The Price is Right Game

I did this game twice this week and it went over well. It's a fun alternative for your regular party product/host/opportunity presentation.

I wrote mine on 3x5 cards but you can probably print from here - but you'll have to make adjustments depending on what items you have in your inventory to show. Use the catalog for description ideas. Take with you: Monopoly money, a little hourglass or timer, a bell or buzzer, customer contact cards or slips of paper, a small prize (or 2 in case of a tie)

Give each guest $100 to start out. Sit the bell, timer and an addition $300 on the table. At any time, if a guest decides to book they can pick the $300 up off the table. Have each guest complete the customer info cards or put their name on a ticket, and collect. Pass out the commercials to guests and ask for a Vannah White to come up to be your lovely assistant.

Draw the first 2 contestants, they need to come up front to the bell. Introduce the first items up for bid... Gold Canyon's new Seasonal candles! "All 3 of these candles are the perfect choice for your home or a gift. first, our 16oz Orange Pomander, comes in a simple, elegant glass design embellished with foil stamping, 3 wicks and the fragrance of juicy mandarin orange covered in whole cloves..... second, our 13oz Apple Dapple Drops, with a cheery red grossgrain ribbon makes this ready to give! has a real recipe to try under the top label and smells of caramel, apple, ginger and nutmeg... finally, our 15.5oz Spiced Gumdrops candle - with a home crafted charm and the fragrance that will warm your home with the sweet delights of an old-time holiday favorite. Two of these candles are the same price and one is not - which item up for bid is NOT the same price as the other two?" First one to ring the bell gets to answer. In this case, the Orange Pomander and Spiced Gumdrops are both $17.98 and the Apple Dapple Drops is only $15.98, so the correct answer is Apple Dapple Drops. Award the correct answer with $100 and give the loser $100 for playing. Offer a bonus either to the contestants or your studio audience to tell how much the actual retail value is for extra cash.

Now it's time to pause for a commercial break. Have the first reader announce the Host specials for the month. Novembers:

"Tonight's program is brought to you by Gold Canyon ~ bringing you the World's Finest scented products and an opportunity for individuals looking for inspiration to discover and elevate their natural born talents. HOST a party this month and receive $20-40 MORE host rewards!! A $550 party normally gives you $80 and this month you get $100 plus 2 1/2-off items and a FREE 16oz Cinnamon Garland candle. That's $162.97!!! Book yours now!"

Turn the hourglass over and open up to your audience for questions on the host program. Everyone who asks a question gets $50 each.

Draw 2 more contestants. Introduce the 2nd item up for bid. I had the new Patchwork Pottery pod warmer I wanted to show off. So as Vannah was showing it around the room I read, "Gold Canyon's Suddenly Scented line offers unlit expressions of fragrance in Room Sprays, Book Marks, Diffusers, Auto Fresheners, Sachets, Linen Scent and Scent Pods. Our new Patchwork Pottery pod warmer is a pretty way to liven up a room. This quaint, detailed design features checks and stripes in vibrant colors, a lovely addition to your home or office. Convenient on/off switch with timer option of auto-off at 4, 8 or 12 hrs. No fuss, no mess, no flame!" This is the "More or Less Game". The first contestant to tell if this item is MORE or LESS than $31.98 wins. The actual retail price of this item is $29.98 so the correct answer is "LESS". The person who guessed correctly gets $100 and the loser also gets $100. You can offer a bonus by not telling that and letting them guess the actual price - and open up to the audience if you wish.

Pause for another commercial break. This one is the sponsoring information from the monthly promotions. "Now, a word from our sponsor..." (have guest read)

"Gold Canyon proudly offers ways for you to stimulate your income - make money NOW by joining our team! This month there are 3 choices for signing up from $20 to 3 easy payments of $49.99 - or earn it free with $700 in sales PLUS get $25 Gold Dollars and refund your shipping if you earn the kit free!"

Turn the hourglass back over and open up for questions on demonstrating. Hand out $50 for every question.

Have the guests count their money and the two with the most get to advance to round 3 for our Showcase Showdown. You are going to showcase 5 products and they have to total the amount of all 5 products, without tax or shipping, and the contestant to guess the price without going over WINS! You might offer and pen and scratch paper for the really competitive ones. I tried to have items from our different lines for my showcase showdown. Let Vanna help show each item and you give a short description. Here's mine:

"19oz Baking Line in delicious Caramel Ginger Strudel comes in a reusable kitchen canister, burns up to 170hrs... 35oz Homeology Peppermint Eucalyptus Glass Cleaner - plant based, made with real essential oils, worry and streak free... Emerge Out on a Limb Body Lotion 8fl oz of a wonderful lightweight formula with botanical nutrients to restore your skin in a feminine fragrance... 4x6 Heather & Hyacinth pillar candle - a sweet and inviting fragrance in olive green, 39oz, burns 150-180 hrs... 4-pack Apple Orchard Pearadise Votives, 2oz each, petite simplicity, inviting aroma with a soft glow, now offered in 25 fragrances."

Give the girls time to add it all up. Let each contestant announce her bid. The actual retail price is $75.90 so the one closest without going over wins. You might consider letting the audience participate if both contestants go over. Award the winner $100. Also let them know if this was their order, they would save $5.75 this month with the Nov. customer promotion of saving 25% off one item on orders over $75.

Thank the guests for playing and remind them to have their pets spayed and neutered!!! Award a gift to the big winner (the one with most $$$) An alternate way to play is have items for sale such as tealights for $300 each, votives for $400, etc.

Have fun!!

Ideas to Implement

A few ideas to enhance your candle business this week:

$1,000 Silent Party. Phone ten past Hosts, customers or friends/family members and have them each collect $100 in outside orders. Put them all together and you have a $1,000 Party without even leaving your home. You can raffle off all the amazing Host incentives so each of your ten participating Hosts receive free products.

Calling All Customers. Get your phone, your customer phone list and a mug of hot cocoa. Sit by the fire and call all your customers for re-orders. Introduce yourself and say, "A really important part of my business is customer care and I wanted to call and ask if you are running low on any products or need any of our great new fall products for your home or work? I also have wonderful gift giving ideas."

