Start Here”.
Start Here is a 250-page workbook that is filled with information, questions to answer, and activities needed to create, develop and launch a successful direct selling company. Included are 14 chapters of essential material on these important topics
- Direct selling, multilevel marketing, and party plan selling
- Telling your story
- Building your team
- Goal setting
- Products and services
- Customers
- Initial recruiting
- Analysis of competitors
- MLM Software
- Legal tips
- Direct selling business plans and compensation plans
- Money
- Timelines
- Pilot programs
and much more!
The guide is presented in a 3-ring binder. In addition to the information provided, in the guide you can gather your thoughts and ideas all in one place and it comes with an hour of guide consulting.
Here is what one of our guide customers told us:
Starting a business can be overwhelming. This guide is incredibly helpful because it takes me step-by-step through what needs to be done.
For additional information or to order a copy of the guide for your loved one or for yourself, click Direct Selling Guide.
If you have any other questions about Start Here or you would like to take a few moments to discuss your direct selling company, please feel free to contact me at 503.244.8787 or email me at victoria@sylvina.com.
5 Must Have’s For A Recruiting Culture
Thursday, October 22nd, 2009
A direct selling executive recently told me, “We don’t have a recruiting culture.”
What exactly is a recruiting culture? The simple definition is a high rate of recruiting.
To have a recruiting culture, a company must do all of the following:
- Provide enough information and support early in the life of new representatives so that they feel comfortable enough to consider recruiting others.
- Teach representatives how to recruit.
- Share the methods of your top recruiters with others.
- Encourage and reward recruiting through an attractive Fast Start Program in your compensation plan.
- Recognize recruiting separately for both new and established independent representatives.
To know how they’re measuring up, companies need to measure their rates of recruiting over time.
Do you have a recruiting culture? If not, do you know what you’re missing?
Measure and Take Action!
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009Operators of direct selling companies need an accurate set of gauges for measuring the business. We call these measurements “Key Operating Indicators.”
Without them, you will be flying your business partly in the dark!
Key Operating Indicators are the most important measurements of your business. Direct selling owners and executives use these metrics to run their businesses month to month and year to year.
