Are You a Good Team Leader?

When and how was the last time you contacted your downline? Keeping
in touch with your downline and proper training is a very important
aspect of being a team leader. I don't know many people who were
born "just knowing what to do", how about you?

Setting up a Yahoo Group is a great way to train your team members
that comes with many benefits such as:

- Members will be able to check old posts to see if some questions
have been asked and answered.

- Eventually, you'll find that other team members will start to help
answering questions (saving yourself a lot of time).

- Files such as printable brochures, price lists, frequently asked
questions etc. can be uploaded your group.

- You can create databases with important information.

- Calendars can be created with important dates to remember.

- You have access to a reminder program that you can set up to send
out a reminder on a certain time, date etc.

- You can send out articles, tips and tricks to help your team build
their businesses. You can sign up to have weekly direct sales
articles sent to you via email at http://direct-sales-
team.blogspot.com

There are many, many other benefits of doing this. Setting up a
yahoo group is very easy to do and best of all … It's free. You can
set up your own yahoo group by going to http://groups.yahoo.com

------------------------------------------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.

Is Your Downline Needy?

Of course as a team leader, it's your responsibility to be there and
help your downline as much as possible.  However, having overly
needy team members can be detrimental to your business.

Taking each of your downline members by the hand for every single
step makes it very difficult to do other things such as …

- Take care of other members who might need quite as much help.
- Build your team by recruiting.
- Promote your own business.
- And worst of all, you run out of time to take proper care of your
customers.

You know who I'm talking about…

  - The ones who ask the same questions over and over again.
  - Those who ask the very same questions that are listed in the
training manual you just gave them.
  - Those who ask questions that can be answered by simply using a
little basic, common sense.

Everyone (hopefully) wants to be a good team leader and wants to
help their downline be as successful as possible … so, what do you
do?

  - Start keeping track of these questions.  Start yourself a "FAQ"
list with the answers and give them to every new team member.

  - Start answering questions that you know are listed in training
manuals or other materials like this:

"You will be paid commissions via paypal on the 10th of each month.
This and other details are listed on page 22 in the Getting Started
Manual."

By doing this you'll not only answer the question, but also
hopefully this will remind them to check other materials before
asking you.  If you were to ask where they looked; more times than
not you're going to hear "Nowhere, I just contacted you."

  - Sometimes you'll find that recruits are so deep into trying to do
everything "perfect" that they forget that some things are just
common sense.  Have you ever heard of "Book Smart – Common Sense
Dumb"?  Politely remind your recruits to not make things so
difficult and answer questions like this …
"Think about it this way … your customers can have their orders
dropshipped to the recipient, so yes, you can have your orders
dropshipped directly to your customers.

Don't ever discourage your team members from asking questions.   But
do help them learn how to answer some questions on their own.  This
will not only help you have more time for more intense training and
motivation but also will make your team members a lot more
independent – eventually turning them into a much stronger business
owner.

------------------------------------------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.

Directory Listings & Direct Sales


Directory listings and other forms of advertising can be great
exposure for anyone in business.  However, if you are in direct
sales and using a rep site you could be leaving lots of money on the
table.

Even in direct sales, advertising online can be a huge benefit. One
of the largest mistakes we see though, is the use of rep sites
alone. Believe it or not, when advertising online your main
objective is not to get customers to buy immediately. A very small
percent will bookmark your site, so if your focus is just getting
visitors that's all you'll have. And if you are lucky to get
bookmarked … when is the last time you looked in your favorites
list?

Instead of focusing on just getting people to your site to buy,
focus on getting them to sign up to your list. This way you haven't
lost them, they are just waiting to buy at a later time.  To do
this, of course, you will need your own website.

A rep site does have its purpose, and that's to complete the online
buying process. It should be used as the end, not the start. Leads
should come from your personal website or from you personally
(offline or by email, stating to go to your rep site to order). Warm
leads only should be sent to your rep site, while those just surfing
should be sent to your personal website.

Contrary to popular belief, websites can be built fairly easily and
inexpensively.  So, do yourself and your pocketbook a favor and at
least think about building your own personal website.

------------------------------------------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field.
Visit http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.

6 Quick Tips for a Successful Online Fair

Online parties and fairs can be profitable for everyone involved,
but not if they aren't done right. We've heard many complaints over
poorly organized or planned events, even though anyone can hold a
successful event. In this article, we'll cover the 6 basic tips to
ensure that you as the coordinator have set up an event that will be
worth the time of the vendors.

1. Set Up
One of the best ways to set up your vendor fair is to have all the
vendors and contact information listed on one web page. Don't forget
to include a link to "enter" the event.

2. Costs, Fees, Etc.
Whether or not to charge vendors is a highly debated topic and
completely up to you. Should you decide to charge - be sure it is
reasonable (especially for your first one).

3. Inviting Guests
Be sure to invite guests outside the "vendor list".

4. Vendor Advertising
Encourage your vendors to promote the event also. The more promotion
that is done; the more guests you're likely to have.

5. Set a Schedule
Set a certain time for each vendor to do their presentations so that
each vendor has their fair "time to share".

6. Choosing a Room
Choosing a room is a crucial decision for your event. Be sure to do
your research on various rooms and be sure to ask for
recommendations from others.

There are several other tips included in organizing an event, but
the most important is to be organized and make sure there is enough
promotion. The last thing you want is unhappy vendors walking away
without so much as a lead because of poor planning!

------------------------------------------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.

Holding Successful Drawings & Contests

Contests and drawings can be a great way to pull in business.
However, if not done correctly you can end up with nothing but a
whole lot of freebie seekers. The rule of quality over quantity
applies here!

Just a few weeks ago I held a drawing for a $25 gift certificate. I
learned quite a bit from this drawing, and will be able to fine tune
this type of promotion in the future. One of the main points I
learned was the key to a successful drawing is when you get the
absolute most exposure and leads as a result. There are several main
points you'll want to focus on with your drawing.

With your drawing, you should:

- Gather information from potential customers
In the last drawing I did, I asked those entering a few simple
questions aside from basic information of name and address that had
to do with the site. They actually had to look around before filling
in an answer. Forms that weren't complete were tossed, since the
rules were clearly posted and said "please fill out form
completely". I was able to weed out those that were trying to grab a
freebie from those that were truly interested enough to follow
rules.

I also was able to gather some interesting information about my
customers, like how much they spend a month on my type of product,
and how often they use it. Valuable information since it comes
straight from the customer!