Step out of the box today and see what it can do for your business!

Halloween Party Game

Happy Halloween month! Following is a fun Halloween party game submitted by Patricia McCoy.

The demonstrator brings a small gift wrapped in a halloween treat bag (or whatever you have, black, orange, yellow or purple). No one knows what's in it. Then she hands it to the first guest to arrive (or someone else after all are seated.

The game is used as an "ice breaker" to start the night off AND it has a booking seed & an opportunity seed incorporated into the story. The demo tells everyone that when she says LEFT, the person holding the gift hands it to the person to her left and when she says RIGHT, then it moves to the person on her right. The person that has the bag when the story ends is the winner of the gift and then the demonstrator can move easily in to her presentation with the captivated audience.

A Halloween Story
_______________ (Hostess), left her house and was on her way to go pick up the Halloween costume she mistakenly left behind at the store. “I hope the one I picked out is still right where I left it,” she said. ______________ knew that she needed to get back there right away, before there was nothing left. She headed right for the Party store and went down one aisle. She turned left, and then she turned right, and she made her way back down the next aisle for the right costume. Sure enough, there it was, right where she had left it, … right next to the candy. Finally, she had what she needed. So she left for home, to go and carve the pumpkins. When she got home, there were big brown boxes left right on her doorstep! __________________ knew right away that it must have been her Gold Canyon candles… and they arrived right on time for Halloween! _______________ got right to work… she lit her new Gold Canyon candles, decorated the house with her new Halloween candle holders, then carved her pumpkins. Their spooky faces lit right up with her fragrant tealights. When all was done, she enjoyed a wonderful Halloween night with family and friends. Now that I’ve shared this little Halloween story with you, I hope I’ve gotten you into the Halloween spirit. Right now, I’d like to offer you a treat of your own… a chance to treat yourself to a free shopping spree just like our Hostess ______________will be receiving for having tonight’s Show. There’s no trick to this treat! Just pick a date right away to relax with your friends by candlelight and I’ll do the rest. Also, keep in mind, that if you left home with the intention of shopping for gifts tonight, we have the right gift for everyone. Review your shopping list because we wouldn’t want anyone to be left out. We have just the right gifts for birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, and all special occasions. The holidays are also a perfect time to bring in extra cash in a fun way. If this is the right time for you to explore starting up your own home-based business, please talk to me right after the demonstration. Don’t be spooked! Because there’s no experience necessary and best of all, you can start for only $20. You heard me right! You can start making money right away with a Gold Canyon business of your own! I’m glad to be here with all of you tonight and I hope you have fun, too. And so, without further delay, I will get right to the point, which is showing you all of our fabulous candles and accessories. Therefore, there is really nothing left for me to do, except congratulate our winner, right? Congratulations!

Mystery Hostess Event

Plan your own Open House this month and share the Host Rewards with your guests! Your flyer could say something like this:

Don't miss out on the biggest Gold Canyon Summer Event, where everyone can be a winner. Door prizes will be given for all in attendance. You do not need to be present to win the final drawing. Winner(s) will receive a percentage of the Hostess Rewards (Value up to $138*).
*Will be a 1st (60%), 2nd (25%), & 3rd (15%) place winner based on party total. Name drawn only once.Names are entered into the final drawing by the following ways:
1. Receive 2 tickets for attending
2. Bring a friend - receive 5 tickets/per guest
3. Order total of $50 - receive 5 tickets
4. Order total of $75 - receive 10 tickets
5. Order total of $100 - receive 15 tickets
6. Book a party - receive 20 tickets
7. Start your own business - receive 25 tickets

Watch and Learn

This summer I've been invited to a few home parties from other direct sales companies. I've enjoyed sitting back as "the guest" instead of "the demonstrator" and taking mental notes of what they are doing that I can incorporate into my business. I wanted to share.

The first experience was with a cosmetic company, my sister-in-law was the host. Her consultant asked her to complete the guest list, including phone numbers. My sister-in-law asked me for my permission to provide my phone number so I was already curious about this consultant. I've never asked my hosts for their friends & families numbers BEFORE the party, I wait and get them at the time of the order. See where this information comes into play.... a few days before the party I received my own personal phone call from the consultant. She introduced herself and told me she was so excited to meet me at ________'s house. She asked if I had any skin care concerns so that she would be prepared for me needs on the night of the party. She was very friendly, warm and upbeat and I felt at ease with her call. It made me excited to meet her, too, and to put a face with the name on party night. This also increased my commitment to attending the party. If your Gold Canyon party attendance has been low, try that approach!

Speaking of the same skin care consultant: about a week after the party, my products arrived. I received a phone call from the consultant to make sure I got the order and to explain how to use them. Her follow up and customer service was excellent, she didn't keep me on the phone a long time - just quick enough that I knew she cared! From my experience before the party, I already knew I was going to love doing business with her and this confirmed it! Again, she was an excellent example for demonstrators in caring for her customers. If you are struggling with repeat business or losing customers, try her tactic, a little phone call goes a long way :o)

A final testimony of this wonderful consultant, a couple of weeks after all of this, I went to my mailbox and found an envelope addressed by hand. Hmmmm, how often do you get that kind of mail? Usually everything in my mailbox is computer-generated junk mail or bills. I was very excited to open it up and what do I find? This amazing consultant's monthly newsletter! She had printed an uplifting poem, a product spotlight, and an invitation to her own open house on a bright paper. The newsletter also contained a "Customer Care Card" with my name on it, that she initials for every $10 I spend, then after $100 I'll get $10 off my next purchase. What a great way to keep customers coming back! I went ahead and ordered her featured product of the month, even though I have 4 other consultants from the same company who live closer to me, she has won me over by the way she does her business. Have you ever thought of a monthly newsletter for your customers? Or customer care cards? What a great way to win their hearts, too!

