Leaders are so important to the success of all direct selling companies. They sell more, recruit more, and stay active in the business longer than the average representative. Everyone wants more leaders, but how do you get them? There are two schools of thought regarding leadership. One says leaders are born, that is, they have innate…
How Do You Calculate Landed Cost?
For a direct selling business to be profitable, it must have healthy gross margins. While margins can be calculated in several ways, at Sylvina Consulting we like to use what we call the “multiplier.” The multiplier is a ratio calculated as the suggested retail price of an item divided by the landed cost of the…
Compensation Plans: Structure Matters
In compensation plans, there are positions of achievement we call titles or ranks. To qualify for them, independent representatives meet volume and structure requirements. Both are measurements of organizational performance. A volume requirement is a measurement of volume from (a) an individual independent representative, (b) a group of independent representatives within one’s downline, or (b)…
The Best New Year’s Resolutions
As each new year approaches, there is societal pressure to make one or more New Year’s resolutions. Perhaps you have felt it, or maybe someone has asked you what yours are. As direct selling, referral marketing, and compensation plan consultants, we feel the pressure to make resolutions, too. Most Popular New Year’s Resolutions According to…
Why FTC Decisions On Vemma and Herbalife Matter To You
If your direct selling company has a multilevel compensation plan, it is in your best interest to be aware of the recent FTC actions against Vemma (August 2015) and Herbalife (July 2016) because your company and your compensation plan may have some of the same problems. Watch this video now to learn why these FTC actions…
Why Stair-Step Compensation Is No Longer Needed
For many years, stair-step compensation was commonly used in multilevel compensation plans, but times have changed. Just because another compensation plan designed in 1980 has a stair-step compensation plan, doesn’t mean your plan should include it today. In this video, I define and assess the relevance today of stair-step compensation. More Videos About Compensation…
The Cooling-Off Rule: How It Applies To Your Company
As a direct selling company, you need to know about the Federal Trade Commission’s Cooling-Off Rule. There are very specific steps you must follow to be in compliance with this federal law. To learn more about how the Cooling-Off Rule applies to your company, watch our video below. How To Comply Most direct…
Customer Retention
Golden rules are the rules you should follow. You probably know this one: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” However, when it comes to customer retention, the golden rules are different. Everyone loves a good story, especially one that makes a point as this one does. When Retention…
Do You Have A Company Figurehead?
“God save the Queen.” This is the national anthem of the United Kingdom. While your company is not ruled by a monarch, every direct selling company needs to have at least one figurehead. That figurehead is either you or someone else. If you don’t have one, you need to get one right away! Why Is…
The Best Measurements For Predicting Your Growth: Video
Direct selling companies measure their businesses in many ways. While monthly sales are a good measure of company month-to-month or year-to-year performance, it isn’t the best measurement for predicting the future. The best measurement for predicting the future of a direct selling company is the number of leaders in your sales force. This is because…
How To Avoid Project Failure
At some time in your life, you’ve probably read about what it takes for a project to be successful. Equally important, however, is recognizing what you should not do on your project. How To Avoid Project Failure Whether your project is an MLM software implementation, the launch of a new direct selling company, a compensation plan…
About Compensation Plan Transitions
Compensation plans are important. They motivate and reward specific behaviors. But what if your compensation plan isn’t doing that well enough? How do you transition from one compensation plan to another? The short answer is “carefully”, but you need to know more than a one-word answer. In this video, you’ll learn what matters most and…