- Schedule catalog shows and online parties
With any drawing online or offline, you'll want to ask those
entering about being a hostess. It's a way of using the freebie
seekers to your advantage. You know they won't buy, but they can
find people that will and still get their free products.

- Sign up newsletter subscribers
If you want a responsive list, don't force them to sign up to enter
your drawing. Making them do nothing but enter an email address to
enter isn't going to do you any good, and they'll probably use
a "throw away" email address to send your newsletter to. Instead,
plug your newsletter AFTER they enter your drawing. Give them a
chance to look around your site first with the questionnaire, and
THEN offer the newsletter. You'll build a much more responsive list
this way.

- Build a relationship with winner
At the end of the drawing and after you pick your winner, you can
now build a relationship with them for future orders. Follow up, ask
questions, talk to them, etc. Treat them as you would any other
customer!

One of my main regrets for the last drawing I held was that I didn't
ask enough questions. Had I done a longer questionnaire, I could
have gotten more information and kept the potential customer on my
site longer. It's in my notes, that's for sure. ;)

The main point here is, don't make it easy. Easy to figure out, but
not easy to enter. Don't be afraid to make them jump through a few
hoops. You may not end up with as many entering, but you'll have a
much more targeted group of entries. The more work they do to enter,
the more interested they are!

-----------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.

Online Parties Increase Sales

Everyone in the direct sales party plan business knows what a home
party is. It's the basics of a direct sales company, more or less.
Even if your company doesn't focus on home parties, you know what
they are and almost everyone has been to one.

However, with the growing number of people coming online to do
business, online parties are becoming more and more popular. Even
still, not many know what an online party is or how they can
drastically make a difference in your online sales.

The basics behind an online party are very much like that of a home
party. Guests are invited to one location to listen to a
presentation, and then look over products to buy. Often times games
are played to keep the guests having fun, and products ordered.

With online parties, guests only have to log in to a chat room where
they meet the consultant, and often times a hostess. Instead of
looking at products in a catalog or on a table, products are viewed
on websites. Games are still played, but done virtually.

Online parties can work wonderfully for consultants, hostesses, and
guests. No one has to drive to a home, the hostess doesn't have to
clean house, no one needs baby sitters, family and friends from all
over the country can join the party, yet all the same benefits apply
to everyone involved.

Despite the ease of online parties, it's equally hard to gather all
guests into a chat room at one time. Some are still "new" at "the
computer thing", so may not be able to easily enter the chat room.
Time conflicts still apply, even though not having to drive makes it
easier. Remembering to be online at a certain time is also a set
back, since there is no pressure to go somewhere, it's easier to
forget. Because of this, you'll want to keep your party open for a
certain amount of time after to make sure you don't miss party sales
and make sure you are doing all the advertising possible.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. For additional help
getting started on setting up your first online party, visit:
http://www.directsaleshelpers.com/online-party-class.html

Importance of Calculating Costs

First let me say there's nothing wrong with exploring every possible
marketing venue. There are lots of ways - both good and bad - to
pull in sales. However, while something you have considered may seem
like a good way to pull in sales, a closer look at your costs to run
the campaign may prove differently.

Let's say for an example you decide to give out freebies at random.
Giving samples can be a good way to bring in sales, but at the same
time can make you completely broke. Just for this example, let's say
you've sent out 100 samples and from this you pulled in 5 sales.
Sounds like the campaign worked, right?

Many would stop here and say "I'm going to send out more samples,
because this is bringing me sales". Before you start in on your
victory dance, I can't stress enough the importance of comparing
your costs to your profits. When doing something like this, you
absolutely cannot rely on reorders or repeat customers. Keep in mind
it takes nearly as much time and money to KEEP a customer than it
does to get them in the first place. The mind set of "I'm getting my
name out there" has GOT to go. With a small business, you are
working on building relationships and repeat customers, not branding
like the big businesses do.

Breaking down our example, let's say our freebies cost $1 each.
There's more math involved in figuring your costs, but for this
example we'll just set that cost for each sample. Now since you sent
out 100 samples, your cost was a $100. Quite a bit of money for just
one campaign! Sent out over a period of time (say several months)
you might not even notice that it cost this much. Another reason why
it's important to watch these things, because you can see how easy
it can be to go broke quickly.

From our example we decided that 5 sales were made. Let's say our
average commission is $9 per sale, so with 5 sales that makes $45.
Great! You made sales! But wait - take a look at those costs again.
Remember how it cost you $100 to send it out? You just lost $55 as
well as precious time.

The purpose of this example isn't to scare you off of marketing all
together, but rather to figure out your average costs BEFORE you
start handing out samples or any other type of marketing. Regardless
of how much figuring you do, there's still a chance for a loss
instead of a profit, but that's fine. It happens, and it's normal.
Testing, tweaking, and tracking are how we learn. After comparing
your first try, decide how it can be better and try again. Either
that, or try something else that will bring you a profit.

If I didn't mention it enough before, it's EXTREMELY important you
track your costs closely. Our examples above proved this. Regardless
of what you are told, it's not about getting the sales, it's about
making a profit. That's the key word here - PROFIT. Just like a
major company, it's all about the bottom line.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. If you need additional
help calculating costs, visit
http://www.directsaleshelpers.com/calculating-costs.html

Know Your Business

Usually we speak about these matters to those who are new to direct
sales or are looking to possibly get in to direct sales, however,
having spoken with quite a few different reps recently; we've found
that even those who have been involved with direct sales for many
years still don't know the definitions of different terms used. This
of course could be for a myriad of reasons such as maybe one
particular term doesn't affect your company, you never asked and
your sponsor never mentioned, or you just never knew. Even if a
particular term does not affect your company, you could very well be
asked by a prospect and you'll want to know so you can answer this
question quickly and easily without a hitch. An even worse case
scenario would be that you weren't aware of a particular
rule/regulation and you've been going against your company's
regulations all along. Not following a company's regulations could
easily be call for dismissal from your company. Remember, not
knowing is not an excuse. The following is a list of frequently
asked questions/terms and definitions to help you. If you find a
question that you can't answer … find out!

Distributor Kit – Also commonly referred to as a start up kit, rep
kit, etc. these are usually a compilation of products, business
supplies, brochures etc. These are sometimes offered for new
consultants only but are also offered to any consultant. These are
usually discounted through a bulk package rather than buying each
item individually.