My final "watch and learn" experience was tonight I went to a friend's home decorating party. I was greeted by the Consultant when I entered the room. I thought this was great because at some parties the demonstrator just sits in the corner quietly. She had name tags for all the guests - made from the computer-printed labels with the company logo at the top and our names on it with a sharpie. I noticed that she was able to answer questions and direct her comments to the guests using our names, which was an effective way to keep our attention and personalize her demonstration. Another thing I liked about his demonstrator is that, not only did she have a lovely display in the room, she picked up each item from her display, spotlighted it, told where to find it in the catalog and passed it around the room. I was thinking of candle parties, and how often demonstrators sit everything out and leave it there for the guests to figure out on their own? If we followed this consultant's way, our customers could learn more about the different product lines we offer - candles, body and home. The final example I appreciated from the party this evening was her guest participation tactic. She made some "Auction Bucks" that she would pass out every time a guest asked a question. At the end of her presentation, she had two small items that she "auctioned off" to the guests with the highest bucks. It was a fun way to get us all asking questions and to give away free products (who doesn't love that?)

I hope you can implement these ideas in to your business and bust out the sales this August! Go team!!!!

Interactive Party

Involve your guests by making your next party INTERACTIVE! Here is a fun party idea shared by Celeste Ortiz.

Ask for guest volunteers. They will be reading these cards and you play the Vanna White role by either holding up product or show the pages in the catalog. Give your host the candle care card and pass out one card to each volunteer (you don't have to use all of the cards). The guests generally know each other, so they will listen and it will change up your presentation in a fun way. All volunteers get a tealight!

Cards: Card # 1 Gold Canyon has an incredible fundraiser program. Your organization can earn up to 40% profit!! I know someone who is here today that can answer your questions if you or someone you know would be interested in learning more! Card # 2 Fem Fabulous Candles feature this ultra chic black glass, colorful cocktails and divine desserts in fun flirty colors! These 16 oz candles come in 3 different scents and burn 75-95 hours. Card # 3 Looking to get the fabulous scents of Gold Canyon in over 70 different fragrances but without the flame? Then our Pod Warmers are for you! There are 7 different styles now available with an on and off switch with timer option of automatic off at 4, 8 or 12 hours! Card # 4 Gold Canyon is going green! Check out our line of plant based cleaning products called Homeology. This product actually won Rachel Ray's "Greenie Award"! These reasonably priced items will have you feeling like you're in a Day Spa while you're cleaning! Card # 5 Emerge! Rise to a new sense of energy. Reach a new level of focus. Find a new state of balance. In less than 15 minutes a day! Card # 6 As a company committed to delivering the "World's Finest", we carry a greater obligation to invest in the world's most valuable asset and finest resource-children. With the purchase of each Candle's for Kids, 100% of your purchase will be donated to The Prayer Child Foundation. Since 2000 Gold Canyon has given over $1.5 million in aid and assisted children in need throughout the world. Card # 7 Our signature Heritage Line has over 40 scents to choose from in four different sizes. Burn times range from 25-30 hours in our mini 5 oz. to 175-200 hours in our double wick 26 oz. This line is sure to please! Will you be ordering the Pomegranate? With fresh pomegranate-a fusion of peach, strawberry and green apple scents! OR does Sugar Cookie suit you better? Sweet cream, butter, sugar and vanilla baked to a golden perfection! Card # 8 Gold Canyon candles are safe! We have cool burning wax, so if there was an accident and the wax spilled on your skin, it wouldn't burn, you'd just smell real good! Each candle has safety wicks where they will extinguish when there is around ¾" of wax in the bottom of the jar, thus preventing shattered glass. We also provide Lead-Free Wicks! Card # 9 July Host Specials - Any Pod Warmer FREE or Discounted With Party sales of at least $400, Hosts will receive 50% off ANY Pod Warmer. $550 or more in Party sales equals 75% off for Hosts and $700 or more in Party sales gets them ANY Pod Warmer FREE! As a bonus, Hosts with Parties of $400 or greater will receive two Scent Pods™ FREE (A value of $11.96). This is on top of the FREE and discounted items you receive as a Host! Now have dates open in July for Girl's Night Out! The Demonstrator just happens to have a calendar with her. Card # 10 Did you know that you can become a part of the Gold Canyon family for as little as $20? Get this fabulous product for a 25% discount and your home will never be lonely of fragrance again! There is someone in this room that would love to have you as part of her team. Don't wait one more minute. Just tell her SIGN ME UP, I love these candles and want to save money! Card # 11 Candle Care What is it? In this Candle Care 101 class you will learn how to keep your candles in tiptop shape and extend their burn life! First, maintain the beauty of your candles by trimming the wick to ¼" before each burn with this Wick Trimmer. Second, rather than blowing out the flame, use a Wick Dipper. There will be no residual smoke and it coats the wick for an easier light the next time!

If you have extra time you can quiz the guests on candle care. Use the bottom label of a candle for you the answers. Be sure to have the monthly host promotion and join us special in card #9 & 10. I'm going to be trying this at my next party, thanks for the idea, Celeste!

Moms & Summer Business Helps!!!

This is information from a regional conference call at the beginning of the month, sent to me by my sales manager, Kathleen Quirk. Being a mother of 4 I really appreciated these ideas and hope some of you will, too!

Including your kids in your summer business:
*Do business at the park, the pool and other places you take your kids
Talk with host & recruiting prospects
Bring your laptop to return emails
Make customer care calls
*Meet prospective Demonstrators at McDonald’s where the kids can play in the enclosed playground while you interview
*Allow your children to experience the following so you can have extra time to do your business:
Vacation Bible schools
“Mothers Day Out” programs
Day camps—scouts, YMCA, summer school
*Gift wrap a Xerox box; (wrap top separate so it can be lifted off) Fill with inexpensive toys…tell your small kids, the only time they can play with this special box of toys is when you are doing business on the phone…when you get off the phone, have them pick up the toys and place them back in the box for the next time…keep rotating the toys to keep the box fun and exciting…

Summer Parties
· Vacation for your Senses party: Can’t afford a vacation this year? Join us for a 2 hour vacation experience with all of our tropical fragrances. Put display on a cute beach towel, wear a beach hat and carry product in a beach bag. Have the hostess serve drinks with tiny umbrellas in them and have tropical music playing.
· Emerge Spa Party: come pamper yourself and experience our fabulous emerge body care line.
· Unlit expressions party: You don’t have to burn candles to experience our wonderful fragrances. Come experience all of our unlit expressions: pod warmers, diffusers and much more. (Of course, candles are still for sale!)
· 5-1-1 Party: Tell the host she needs to invite only 5 friends and the each need to bring one friend and the party will only be one hour.
· Ugly Candle Party: Have the guests bring their ugliest candles. Give tickets for the sorriest ones.