Tax Requirements – Make sure you know what your company's tax
requirements are. It's also a good idea to do some research online
about other states' requirements also. If you do a lot of recruiting
online, you're very likely to have a downline of members all over
the country. No one expects you to become a tax pro but, it never
hurts to be able to share links with your potential recruits about
their particular state so they can do the research themselves. This
question is ranked high in the top questions asked.

Sales Quota – Some companies require their representatives to
sell/buy a certain amount of merchandise in a certain amount of
time. These usually range from monthly, quarterly or yearly. If a
consultant does not meet the required quota, some companies will
remove that consultant.

Customer Service - Be sure you know exactly how various order
problems are handled. Who does the consultant contact and how in
this unfortunate event?

Drop Ship – Dropshipping is when a consultant places an order with
their company and the company automatically ships the product
directly to the customer.

Commission Structure – This is another high-ranked question. Of
course everyone wants to know what they're going to make. Make sure
that you clearly understand the commission structure so you can
explain it to your potential recruit.

Territory Restrictions – Some companies have territory restrictions,
meaning that you may only be able to sell in a certain area. Often
this is set up according to towns, counties and sometimes even
states.

Hostess Credits/Gifts – These are items or prizes that hostesses can
earn/win for holding their parties. What are these prizes/gifts and
who is responsible for paying for them?

Inactive Fees – These are fees that might be incurred if a
consultant were to go inactive and decided to re-join.

Bonuses – Some companies like to offer added incentives/bonuses to
their consultants for maybe when they reach a certain number in
sales or reach a certain level with their downline.

Downline – These are the people that you "sponsor" or those who join
the company "under you". These are also known as team members.

Fundraising Opportunities – Many direct sales companies have a
separate plan set up especially for organizations, teams etc. so
they can earn money for their organization.

Buy Back Policy – Often companies will buy back any unused
merchandise that consultants have not been able to sell. As required
by the Direct Selling Association, most companies will buy back the
unused merchandise at up to 90% of the cost.

Non-Compete Clause – Many direct sales companies have a non-compete
clause in place meaning that consultants may not sell for a
competing company while representing their own. There are even some
that will not allow reps to sell for any other company – competing
or not.

Return Policy – Make sure you're well aware of your company's return
policy.

Advertising Regulations – Some companies will not allow their
representatives to advertise online. Some will not allow consultants
to mention the company's name or even certain brand names in any
advertising. There are a lot of different rules/regulations that
pertain to advertising. Make sure you're following them.

-----------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.

Proper Networking & Email Formats

Often times when sifting through networks, I see some extremely
terrible things. Just as your clothing offline shows how
professional you are, your typing and email formats show how
professional you are online.

Many of us have read the basic networking tips, what to do and what
not to do. What's spam, what's not. Although there are several tips
you hardly ever see, and need to be mentioned. These apply to every
day conversation as well as ads.

The following is a list of things to avoid when networking and
sending emails:

1. Grammar and Spelling
Nothing bugs me more than to see grammar mistakes. Some are
forgivable, as I know we all make mistakes. However, some are
deliberate or signs of laziness. I don't ever expect someone to
spell check a reply on a group, but using capital letters at the
beginning of sentences and periods shouldn't be left out. Also
things like "u" instead of "you" are unacceptable. Message boards
and groups are NOT chat room.

2. Using All Caps
This tends to fall into the grammar and spelling category, but I
thought I would make mention of it alone. Online, the use of caps is
translation for shouting. If you need to get a point across, by all
means shout. Just don't write your entire message in caps (or vise
versa - refer to the tip above).

3. Excessive Exclamation Marks
This mostly applies to ads, since I know we can get excited when
talking to fellow WAHMs on a casual level. I absolutely cringe when
I read an ad with (!!!!) after every sentence. This is probably
because I learned early excessive exclamation marks is a huge no-no
in ad writing. It indicates hype, and no one wants to read pure
hype. One exclamation mark is good enough, and more is
unprofessional.

4. Fancy Stationery
It might look neat to you, but extremely irritating to others. You
wouldn't see an envelope covered with stickers from your electric
company would you? Or a statement from your bank on pretty
stationery that says "I don't do mornings". Not only that, but many
groups and email programs will reject the code for the stationery. I
can't tell you how many messages I've seen on Yahoo Groups that
start out with "XYZ Stationery Header". That doesn't look
professional at all. Save the fancy stationery for your personal
mail.

5. Arguments
We all feel the need to put our two cents in sometimes, although
while networking with business it's usually not a good idea. Unless
it specifically concerns you, try to stay out of arguments and
heated discussions. There's a time to say something and a time to
keep quiet. Knowing the difference is the only way to improve your
networking status.

There are many other "no-no's" that we see on a regular basis, but
the ones listed above are the top mistakes many networkers make.
Don't forget - your emails and words are a direct reflection of your
business online!
-----------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.

Importance of Offering Team Incentives

If your team is growing but not staying motivated, one of the best
ways to kick them into gear is to offer an incentive. By offering an
incentive you are not only helping your team stay motivated, but in
return helping your own business. Working towards a tangible goal can
be a very powerful thing!

Here are some ideas for goals you can set for your team:

- Top monthly sales
- Top quarterly sales
- Most recruits in one month
- Reaching a set sales goal in a month
- Reaching personal goals
- Advancing in company ranking


Incentives come in many forms. While many would appreciate a company
discount, others may like different types of gifts. After all, being
in the company they are already getting products at a discount,
right?

Gifts do not always have to be expensive, but should reflect the goal
you have set for them. If the prize is offered monthly, the gift
should be small. If it's a larger, long term goal, something a tad
more expensive would be better. Remember though, it's the thought
that counts and what appears to be expensive doesn't have to BE
expensive.

Some ideas for incentives include:

- Candles
- Gift Certificates
- Jewelry
- Products from your other businesses
- Personalized Products

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field.  Needing incentives for
your team?
DirectSalesHelpers.com offers personalized candles at
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com/candles.htm

It's that time of year again! Christmas is over and the weather is
starting to get warm, which means craft shows are starting to be
scheduled. Are you ready to start looking for events?

We all know how profitable a craft show can be. Offline events are
perfect for getting the word out about your business and making new
contacts. What could be better than hundreds of shoppers walking
right up to you and saying hello?

The most difficult part of a craft show is actually locating them
before all the tables are booked. If you have never attended an
event before, be prepared to spend several shows stuffed in the very
back at a last minute table. Many of us start out like this, but as
soon as you get on "the lists", your table location WILL be better.