Theme Parties
Pool Party—serve mimosas and light appetizers (with sunscreen)
Flip Flops and Fritos---or---Flip Flops and Margaritas
Play a flip flop game, example: have everyone put one of their flip flops in a large bag and hide the other flip flop in the bedroom. Pull out flip flops one at a time and people write down who they think the flip flop belongs to. Serve Fritos and dip or Margaritas.
Lawn chair party for an outside party. Ask everyone to bring their own lawn chair.
Game (points or tickets):
Aluminum chair—5 points or tickets
Torn or broken---10 points or tickets
Red---5 points or tickets
Blue---10 points or tickets
Cloth or plastic
Collegiate chair
Baked Potato Party—everyone bring a potato to bake at the party; (Put them in the oven after you play the game.) Host would have butter, sour cream, cheese and bacon bits. Can also add a salad. (To allow people that forgot their potato, the Host should have extra potatoes.)
Game (points or tickets)
Smallest potato
Largest
Most eyes
Shaped the funniest
Flattest
Wine and Cheese party: Game: have everyone bring their favorite wine glass in a gift bag…open the gift bag one at a time and everyone writes down who it belongs to. (Hint—without anyone knowing what you’re doing, take the bags to the bedroom and mix up the glasses and the bags because people will see the bag that their friends bring in.)

Why start a business in the summer? (Why sponsor in the summer?)
People are looking for summer employment
Key in on college students and teachers who are out for the summer
Mothers are home with kids
Become a Gold Demonstrator now so you can take advantage of fall fund raisers
There is no time like the present
Great promotions from Gold Canyon

Any of you who have one of these parties and submit pictures for our blog will receive a free gift. Start planning today - and have a wonderful summer!

Pod Party

The word is out! Scent Pods are quickly becoming very popular. Be sure to have a POD PARTY this month to introduce all of the newly released pod products to your customers and friends! Call up your previous hosts because they'll surely want to host one, too. Our amazing new and improved warmers with timers and the fact that Gold Canyon is offering OVER 70 fragrances in the pods is really brining in rave reviews! Don't miss out on the excitement!

POD PARTY IDEAS: Use scent pods as prizes and gifts at your party, and be sure to have your favorite fragrance warming when the guests arrive! Have a "Pod Hunt" by handing out catalogs and the first one to find the page with all the pod fragrances wins a prize. Use your creativity and make four "Help Me" pins/necklaces/stickers for you or your host. You or the host will wear all 4 and only remove one to place on a friend or guest who is willing to book a party. If the host gives away one, she gets a free 5oz, if she gives away two, upgrade it to an 8oz, if she gives 3 upgrade your booking gift to a 16oz and if she can get four bookings give her a free 26oz. "Name that Scent" take the lids off 4 or 5 pods and pass them around for the guests to write down their guess. Then tell what the answers are and see who got the most right. Be sure to have a Bonus Pod ready for a tiebreaker! This is a great way to get everyone smelling something new and talking about the products.

The pods and pod warmers are HOT this summer, make sure all of your customers and hosts know about it so you don't miss out on mega sales! Read more about our scent pods using the Labels section in the right column, just scroll down to Scent Pods to learn more ---->

Flip Your Lid!

Below are a couple of ideas that was shared by Laurie H., Sr. Manager from TN:

Situation: Laurie went to a Pampered Chef party to purchase a specific pitcher. A customer at the party started telling everyone how her pitcher fell apart and wasn’t good quality, etc. Of course, the Demonstrator was horrified.

Laurie decided to start doing “Flip your Lid” calls to customers after they received their product. The purpose was to make sure the customer had taken the lid off her candle and started using it. Then Laurie would ask if the candle was burning the way she expected, smelled the way she expected, etc. If there was an issue with the burning, she would offer candle care tips. If this was a first time customer and she didn’t like the fragrance, she would try to replace it with something she had.

The main thing Laurie learned from the Pampered Chef party was that she didn’t want customers sitting at another Gold Canyon party talking about a candle, etc. they were unhappy with from their last purchase.

Laurie would also tell the customer she had an order going in soon (even if she didn’t have an order—she would send one in after getting enough sales) and ask if she wanted to order anything. She said she is having great success adding additional sales.

When Laurie makes the “Flip your Lid” calls, she keeps the conversation to talking about a maximum of 3 things to keep the calls short. That way when she calls this customer again, the customer is more willing to talk because she knows Laurie is not keeping her on the phone.

So, “Have you flipped your lid yet?” What a great one-liner to start the conversation!

Another idea Laurie uses when coaching her hosts: She tells them if they get 10 or more guests at the party, she will give them an extra 10 oz. candle. She then uses the Host candle availble inexpensively on your supply order.

You could also offer “an ounce for every guest in attendance.” If she has 16 guests, she would get a 16 oz. candle of her choice as a bonus. I would do the Host candle for 10 guests and then give her a goal of 16 guests she would get a 16 oz. of her choice, 26 oz. with 26 guests, etc.

Usually, I don’t like encouraging Demonstrators to give ‘extra’ to a host; however, this is a great sales tool because we know if we get the guests to the party they will purchase and book. The host has to ‘earn’ this gift.

Thanks, for sharing your ideas and success!

These are my challenges to you:
1. Start today doing your “Flip your Lid” calls
2. Make note of open-ended questions you will ask the customer
3. After you have made 10 “Flip your Lid” calls, share this information and your open-ended questions with me by phone or email.
4. Do 4 “Flip your Lid” calls a day for the next 5 days and report back to me.
5. Continue following-up with your customers.

Happy Birthday to You

A good friend of mine had the cutest idea for her birthday party that we can all utilize in our businesses! She is having a home party and inviting all her friends to come buy themselves a gift and she'll use her host credit to get herself a gift! It is going to be so much fun!

Decorations, invitations, games and refreshments for a Birthday Candle Party are "a piece of cake"! The possibilities are endless.

If you haven't already, start noting your host and guest birthdates in your customer database, then give them a call a few weeks ahead to plan their Birthday Candle Party with you!

Another idea is to mail a card to your hosts/guests on their birthday with a discount coupon and/or a free tealight, Auto Gold or other small gift. Have fun and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Upselling

Laurie Hancock, from TN, shared that she ‘bundles’ products at her parties and has found that people will purchase the bundles especially if they are the type that do not like looking through a catalog or they are overwhelmed with the selections.

Make your bundles coordinate with the monthly customer promotions. For example: If you select “XYZ” bundle, you would qualify for an item at a 20% discount….etc.

Here are examples of her party product bundles:

"Simply Spring" bundle-16oz candle and a wick dipper.-$19.50
"Discover Gold Canyon" bundle-26oz candle Wick dipper and Air Fresheners or 16oz candle, wick dipper and Room spray. $29.50
"Candles, Body, Home" bundle-16oz candle, Homeology Floor, Glass, or All Purpose, Emerge Raise Your Hand Silk, and a wick dipper-$48.92


This week I did another version of upselling that might also give you an idea to build your businesses..... I had ordered one each of the Auto Gold 3-packs to have on hand for a party a month ago. The Car Fresheners didn't sell and they've just been sitting on my shelf. This week I had several deliveries to make and I grabbed that basket of Auto Golds. I took them up to each door with me when I delivered the customer's regular order, and let my customers know I had over-ordered and had these extra Auto Golds on hand for purchase. I had pre-figured the total for each Auto Gold, being $8 after tax & shipping, and I simply asked if they'd like to add one to that day's order. Every customer accepted my offer, and one customer took 3 of them - so not only did I sell off all that overstock, I introduced all of my customers to a new product line and/or fragrance choice. TRY THAT!

Spring Party Ideas

Thank you, Kathy Kuwik (NY) for sending a display idea for spring candle parties:

Kathy puts candles in the Easter Holders and adds Easter grass around for a more festive look... for the game, she sees who can match Jelly Bellies with one of our candles (match jelly bean colors with candle colors OR GC fragrance with Jelly Belly flavors). She provides little prizes for the winners. Kathy used these ideas at a party and hit an awesome sales level of $515 - and the host was still collecting more orders!! Great job, Kathy.

Everyone, email pictures of your party displays to share!

Party Games

Thank you, Ronda (NY) for sending a copy of this party mixer game!

Bring a wrapped gift to the party. Gather all the guests into a circle and read this script. Each time you say the word "right" or "left" they pass the gift to their left or right. The gift moves around the circle and at the end, the person holding the gift wins!

When ____ booked a show, I knew RIGHT away,
That working with her would just make my day.
She made up her list of who to invite,
And she went over it twice to make sure it was RIGHT.

As replies came in, she checked them RIGHT off her list,
Until no one was LEFT and no one was missed.
She chose the RIGHT day for her friends to meet,
And LEFT it to me to make it complete.

She did all the RIGHT things and was excited to see,
What she would receive from her wish list for free!

As I packed up my things for the show tonight,
I was certain the evening would go just RIGHT.
With everything packed, I LEFT RIGHT away,
Thinking about ___ show, and the RIGHT things to say.

I arrived RIGHT on time and set up my things,
To share the joy the Gold Canyon Candles bring.

Selecting just the RIGHT gift won’t seem like a chore,
When your browse through our catalog – it won’t be a bore.
Your wish list is growing, you can’t seem to choose?
Book a show RIGHT today – you have nothing to lose.

Our hostess plan is generous and great,
Check your calendar and let’s set the RIGHT date!
Shopping made simple, RIGHT to your door-
Just provide your home and I’ll bring the store.

And if perhaps you’re looking for a new position,
Gold Canyon Candles could be the RIGHT decision.
Great income potential, flexible schedule and more,
An opportunity awaits you RIGHT on the ground floor!
All your dreams could finally come true,
Don’t be LEFT out, it’s just up to you!

Thanks again for joining me tonight,
The only thing LEFT is the winner on the RIGHT.

Here is another version of it, on this one the host starts with the wrapped gift and gets to choose who it goes to. After each verse, the person holding the gift passes it along as described. Again, the person holding the prize at the end of the poem wins:

You thought all the gifts were meant for you.
But I have other items too.
So hold up the gift and look around,
And give it one with eyes of brown.

You think you are the lucky one,
But let us all share in the fun!
Look around with eyes discreet,
And give it to the one with the smallest feet!

Your feet are tiny and very small,
Now hand it to someone very tall.

Please take your time and don’t be harried,
Give it to the one who is longest married.

You must be proud of your married life,
Now pass this on to the newest wife.

Of this parcel you are bereft,
Give it to the one on your immediate left.

The largest earrings I’m looking for now,
If you’re wearing them, step up with a bow.

Now to the person with buttons of any kind,
The one with the most gets the gift this time.

Now don’t get cross and please don’t fight,
But pass it to the person third on your right.

We should stop now, don’t you agree?
The gift is yours to open and see!

Valentine's Party - Plan it now!

I had some fun ideas for a party this month! A few times a year I put on a really good party to get everybody excited again - and this is it! Won't you all do it for your customers, too? Come on! It will be so much FUN, your friends are all going to love you for this.