The following idea for locating events is brand new, and given to us
by a "neighbor" at our last craft show. While chatting with her, she
pulls out a book and asked if we had this. It was titled "Iowa
Calendar of Events", and was FULL of events for all over the state.
Granted there were many events that do not accept vendors (theater
dates, car shows, etc), but the list of shows that did accept
vendors was amazing. All events were listed by date, complete with
location and contact information. Perfect!

While this information might have been great for us being in Iowa,
you might ask what good does it do for the rest of you in different
states. I'll tell you - this booklet was free from our travel
information website. All we had to do is go online and request a
free copy. Iowa has a very limited amount of sights to see, yet we
still have a travel website. This to me says other states have the
same kind of information on website or with local offices.

There's a few ways to find out if your state has information like
this:

- Check your state website
Often times the travel and event information will be right on your
government website.

- Search online
Use terms like "travel" or "tourism" with your state to see if
there's a specific website.

- Local offices
If all else fails, contact your state government offices to see if
anything in print is offered.

Even in a small state like Iowa, we were able to find a list that
will keep us booked every month for the entire craft fair season.
Once you have your information, the easy part is contacting those on
the list. Easy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field.  If you need additional
help with booking and attending offline events, visit:
http://www.directsaleshelpers.com/offline-events.html

Will Your Business Survive?

I won't rehash the same "choosing a business" speech because most of
you know it. However, there's one question that comes to mind - did
you choose the RIGHT business, and will it stick around?

Looking around on groups and message boards, something has become
some what of a trend - starting new direct sales companies. There's
nothing wrong with an established business doing this. However, I
can't tell you how many times in the past year alone I've seen
companies open and close within a few months. Kits were purchased
and reps signed up, but in just a few short weeks the company was
closing its doors. It may not seem like a huge deal to the company
to move on to something else, but the reps have wasted much time and
often money as well.

Although, how do you know the company won't last?
There's a few points to look for when considering joining a new
direct sales company.

1. Has the company been around before the consultant program?
If it's brand new and opening with the consultant plan in place,
beware! While this isn't always the case, do think twice about a
company that hasn't been able to sell the product on their own.

2. How well was the business planned out?
Don't be afraid to ask personal questions! You have a right to know
if they have planned their costs out for several years. Regardless
of the business, a business owner must understand there is a slim
chance of any profit being made in the first year. If they haven't
planned to be in debt for at least a year or more, then chances are
they will cut their losses before the year is even up. Should they
not reveal their business plan, you might want to just move on.

3. What type of shopping cart do they use?
While there's nothing wrong with PayPal, if this is the only type of
payment offered by the company you may want to think twice. A
professional shopping cart set up doesn't cost that much, and if
that cost has been skipped they may not be planning well.

4. Are catalogs and samples available?
If you get a "coming soon" when requesting a catalog, think twice
about joining. Catalogs are a very basic part of business, and to
not have them ready shows the owner "rushed" to get the business
open.

5. How is customer service?
Put in a test order and see how fast things work in the business. If
you can't order products yet, but reps are being signed up already,
you'll want to wait until they are fully open before actually
signing up yourself. Not being able to test out products ahead of
time isn't a good sign.

With business comes risks, and no one can be completely sure how
solid a company really is. However, being able to spot certain signs
is important in protecting yourself and your credibility with your
customers. Not to say the tips above will tell if the company will
survive or not, but they may be able to give you a better idea if
your business will last or not.

------------------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success Kit,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. For Free Weekly tips for
your Direct Sales Business - Visit http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com

Home Business Job Fair – Meeting the Vendors – Part 2

Recently I had the opportunity to visit a local home business job
fair. As direct sales coaches, quite a few of the questions we see
often are about holding offline events. The questions vary from both
coordinating one and being a vendor. I thought interviewing the
coordinator herself and some of the vendors would be a wonderful way
to share how to coordinate your own event and/or attend as a vendor.
If you missed the beginning of the story, visit http://direct-sales-
news.blogspot.com/2006/01/anitas-day-out-home-business-job-fair.html
for the full story.

It was certainly all my pleasure to speak with Mrs. Noll. Not that
it wasn't wonderful to speak with each of the talented women at this
event - but it was truly an honor speaking with someone who has been
in the top 10 in the US for the past six years, featured in the
company catalog time and time again, featured on the company
website, and featured at numerous company functions - this women is
truly what we can each view as a success story.

Noll from Millerstown, PA has been with Heart Warming Creations for
almost 9 years. Having done similar events in the past, she found
out about this particular even through the News-Sun paper. Pat
normally finds out about other events such as these through this
method and also via word of mouth from consultants at other events.

When asked why she chose Heart Warming Creations, Noll responded
with, "I joined this company because there were NO consultants in
our area, it was a fairly new company and no one heard of it. I
thought that would be good. New merchandise to offer and I like
these kinds of items. It was down my alley."

Currently with only 2 active downline members who live too far away
for monthly meetings, Pat still makes sure she keeps in contact with
them. Depending on the week and what all needs to be done, Noll
works on her business full time at approximately 30 hours a week.

"Doing the parties and meeting new people, making new friends and
sharing Heart Warming Creations with them [is her favorite aspect of
this business]" Says Noll.

When asked if she could only bring one thing to this event, what
would it be, Pat promptly responded with her catalogs. "I would have
to say Catalogs, so people can see our merchandise and what we have
to offer. I would also bring some samples of our items."

Noll shares her tip for events such as these...
I would say be yourself and be honest with the people you come in
contact with ... and most of all have FUN in what you are doing.

-----------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of Direct Sales Success,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.  For more
information on Heart Warming Creations visit
http://www.PatsCountryCrafts.com

Home Business Job Fair - Meeting the Vendors - Part 1

Recently I had the opportunity to visit a local home business job
fair. As direct sales coaches, quite a few of the questions we see
often are about holding offline events. The questions vary from both
coordinating one and being a vendor. I thought interviewing the
coordinator herself and some of the vendors would be a wonderful way
to share how to coordinate your own event and/or attend as a vendor.
If you missed the beginning of the story, visit http://direct-sales-
news.blogspot.com/2006/01/anitas-day-out-home-business-job-fair.html
for the full story.

Finding out about this particular even was easy for Laurie Fischer
since the coordinator emailed her. She now keeps a running list of
all the vendors she comes in contact with so she can keep in contact
and find out about upcoming events such as these. Knowing that
networking is a very important tool to her direct sales business,
Fischer knew that attending a home business job fair would be a good
choice.

In May of 2004 Laurie was asked by her sponsor about becoming an
H&GP Designer and since she already loved the products she decided
to give it a try. Now,  with over 18 members in her downline, the
title of Diamond Designer and titled 2005 National Star, Fischer
keeps her team motivated with meetings, workshops and phone calls.
Laurie also sends cards to her members once a month just to say they
are wonderful. She does this whether they're working or not ... just
to keep up the encouragement. Her team does challenges, and are in
the beginning stages of doing a mentoring program with individual
team members.

When I asked Laurie what her favorite aspect of her business was,
she replied with, "The people that I meet and the relationships that
I have built." If Fischer was only allowed to bring one type of
promotional item to the event, she would bring her hostess packets
because all the products and opportunity information is in there.

Laurie shares some wise words of wisdom...
"I say when you do an event like this ... you can't sit behind your
table ... you need to be out there talking to the people. If there
is no one around or there is down time, go out and about and talk
with the other vendors, or depending where you are, go around the
hotel or facility and hand out your information. Just keep talking
to the people."

-----------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of The Direct Sales Success Kit,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.  For more
info on Home & Garden Party visit
http://www.decorateyourhomewithlaurie.com

Home Business Job Fair – Meeting the Coordinator

Recently I had the opportunity to visit a local home business job
fair.  As direct sales coaches quite a few of the questions we see
often are about holding offline events.  The questions vary from both
coordinating one and being a vendor.  I thought interviewing the
coordinator herself and some of the vendors would be a wonderful way
to share how to coordinate your own event and/or attend as a vendor.
If you missed the beginning of the story visit http://direct-sales-
news.blogspot.com/2006/01/anitas-day-out-home-business-job-fair.html
for the full story.

Here's the scoop on Gwen…

Having participated in quite a few events in the past Gwen Cleck of
Country Bunny Bath & Body, knew what not to do and simply did the
opposite in the organization of this fair. Setting the price seemed
to be a little difficult. She wanted to make sure that the fee wasn't
too high as to attract consultants but also be able to cover the
costs involved with the event itself.

Cleck chose local newspapers, radio stations, online advertising and
posted flyers in the area to bring attention to her event. Choosing
the location for her event seemed to be one of the easiest decisions
to make. Living in the area, she chose a venue that was well-known,
inexpensive and easily accessible. The location was a fairly-sized
room of the Clarion Inn, Lewistown, Pennsylvania. This location was
super-easy to find and to access, having an on and off ramp to a
major highway less than 1/2 mile away.

Already having a network of vendors that she often works with helped
in finding the vendors for this event. "I also advertised on
CraftLister.com and searched company websites looking for local
representatives." says Cleck.

Cleck says, "I don't think I'd change too much about how I organized
this. I think the way I advertised seemed to work well and that's
probably how I'll do it again in the future. I'm not sure that I
would do a job fair exclusively. I think a sales event would work out
better toward the Christmas season."

With the interest of many vendors at this event the plans of a "stop
and shop" in early November are currently underway.

Cleck has been a representative of Country Bunny Bath & Body since
March of 2002, falling in love with the products first and then
falling in love with the company once she joined.

Gwen has at least 23 members in her downline that she keeps motivated
via holding monthly organizational meetings, monthly training calls,
monthly challenges and motivational emails. Her favorite aspect of
her business is holding spa retreats and spends 8 - 10 hours a week
with her business, depending on whether or not she's holding retreats
or attending events.

When asked if there was only one thing she could bring to this
event ... Cleck responded with "If there was only one thing, it'd
definitely be my products to sample." She also shares the best tip
she's ever gotten for direct sales ... "Talk, talk, talk to everyone
and share your opportunity."

-----------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of The Direct Sales Success Kit,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.  For more
info about Country Bunny Bath & Body http://www.BunnyStop.net

Marketing Online Businesses to Offline People

Recently I had the opportunity to visit a local home business job
fair coordinated by Gwen Cleck of Country Bunny Bath & Body. As
direct sales coaches quite a few of the questions we see often are
about holding offline events. The questions vary from both
coordinating one and being a vendor. I thought interviewing the
coordinator herself and some of the vendors would be a wonderful way
to share how to coordinate your own event and/or attend as a vendor.

Attending this event and interviewing everyone gave me to opportunity
to meet so many wonderful and talented women who were more than
willing to share their business experience with me. Here's the scoop…

One important lesson I picked up at this event is to be very careful
when you're marketing your online business to "offline people". First
and foremost, those ads you're sending out … they aren't working!
Wait a minute, let me back up and explain here. Let's look at this
for example:

"How would you like to earn $500 a night? What if I told you that you
could do it in your own home? No selling! The products sell
themselves..."

Okay, I could go on here but I'm sure you get the point. These ads
don't work! Do you know what that ad says? SCAM! Sure, I wouldn't
doubt for a minute that you earn $500 in one night at a home party.
And I'm sure your products sell themselves. I'm not saying that it's
not true … I'm saying the ad doesn't work. If you're marketing to
folks offline with these types of ads, they have scam written all
over them and you're not getting your message across.

If you're pushing the "online sales" and "online recruiting" to
the "offline network" be careful of how you approach your market. Let
me explain how I set this whole project up in the first place. I
searched online at www.CraftLister.com, found out about this HBJF and
contacted the coordinator. I told her who I was what my intentions
were. Now keep in mind, people hold their email addresses near and
dear to their heart. With all the spam that's roaming around the
internet you have to be super-careful about how you approach some via
email. So, I asked Gwen if she could personally pass on my email to
her vendors explaining what I was interested in doing and then had
each of them email me personally if they were interested in
participating. This way Gwen wasn't just handing out email addresses
without their permission. The response was fantastic.

So, much to my surprise, when I arrived at the HBJF there were quite
a few more people there than those who replied to me. My initial
thoughts were that these ladies just weren't interested in what I was
doing which of course was absolutely fine by me. I worked the room
with my list of those who were interested and started speaking with
each one. I of course didn't want to be rude so I did at least try to
stop and visit each vendor. Eventually I'm sure I started to be
the "talk of the show" because here I was this woman walking around
with a notebook, attaché case and to top it off I was taking pictures
also. So unsurprisingly the questions started coming to me first. Can
you believe even though my email was forwarded to them from the
coordinator of the event they were attending that there were still
some that had simply deleted the email. There were even a few who had
replied which I believe strictly out of curiosity that still weren't
exactly sure what I was doing. These women weren't accustomed someone
online actually doing something like this. Not to mention I had to
get it across that I was a "real person" behind a website. Of course
once I explained who I was and what I did … my list of participating
vendors grew.