The theme - Valentine's, of course! It's a couples party - flier style invitations inviting everyone to come with their sweethearts. I thought of a friend of mine who's husband is in the military, so I'm going to make some kind of a note on the invitation that singles can bring a friend and make it a GNO. Invitations need to be going out soon, so set that date for yourself (and your honey!) and print something off your computer. Put on a cute graphic, use pink paper, or grab some heart stickers from the grocery store and voila! You're already putting everyone in the mood ;o)

The game - Newlywed Game!~ well sort of. There's not time to do the real thing so I'll make a modified version. Each partnership will get slips of paper containing 5 questions each must answer separately without showing their partner. After everyone is finished you read each question and go around the room letting each set of partners answer. If their answers match, they get a point. After all 5 questions have been answered the game is over and the couple with the most points wins. You might need a tie breaker. You decide the prize, some Hershey's kisses, a red rose, lip gloss, be creative!
The refreshments - Cherry Chocolate Cake - YUM! I had this yesterday and took a picture :o) It's so easy, anyone can make it. You can make it the day before, if you guys are interested I'll share my recipe [email erin(dot)didion@goldcanyon(dot)us]. Since we're inviting our guy-friends we gotta have some "man" food - so I'm making my friend Sarah's Macho Nachos, I'm happy to share that recipe if you're interested! All is quick, easy and tasty or I don't do it!

Another demonstrator shared this flier that she made up to disperse throughout the month to give all the men "subtle hints" for Valentine's gifts. I'm going to make up something similar to hand out that night. Be sure to have your party in time to receive your order before Valentine's Day.

Some other ideas for the night would be to have a few pink & red decorations around, maybe take a picture of each couple to print and deliver with their order in a thank-you note. Oh! It's going to be so much fun, I can hardly wait! If any of you are on board, share your pictures, experiences and ideas with the rest of us :o)

Candle Confections

Well, I have another party tomorrow night and I was sitting here wondering what I should do for customer appreciation gifts and door prizes. I had the idea to make some little tealight treats and they turned out very cute!

Woops, I didn't notice one of those is upside down and you can see my ugly tape job. Oh well, nobody's perfect!!!

I used a package of Caramel Ginger Strudel tealights that have been sitting on my shelf a while. I love the brown color - it's just like real caramels or toffee. I used some clear cellophane and curly ribbon to trim them, wrapping like candies and tying both ends. They are so cute, if I do say so myself. I'm going to put them in a candy tin and they're perfect for a Christmas party - not to mention inexpensive, gotta love that.

One of the demos (Megan, was this you? I can't remember) shared that she brought treat bags to give out because she didn't want anyone to leave empty-handed. I loved the idea so I picked up some Santa bags, bite-sized snickers, Andes mints, mini-candy canes and marshmallow reindeer. One of each per bag and voila! I'm sure everyone will feel like kids again. I made 12 and I hope there's one left over for me :o)

Here's some miscellaneous pictures I had on my camera, this is from a show I did on Saturday, see how I put the red bows on each package of Auto Golds in the basket? Those things come in packages of 12 at the dollar store and you can tuck the wire in the fold of the envelope and they just stay on there. My price tags were ugly this day because I ran out of my usual stickers. Not sure if you can see in the upper left hand corner, there are a set of the ceramic songbirds from our Spring catalog. I tied red & green ribbon around and they sold quickly! Also, each of the 5oz candles has a small satin ribbon and jingle bell tied around the neck. I sold a dozen in the first hour. Not sure if you can see the baking line candle there, I had a new wooden spoon I tied on there with wired ribbon, I've also used cinnamon sticks in there and it looks good.

Below I have a pyramid of boxes, usually I would drape some fabric over but I was using it for different things, so I took extra wire ribbon and just laid it around. It helped things look a little more festive. I also sat out my scent pods on a holiday goody tray. You can see the little polar bear holders in a cello-bag with a vanilla mint votive and peppermint taffies. I also put bows on the Emerge products & Homeology. I notice the things with bows on them always sell quickly, maybe there's something subliminal about that... I also try to use holiday table cloths to put everyone in the mood.

And lastly, I love this sweater basket and it fits my winter catalogs perfectly. I sat them in a window sill with a box of pine cones. Don't you love the green light wire draped by it..... oh well.

Any and all of these ideas can be adapted for future parties if you Christmas parties are already wrapping up. Just use other seasonal decor. Please share some of your pictures, too!!!

Party Prep

I was just getting a few things together for a party tomorrow night and I thought I'd post my preparations. It's always fun to see what someone else is doing, so feel free to copy. Hopefully, this will spark something in your own creativity to share with the rest of us. This first picture is my "on time" drawing prize. I do a drawing to open every party - it's a fun way to get everyone gathered so I can start my presentation. Only the people who are there on time get to enter, and I obtain the guests' name and contact information little entry papers. You may recognize this elegant keepsake box from our Boutique Chic line. This is the pretty blue-green box from my FAVORITE candle in this line, the brand-new Woods & Vanilla Romantique. I burn that candle in my bedroom and I always have the cute boxes leftover..... so tie it up with some satin ribbon and voila! an adorable gift box. I had a little bit of paper shred I placed in the bottom along with a car freshener. I applied vinyl lettering spelling "Simplify" to dress up the votive glass. The two tealights in the glass were leftovers out of my own package. It is simple, cute, easy low/no cost, and I think it will be a fun keepsake for whoever wins tomorrow! Use whatever you have laying around to create unique prizes & gifts. Take some pictures and share with us!
These are the gifts for my booking game. After my short presentation, we'll play the game outlined here on the blog under Karen Phelps' convention lecture (find the instructions using the labels in the right column "booking"). I wondered if all my demos knew how cute these bags are, and if you knew they're available to you through the supply orders! On Essentials, click Action/Order Entry/Supply Order and use item #96351, Small Floral Shopping Bags. You'll get a package of 20 for $5.00. They are sturdy and cute and have the Gold Canyon Logo on them so you'll look professional and all. I've also used lunch sacks tied with pretty ribbons and tissue, or reused gift bags when I'm out of the Gold Canyon bags. For these gifts, I just picked items off my shelf that were out-of-date, or that I received for free or discounted prices from previous party orders. So all 3 gifts plus my host gift didn't cost me anything out of pocket - it's stuff I had on hand. Keep your eyes open for good deals so you can do the same. For example, one of these is Emerge Start Clean Body Lather. That would cost the customer $14.98 - but I got it on a promotion about a year ago for buy 1 get 1 free. Since I had stocked up so much I decided to get it out there. It didn't cost me but she'll not only use and fall in love with it, but she's going to think I really went all out for her!! Another bag contains the Garden Sparrow Set from our spring catalog. I used them in my living room all year, but I got bored and they still looked as good as new, so instead of donating them to charity, I dusted them off, put a fresh, new tealight in each of them, wrapped them in tissue paper, and badda-bing, another booking gift. Again, these are a $15-20 value, so the guest is going to feel spoiled. This is all stuff I had on hand by chance this time. You can get by with less if you need, in fact, send me good & cute ideas for inexpensive gifts and prizes, please!