Oh, and I almost forgot, guess what one of my most asked questions
were? "How much does this cost?" I really hadn't thought about that.
Well, let me explain, I had absolutely no intentions what-so-ever to
charge these ladies to place their info in our newsletter and blog.
Folks nowadays are on "lookout". And really if you think about it …
what do we get for free anymore? This really was a valid question …
just one I hadn't expected to be asked so many times.

So, lesson learned … Is your message getting across or are your
emails getting simply deleted?

-----------------
Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of The Direct Sales Success Kit,
specialize in coaching direct sales representatives to reach their
goal of becoming successful in their field. Visit
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com for free weekly tips.

Are You Taking Responsibility for Your Business?

Recently we conducted a survey at a work at home mom community,
Mommy's Helper. The survey question was "Would you do something
illegal, even if you probably wouldn't get caught?" Of course, the
general consensus was "absolutely not!". This is the response you
would expect from most anyone in the work at home mom community. We
have to set an example for our children, of course.

However, it amazes me how often I see others involved in illegal
activities or not taking responsibility for their business. No matter
if it's using excuses to not deliver products on time or running a
business without proper licenses - it's unethical, irresponsible, and
sometimes illegal.

As they say, ignorance of the law is no excuse. It's true even
online, and you could be subject to fines or even lose your business.
The following are some examples of illegal or unethical practices you
may be faced with, and how to handle them.

- Running raffles or illegal contests
Every state has different laws, and in most states it's very illegal
to run a raffle without a permit. In some states, raffles are
considered gambling and you may not hold a raffle unless it's for
charity. There are many raffle groups online, but that doesn't mean
they are legal. Avoid!

- Selling food without a licence
Did you know in some states it's illegal to sell food without a
licence? This applies to those who rep for food companies like
Watkins, Gabby Goodies, Homemade Gourmet, and many others. It should
also be especially noted that even if you don't sell the food itself
you may need a license. For example, let's say you're selling food
choppers. Let's say you're demonstrating your food chopper and you
let people sample the food … you need a license to do this also.
Check your state laws before selling anything related to food.
(Thanks to Kerri Knack of Homemade Gourmet and
http://DirectSalesNetworkGroup.com/ for this piece of information)

- Spamming, or sending advertisements without consent
Obviously, spamming is a big no-no. There are strict spamming laws
that everyone should know before doing any kind of email marketing.
Do NOT
send advertisements to those who didn't answer it. You can be fined
and loose your email address.

- Copying ideas, websites, or ads
While it may not be illegal to copy an idea, it's extremely unethical
and not well received. Many have had ideas stolen from them, and do
not like it in the least. Copying ads and websites on the other hand
is illegal. It's called copyright infringement, and can get your
website shut down. Hosting companies won't think twice about pulling
the plug on your website hosting if there is a complaint.

- Using excuses for poor service
Not illegal, but definitely unethical. Everyone should have a back up
plan for emergencies. Customers will usually understand if you have a
serious emergency, but not always. Word of mouth travels far -
remember that.

There's many other unethical and illegal business practices out
there, but this is just a few. Let us say this again - ignorance of
the law is no excuse! Check with your local government if you are
unsure of anything, or ask on a message board or group at the very
least.

About the Authors: Anita DeFrank & Kara Kelso, authors of The Direct
Sales Success Kit, specialize in coaching direct sales
representatives to reach their goal of becoming successful in their
field. For free weekly tips for your direct sales business go to
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com/newsletter.html

There are so many ways to increase your business online. The
following are just a few ideas for direct sales reps to get the most
out of their time online.

1. Create a Personal Site
So much can be done with your own website, it's an absolute must for
even direct sales reps. If you rep for several businesses, a
personal website is even more important. Some of the ways a personal
site can increase your business:

- You'll only have one link to promote instead of several
- You can exchange links with other sites
- Be included in more directories
- Easier to remember web address
- More professional looking links
- Ability to get more personal
- Ability to put on more information about your business
- Feature your favorite products
- Many more!

If you need help getting started with your own website, we
recommend "Step By Step Guide to Starting Your First Website". This
ebook free with Direct Sales Success Kit, but can be purchased
alone. More information at:
http://www.DirectSalesHelpers.com

2. Product reviews
Show off your best products on a popular website! Showing your
customers how great your products really are by having someone that
isn't getting paid tell them. Mom's Market offers reviews at:
http://www.momsmarketonline.com/product-reviews.html

3. Write Your Own Articles
Yes, direct sales reps CAN write articles! You are an expert in your
field, and no one knows your products better. What makes them great?
Why should we buy? Those questions can be answered in an article
that doesn't need to sound like an ad. Lay down some facts about
your ingredients or why your product does what it does. Get creative
and show off your knowledge!

When you are finished with your article, there are tons of places
online that will accept it. There's just too many to list here, so
be sure to stop by your favorite networking place to ask for a list.
The response will most likely be good.

These are just a few ways to quickly increase your business online.
More ways listed in the Direct Sales Success Kit - see our website
for details.

-------------------------------------------------------
About the Authors: Kara Kelso & Anita DeFrank are two busy wahms,
and the owners of Direct Sales Helpers. For more Direct Sales
Success Tips, visit: http://www.directsaleshelpers.com
-------------------------------------------------------

Note to publishers: The above article may be reprinted in your
publication as long as the bio is kept intact and links are not
altered. Please send a courtesty copy to mommyshelperonline@...

Stop Losing Sales - Build Your Own Website

If you are in Direct Sales, you may not realize how many sales you
are missing by not having a website of your own. Rep websites aren't
usually indexed in the search engines, and most can't be
personalized completely.

Let me give you an example of why it's so important to have your own
website. I searched for "Watkins Vanilla" on Yahoo, Google, and MSN.

- On Yahoo, Watkin's company page was #7 in the listings. Ranked
before them were reps with their own website.

- On Google, the company page was #5. Again, reps with their own
websites ranked above them.

- MSN was the only place the company website was #1. However,
following the company site were several personal websites.

Here's another term I searched: "Tupperware catalog" (which
according to Word Tracker is searched over 300 times a day). On
Google and MSN, Tupperware's company site wasn't even on the first
page of results! On Yahoo it was the first, but of course personal
websites followed.