The last thing I was putting together - well it was kind of already done I just had to update a couple of things - is my guest folders. At back-to-school time every year I stock up on these pocketed folders for 10-cents apiece at Wal-Mart. I keep a page protector in it and insert the current monthly promotional flier. For this party, in the left pocket, I put Gold Canyon's Holiday Wish List (.pdf file available through email) along with the second page of November's print quality promo file (available on Essentials, click Current Promotions on home page). I also have an order form - notice it's pink! I hate wasting 1-2 copies of our invoices because I really only need the original and ONE duplicate, not 3 duplicates for crying out loud! So when I get them, I put my contact information on them and then separate half of the copies. (Half of my invoices are white and the customer keeps the canary copy, then the other half are pink and the customer keeps the golden copy.) I try not to be tacky about it - like at this party everyone will have the pink ones. Notice my business card is placed in the front of the folder. If you don't have a business card, make one! Or order through Town & Country (Action/Marketing Tools/Stationary & Logo Merchandise). Flipping the page, behind the flier I poked an invitation card with the picture side facing out. I wrote in a sharpie on the invitation "Book a show with me and receive $10 Gold Canyon Cash". You can give out the actual Gold Canyon Cash guest booking certificates instead (available through Supplies, item #96436, $2 for 20). The post-card is more colorful and candle-ish though. In the back pocket I've placed an Opportunity Pamphlet, which is a recruiting flier that has been discontinued now but I'm using up my old stuff. You could add anything there to personalize it for your guests. I also slide a catalog inside and clip a pen to the front. As guests arrive I hand each one a folder and as they leave they hand them back. Taking eight is usually sufficient, and I always carry extra supplies in case there's a big turn out.

Another thing you don't want to forget when you're preparing for a party is to get change! It's a little embarrassing when it's time to take their money and you can't make correct change. So break up a twenty or two, grab a handful of change out of the ash tray, and take it in a bank bag, cash box or envelope so you look like you're organized with your money! And don't forget to take your samples! (Right Traci????) Tomorrow I'm also taking some fall table cloths and fake fall leaves and a few of my other home decorations to make the table pretty. I'll stick my camera in and if I don't feel too conspicuous I'll snap a few shots for you guys!

One last thing I always do before my parties is raid my house for everything Gold Canyon. I have a little basket of my Homeology sprays, my Emerge products and my 1/2 burnt candles in their holders. I take it all with me - there I will share my personal products for testers and if the host doesn't have a candle to burn I'll let her pick one (or two or three) of mine to have going at the party (Don't forget to take it back home with you!!!)

You know, I'd really love for this blog to become a forum! I hope you're not all sick of hearing from me, but this is what I have to do till I get you all on board! Sign up for a Google account (take 5 seconds) and leave some comments, or email me and I'll post your ideas, pictures and comments. THANKS EVERYBODY! Party Hard!

October Party Games

Our newest demo, Megan Moreno, just had her debut party and did a great job! She shared her party experience with me and I really appreciated her efforts so I wanted to share her ideas with all of you.

There were 9 people in attendance and they played two games. I know some of you don't do games at parties, but I feel like it is important to get the crowd interacting and relaxed a little bit. Megan's game ideas were perfect for this goal.

First of all, she provided all the guests with a pencil and paper and they had to close their eyes and draw a jack-o-lantern while she walked them through each step. The one with the best jack-o-lantern wins a prize. You could choose the winner, let the host choose, or let the crowd choose. The second game was getting to know your host. Megan explains, "I had a list of items such as favorite movie, restaurant, country, etc... and the host had to write down the first thing that came to her mind. The others had to try and figure out what she would write down and the person with the most answers correct won." I think that's a wonderful idea and fun for all. One other thing Megan did that really impressed me was making treat bags for everyone who came. She didn't want anyone to leave empty-handed. She filled little party sacks with Hershey's kisses and a tealight for each guest.

Megan, you are fantastic! You really went the extra mile with your first party. Congratulations, and keep up the great work! I hope the rest of you will also share some of your business ideas with us.

While I'm here, I'll go ahead and share some another idea as well. Megan had mentioned to me that she had a guy in attendance. I've heard of "couples" parties, and guy nights where the ladies all bring their boyfriends/husbands and serve "guy" food (meatballs, chips, sodas) and let the guys participate. The game they played was making up the most creative scent idea for a new candle fragrance - like "Steak & Potatoes" or "Mechanic's Shop" or "Burnt Hair". Guys come up with all kinds of crazy stuff women wouldn't think of. And they love to smell and pick the scents their wives are buying. Men are big buyers! And at convention this year there were LOTS of men in attendance - helping thier wives demonstrating when they see how lucrative the business is.

Just a few tidbits...

Monday I participated in a conference call with other Senior Managers in our region, hosted by our Kathleen Quirk at the home office. I always bring little ideas away with me and thought you might enjoy some of them as well...