So what does this mean to you? It's simple - there are millions of
people searching for YOUR business or items from your business ever
day. By having a personal website, you aren't lost in a sea of other
rep websites in the search engines. Even the simplest of terms can
work their way to the top of search engine results, in many cases
giving you more free traffic than you can handle!

Of course, once you get those visitors there it's up to you to turn
them into customers. The best way to do this is getting them on your
list. More about newsletters next week.

So if you don't have a website already, start making plans now to
build your personal website today!

About the Authors: Kara Kelso & Anita DeFrank are two busy wahms,
and the owners of Direct Sales Helpers. For more Direct Sales
Success Tips, visit: http://www.directsaleshelpers.com

Make Your Own Sandwich

When lunch or snack time rolls around sometimes it can be difficult
to keep children occupied and make the meal at the same time.
Letting the children help prepare the food is an easy solution to a
difficult situation. The following are some ideas of sandwiches that
most children can help make themselves.

Peanut Butter Sandwiches
Put out some bread, peanut butter, grated carrots or cheese,
raisins, sliced bananas, dried fruits, crushed pineapples. Let your
child make his/her own sandwich. For a little more fun, have each
child make-a-face sandwich. Cut bread into a circle, spread with
peanut butter, and make "hair" and "eyes" with raisins, carrots,
apple slices or coconut.

Broiler Sandwiches
-Peanut Butter & Honey
-Cheese in cookie cutter shapes
-Cheese, olive and crisp bacon
-Cold cuts, cheese and tomato
Have children choose their ingredients for their sandwiches placing
them on top of the bread. Then you bake or broil the sandwiches.

Mini Pizzas
Let each child make their own pizza. Let them choose from English
muffin halves, pita bread, bagel halves or bread. Let your child
spread sauce on top of their choice and have them choose their
favorite toppings such as mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, green
peppers, olives, or mushrooms. Then bake the pizzas for about 10 -
15 minutes at 450 degrees.

-Cookie Cutter Sandwiches
Cut bread, cold cuts, and cheeses into shapes with cookie cutters.

After the sandwiches are all eaten you'll have the perfect
opportunity to teach the children the importance of cleaning up the
work space and how much quicker and easier things get done when they
co-operate.

------------------------------------------
Anita DeFrank is a Work-At-Home mom and editor of
http://www.MommysHelperOnline.com and
http://www.WahmStateDirectory.com. With the Mission to provide the
best resources for all that are working at home and to make the
dream of working at home a reality to those who wish to.

Increase Your Business with Product Reviews

A testimonial can be a wonderful thing for your business. Almost all
successful companies use testimonials of some kind to show what they
are saying about their business and products is the truth.

What good are product reviews?

- Give an unbiased review of a product
Sometimes we get so excited about our business, when we talk about
our products it starts to sound like an ad. By giving the customer a
chance to look at an unbiased review from someone that has nothing
to gain from their recommendation, it gives the customer more faith.

- Better decision for the customer
Maybe they have questions or concerns about the product which they
don't want to bother contacting anyone about. Some people are very
quiet, and like to see what others are saying about certain things.
By allowing them to read a review, you are giving them the chance to
see the product from a non-ad side. They may or may not buy, but the
main point is you'll have much more happy, valuable customers.

- Give suggestions to potential customers
Have you ever gone to a website and got lost in all the products? In
an offline store, sales people can help point you in the direction
of some interesting items. Online this isn't the case. Product
reviews can offer that "suggestion" and point customers in the
direction of those interesting products.

- Show your personality
In bigger direct sales companies, the competition between reps can
be unreal. Having a product review written about you and your
products can help bring your personality out. If a potential
customer sees you as a recommended rep with reasons why, the chances
of them going to you for their needs with this company is greater.

How do I get a review?

There's several different ways to have a product review written
about you and your business. Some ideas include:

- Family or Friends
Most have tried your products, right? Ask them for some feedback,
and what they think.

- Exchange Products
Find a rep for a non-competing business and swap products. You will
need to find someone you trust to write a positive review.

- Freelancers
Some you may need to pay, but the rewards from a review can be much
more that the cost of the article.

- Find Shopping Websites
Many websites online now offer to write reviews for you for free. It
gives the website owner content, and you the chance to show off your
best products. Mom's Market is one of these sites, and details on
how to send in your product can be found at
http://www.momsmarketonline.com/review-info.html

Product reviews can help your business in many different ways. If
you have a personal website verses a company site, the rewards are
much greater.

----------------------------------------------
About the Authors: Kara Kelso & Anita DeFrank are two busy wahms,
and the owners of Direct Sales Helpers. For more Direct Sales
Success Tips, visit:
http://www.directsaleshelpers.com/newsletter.html

Promotional Freebies

What's a promotional freebie? A promotional freebie is something you
can give to your customers, visitors or subscribers. Giving
away "freebies" is an excellent marketing tool. Who doesn't love
freebies? Having something to offer your visitors or
ezine/newsletter subscribers for free can be very helpful. Often
giving away freebies will increase your website/ezine numbers.

1. Give free gifts to all new customers.

2. Hold a special that every customer that orders a certain dollar
amount gets a free gift.

3. Offer a free gift with every order.

4. Give a free gift to anyone that refers you or your service.

5. Give a free gift to the person that was referred.

6. Offer a free gift to all website visitors. ~ Downloadable items
work best for this or if you have more time and want to "track" your
visitors…have them email you for their free gift.

7. Offer a free gift to all new ezine/newsletter subscribers.

8. Offer a free gift to the first 5 people that email you the title
of your article in this week's newsletter. ~ This also makes sure
your subscibers are reading.

9. Offer a free gift to all ezine/newsletter readers. ~ Again,
downloadable items work best.

10. Offer to sponsor contests online and offline. ~ This is also
excellent exposure!

Now you have a long list of where to give your gifts, so now the
question is what do you give? Here are some examples of what to give:

1. Free samples ~ Of course give samples of the products that you
sell.

2. Discounts ~ Offer discounts as a free gift on the back of your
business card.

3. Advertising specialty items ~ Mugs, t-shirts, magnetic business
cards, hats…all with your log on them of course.

4. Free products or service ~ Give away free a few items that you
sell or free demonstrations of how to use them.

5. E-books ~ These make excellent gifts but always make sure you
have "legal right" to give them away.

Now you know how to increase your traffic with promotional freebies,
so go start giving gifts away! Tis the season!