Some of the demonstrators expressed an inability to get "home" parties - many are leaning towards "catalog" parties. This wasn't the case with the panel of Senior Managers on the phone, only a few had experienced this challenge. That means LOTS of people out there are willing, and having home parties. But an idea that might help your host lean towards a HOME party would be to increase your offerings; add a little "something" to your host gift and let your potentials know, if they have a catalog party they will get such & such but if they have a HOME party they get that PLUS ________. (Don't break the bank, do something you can afford or that you have on hand already). If any of you have more ideas for this, please comment or email.

Once you get your party on the calendar, be sure to use the booking game explained in the previous Karen Phelps post and you'll get a lot more parties coming down the pipe.

One demonstrator on the call was having a party and the "buzz" was that everyone in attendance had already purchased the candles they needed from a recent fundraiser. (I've heard this one before!) For some, this kind of talk could ruin the mood and dampen the party. But not this demonstrator! She jumped right in with a fantastic plan. She had bottles of the Homeology cleaning products on hand and a roll of paper towels for her demonstration, and she announced "We're going to have a cleaning party!" She assigned different guests a bottle and a task and they all took turns cleaning windows, walls, counters, tile, etc. Everyone had such a great time and the host's home was sparkling! Needless to say, lots of Homeology products were purchased that night! And to top the evening off, they all washed their hands with the Emerge Start Fresh Hand Soap, Grains of Truth Hand Scrub and Raise Your Hand Silk. It was a very successful party. Make sure you incorporate our unique lines into your parties and presentations - especially those of you who have been doing this business for a long time and might be feeling a little "blah".

It's been said that "the eye buys". If you have the resources and talents, take a minute to dress up your candles - a simple ribbon with a jingle bell tied to it, pretty raffia or bows, ornaments, candy, etc. Use little props from the dollar store to make your display more attractive. (See Fall ideas from convention post).

I received by email some spreadsheets you might enjoy and find useful for your businesses. One of them lists all of the current fragrances and prices by category, the other has all the fragrances, prices, tax and shipping (you would need to modify for your rates). You could use these lists for a number things, from wish lists, to party packets, to fliers, and more. If you are interested I will you email them to you.

The last idea is one that can also be emailed or you can create your own. One of the demos on the call uses a 1/2-sheet questionnaire for gathering new customer information. She sits them out at parties, boutiques and craft shows and anyone who fills it out completely receives a free tealight. The form consists of the following fields: Date, name, address, best time to call, phone #, favorite item/scent, party interest, interest in selling, interest in fundraising, email address. Again, please email me if you'd like me to send you a copy.

Thanks for reading! Come again soon!

Candy Bar Game

Everyone, watch your mailboxes for the Essentials magazine from Gold Canyon! There's lots of great articles for us. Inside the front cover is a recap on the Simply 2 program. Page 1 is Karen's article "Why I Love..." where she shares a cute party display idea for the Snowman Pod Warmer. Inside you will also find great information on Fundraisers, which will help boost your fall sales. The Dear Maven article has some FAQ answers you should read up on to be prepared when your customers ask about our dual wicks and cool-burning wax. The cool-burning wax is always fun information for customers, once I poured some wax onto my arm to demonstrate and everyone gasped. It's amazing that this wax doesn't heat up like normal candle wax and it doesn't burn your skin. My FAVORITE article of the Essentials magazine is on p. 12 called "The Power of Parties". There are great points and ideas in here from Alicia Lundy, a Manager in AZ. She talks about a Candy Bar game that I couldn't wait to share with you! I emailed Alicia right away to get the details, and here is her reply:

CANDY BAR GAME
Recipe For Bookings:
12 Full Size Candy Bars (I use King Size bars)
12 Raffle Tickets (I use GC Contact Cards)
Tape
2 Party Pleasers
1 Grand Prize
Willing Audience

Raffle Tickets
3 ENJOY
2 FREE GIFT
1 GRAND PRIZE
6 LET'S PARTY

Right after you show everybody what they receive as FREE and DISCOUNTED from our Host Rewards and Monthly Promotions, take your basket of candy bars and say…. "We are going to play a SWEET GAME! This is a game of Chance and a game of Honor. I have 12 candy bars and they each have a raffle ticket taped to the bottom. A few raffle tickets say ENJOY and you get to enjoy your candy bar! A couple say FREE GIFT and you can choose one of my free gifts. There is one that says GRAND PRIZE and you are the winner of this (hold up your grand prize). The rest say LET'S PARTY and you are the luckiest winner of all because you get to have a party and receive all of your favorite Gold Canyon products FREE (wave your hand over the grouping of the host rewards and monthly promotions that you just showed them). Now remember….this is a game of CHANCE and a game of HONOR. You DO NOT have to play….however if you choose to play I am going to expect you to hold up your end of the bargain just like you would expect me to hold up my end of the bargain."

Pass your basket of candy bars around the room and watch the bookings flow in. I ask them once they pick a candy bar to hold it with the raffle ticket face down until everyone has picked. As soon as someone picks Let's Party hand them your date card. Anyone who takes a candy bar CAN BE BOOKED! They are willing to CHANCE having a show so GO GET THEM!!!

20 Selling Phrases

These are some helpful phrases that you can rehearse and help boost your sales and booking techniques. Think of these while you're looking through your catalog to help you plan your show presentations. My sister-in-law shared these with me from her Pampered Chef national convention this summer. Any of you are welcome to share any pictures or ideas that have helped your business, too!

1. "Take advantage of this unique opportunity"
2. "An experience you’ll never forget"
3. "Be the first to have one of these…"
4. "Imagine pleasure when…"
5. "Even better than you possibly thought"
6. "Must have"
7. "A bold new look"
8. "As beautiful as it is practical"
9. "Attractive and welcoming"
10. "A clear choice that only the best will do"
11. "A small investment that goes a long way"
12. "A popular choice for a good reason"
13. "A new twist…"
14. "Ground breaking design"
15. "Updated and improved"
16. "Begin your own family traditions"
17. "This is what everyone is raving about"
18. "Years of knowledge and experience"
19. "Hard to resist"
20. "Let yourself be pampered"