----------------------------------------------
Anita DeFrank is a Work-At-Home mom and editor of
http://www.MommysHelperOnline.com With the Mission to provide the
best resource for all that are working at home and to make the dream
of working at home a reality to those who wish to.

Are you a "Spammer"?

This is one of those topics which never goes away. No matter how
many times the subject comes up, it's not long after we are spammed.
The following are general guidelines to follow.

It's NOT acceptable to:

- Email your entire address book ads
- Forget using a mailing list
- Forget reading guidelines on groups
- Offer "great ways to make money" to someone that didn't ask for it

Basically put, s*pam is a message you send to profit yourself which
they don't want. They didn't ask for it, they don't need it. It
doesn't matter how great your specials are or how wonderful your
business opportunity is. There are millions of great website and
opportunities on the internet, and even if you think your's is the
best it may not be to someone else.

What IS acceptable:

- Always use mailing lists
You must use some type of a professional mailing list where others
can subscribe or unsubscribe themselves. Double opt-in is a must,
which means when they enter their email address it must be confirmed
before they are officially subscribed.

- Always include contact information
This is a spam compliance law - you must follow up your mailings
with your publishing info INCLUDING mailing address and phone
number.

- Always read group guidelines
The fastest way to make a group owner mad is not following their
guidelines. You want to make friends, not burn bridges. Remember: "I
didn't know" is never an excuse, and if someone were to report your
email as spam your business could suffer dearly. They say "Ignorance
of the law is no excuse", and the same applies online. To own a
business of any kind is a large responsibility, and your job is to
know
everything there is to know about starting. This includes licences,
spam laws, local requirements, etc.

-------------------------------------------------------
About the Authors: Kara Kelso & Anita DeFrank are two busy wahms,
and the owners of Direct Sales Helpers. Learn how you can be
successful in your company by visiting: www.DirectSalesHelpers.com
-------------------------------------------------------

Note to publishers: The above article may be reprinted in your
publication as long as the bio is kept intact and links are not
altered. Please send a courtesty copy to mommyshelperonline@...

Let's Pretend

Children have amazing and wild imaginations. The next time you
hear "I'm bored" or "What can we do", give them a few household
items, or let them make their own and watch them expand into endless
hours of fun and entertainment. The following are just a few ideas
to get the fun started and be sure to use your imagination too!

Make an Obstacle Course
Obstacle courses can be a lot of fun, spark creativity and also be
great exercise for the little ones. These can be set up in and out
of doors. Pillows, chairs, tires and stools are just a couple of
things that can be used to be climbed, jumped and skipped over,
through, around and under. Time each child as they scramble their
way through and have a race. Best thing about these is that once
they've done everything they can think of with the first one, it can
be torn down and set up again another way. Have each child take
turns in choosing the way it's set back up.

Let's Play Dress Up
Don't give away all those old shoes, shirts, pants, hats, gloves and
costume jewelry! Set aside a special drawer or box for these item to
play dress up. Have children act out their favorite play, television
show or put on a fashion show. You'd be surprised exactly how cute
she really looks in your old high school prom gown. Be sure to take
snap shots or keep the video camera rolling!

Kid's Café
Set up old card table and let the children play restaurant. Have
children make up or use play money and menus. Children that can't
write yet can draw the food items on the menus. Give them some paper
plates, cups, plastic silverware, a little notebook and they're open
for business. Take turns being waiter, customer and busboy (or
girl ).

Go Camping
This too can be played in or out of doors and the possibilities are
endless. If you have a smaller pop-up tent, it can be set up in the
living room. If you're taking this activity outdoors, you can hang
an old sheet over a clothesline securing with rocks at the bottom.
Have children draw or cut out windows if you're using an old sheet.
(Remember to keep for the next camping trip.) Set up some lawn
chairs around your faux fire and tell stories, sing songs, make
smores in the microwave or any other favorite camping activity. Go
all the way and sleep there tonight!

Movie Night
Go to your favorite video rental store and have your child help pick
out a movie for the whole family. Have children make tickets for the
show, play money, popcorn, baggies of dried fruit, paper cups of
juice or any other favorite snacks. Set these items up for "sale"
and have each family member "purchase" their tickets and munchies.
Then sit back and enjoy the show!

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Anita DeFrank is a Work-At-Home mom, publisher and webmaster of
http://www.MommysHelperOnline.com and
http://www.WahmStateDirectory.com. With the Mission to provide the
best resources for all that are working at home and to make the
dream of working at home a reality to those who wish to. Bringing
together the perfect balance between working and working at home.

Take an Education Vacation!

Choose one day out of each month and invite your entire family on
an "Education Vacation". Invent games that can be not only fun but
also educational at the same time. Your children will be having so
much fun that they won't even realize that they're learning too! The
following are a few exampls of activities that you can use or adapt
to fit your family.

Theater Day
Go to you local library and borrow several copies of a favorite or
fun play. Assign each member a part and act it out in the living
room! Younger children make an excellent audience.
Alternate idea: Write your own play together.

Bring The Whole World Home Day
Make a list of all the countries in the world (or just pick a few)
and include a short description of each. Take turns reading each
country and description out loud. Next take turns choosing a country
from a map or globe. The rest of the family tries to guess which one
by asking questions.

Time Table Day
The night before have your family discuss everything that must be
done the next day. Be sure to include some fun things to do also.
Have the children design a time table to schedule the days
activities. Make it a game to see how "close" you can stick to the
schedule.

Make a Family Library Day
Have each family member write and illustrate their own story. After
each story is finnished copile them into a homemade book and design
covers. Have older children help the younger ones write the text.

Question Game Day
Each member of your family gets to ask a really hard question.
Everyone else has to come up with ideas of how to find the answer
till all questions are answered.

Goal of the Month Day
Have each family member make a goal to improve one thing in their
behavior, such as to exercise, read more or eat healthier. Track
each members progress throughout the month on a chart. Don't forget
to encourage each other during the month and celebrate victories too!

Art Detective Day
Have each member of your family choose a piece of art that you have
in your home (or is well-known by everyone)and describe it. Everyone
else tries to guess which work of art it is.

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Anita DeFrank is a Work at Home Mom, publisher and webmaster of
http://www.MommysHelperOnline.com, http://www.WahmStateDirectory.com
and http://www.MommyBanners.com. With the Mission to provide the
best resources for all that are working at home and to make the
dream of working at home a reality to those who wish to. Bringing
together the perfect balance between working and working at home.