Hi! Thanks for stopping by the 30 Days of Faves Blog Party hosted here at The Party Plan Coach! Each day Divas from around the World will be highlighting their favorite products from their Home Party Plan line. I will be highlighting my favorite business tips, tools, and inspiration for you to help build your Home Party Plan business. Be sure to check back every day in June to see what’s new!

Since yesterday I talked about organization I thought today would be a good day to talk about Hostess Folders – one of THE most important parts of your business than need to be ORGANIZED!!  The truth is, Hostess Folders are worth their weight in GOLD!  This is where you are going to keep all of your Party information from start to finish.

First – the most important part – The Hostess Worksheets.  I have created two Hostess Worksheets for you to use in your Hostess Folders.   You can download them here – HostessWorksheetI and HostessWorksheetII

Each Party gets a Hostess Folder as soon as it is booked. Fill in the top of the first Hostess Worksheet I as soon as you get the party booked. The Hostess Worksheet I should be stapled to the inside left of a file folder, the Hostess Worksheet II stapled to the inside right of the file folder. Everything for this party will be kept in this folder. The Hostess Worksheet I has an outline for you to use when making your Hostess Coaching phone calls.

The First Call

This call is made within 48 hours of booking.  In this call you will :

Confirm the party date – Always write your bookings in pencil! Once you get your Guest List, you will know the party is set in stone, and switch to ink. Sometimes when booking parties at parties, the Hostess will need to change the date!

Go over Hostess Packet contents – If you booked the party from a party, you handed her a hostess packet to take home with her. If not, confirm the address where she would like it mailed. For this example we are going to assume she already has the packet. You will go over each of the items in the Packet, being sure to emphasize the importance of the guest list.

Go over your Cancellation Policy – The point of the Cancellation Policy is to not use it!! By adding a Cancellation Policy to your Hostess Packet, it shows you are serious about your business! Do not hesitate to say “This is a Party for you, but it is a Business for me!” The Cancellation Policy will most often get the Hostess to either A – cancel 2 weeks ahead of time, giving you plenty of time to rebook the date, or B – do whatever she needs to do to hold the party!!

Start her Wish List – Tell her to make her list of items she wants to earn for free! This will get her excited about the goodies, and also, when it comes time for her to order, you have her wish list for her to choose from, saving time in the ordering room!

Does she have any questions? – This is important – this will tell you a lot about your Hostess and what she is expecting from your party! Let her know when you will call her again – Simply saying “I will touch base in a few days” lets her know she will hear from you again, and you are serious about your business and about giving her the best party you can!

The Second Call

This call is at least 3 days after the initial call, especially if you had to mail a Hostess Packet. With these three calls, you need to divide up the time between to make sure you get all three of them in! Even if you only have 10 days from the day you Book until the Party Date, make sure to get these three calls in. Remember, Hostess Coaching is crucial to the success of your party! Make sure your Hostess received the Hostess Packet if you had to mail it. Go over the First Call if this is the first time talking to her with her having the Hostess Packet in hand.

Status of Guest List – if you have not received it, make arrangements to get it from her. Remember, this is how you secure the booking. You must have a Guest List in order to do her party. If you have received it, let her know when the Invitations were mailed out.

Outside Orders – You may choose to give Double Hostess Credits on outside orders. For one, this boosts your party sales without you having to do any work! But also, it is going to show your Hostess how easy it is to collect orders for your business, which sets up a great Recruiting Opportunity! Ask if she needs more Catalogs or Outside Order Forms. Also, be sure she knows about Online Shopping and give her your Personal Web Domain.

Party Squares – This is a fun game that any Party Plan Consultant can use in her Hostess Packet to boost Sales by $100. The Party Squares are like a Lottery – the Hostess sells the Squares, then at the end of the evening, after everyone has ordered, you draw a number and whoever has bought that Square wins the pot amount in free product! Make sure you do it last. You want this to be a bonus purchase!!

Finished Wish List – again, simply saving time in the Ordering room! Any questions? – See if she has any questions for you!

Final call setup – “I will call the day before the party for a headcount and directions.” Even though I use the Internet for directions, I still get directions from the Hostess the day before the party. Most Hostesses give landmarks – I make notes on the right hand side of the page. I also get an approximate headcount – make sure you bring enough supplies in case the party is much larger than the Guest List!

The Final Call

The day before the party! Confirm Everything! – “Hey Sue, this is Lynsey, calling to see how things are looking for our Party tomorrow night?” Make sure you re-confirm address and time! Get directions and approximate headcount

Has she completed the Party Squares? Remind her how Hostess Credits are tallied (i.e. Party Sales must reach $350 with 1 booking, etc)

Let her know when you will arrive – Depending on your industry, you may need to arrive before the guests do. However – keep in mind that parties SELDOM start on time! People will arrive at the “start time” and then you want the guests to come in, relax, chit chat, etc. I usually say “If we put on the invitation 6pm that means the party will begin between 6:30-7!” Because my presentation table only takes about 15 minutes to set up, I arrive 15 minutes before the invitation states the party will begin. That way, when people start arriving, I am there to chitchat as well, and listen out for Green Lights!!

Place to set up – Let her know if you need her to provide a table for you to set up on. While we recommend you carrying your own table, it is not feasible in the beginning for some vehicles/budgets. Just make sure the Hostess knows whether you will need one or whether you will have one with you that she needs to make room for.

A place to take orders – In the Adult Industry, having a separate Ordering Room is required. However, with any industry, having a small place to set up your Ordering Supplies is good to have! You can use a Lapboard  for a “desk” and have your Mobile Office, and other Ordering Room Supplies. Help getting people into the Ordering Room – Let her know you will be counting on her to help you with getting people in and out of the Ordering Room.

See if she has any questions “See you tomorrow – call me if anything changes!” Yay! Get ready to PARTY!!!

Hostess Worksheet II

The Hostess Worksheet II should be stapled to the right hand side of the file folder. This side will be filled out when the Party is over. You will use this Worksheet to keep the details of your Party organized, as well as to review your stats and find out what is working in your business, and what is NOT! Do not forget the THANK YOU NOTE!

Hi! Thanks for stopping by the 30 Days of Faves Blog Party hosted here at The Party Plan Coach! Each day Divas from around the World will be highlighting their favorite products from their Home Party Plan line. I will be highlighting my favorite business tips, tools, and inspiration for you to help build your Home Party Plan business. Be sure to check back every day in June to see what’s new!

I love catalog purses.  What better way to scream “I am a Party Plan Consultant” than to carry a purse that SHOWS your catalog right in front!  The problem – they were always so EXPENSIVE! So I was totally thrilled when last year, Karen from TRN Designs contacted me about doing a review/giveaway of her hand made catalog purses!

When I received my catalog purse – adorned with monogramming of “The Party Plan Coach” – I immediately fell in love. Let’s face it – most Catalog Purses are not exactly chic.  Gone are the days of the rayon box style bags with a plastic flap in the front. These bags are cute, sassy, and stylish.   With a magnet snap closure and reinforced pockets on the inside, it is beautiful and convenient to carry every single day.

Check out all of Karen’s designs at TRN Designs and start wearing our catalogs proudly in a chic, sassy purse!  Monogramming is included in the cost – so Diva it up your way!  You can also check out her other monogrammed items – perfect for giveaways and recognition gifts!

Last week I had the privilege of going to see Randy Draper, Diamond Executive Director with Premier Jewelry, Inspirational Speaker, and Founder of HeartSpring Media. He was speaking at Prestonwood Baptist Church in Plano, Texas for their weekly Power Lunch, and I just HAPPENED to be in Fort Worth, Texas the week he was there. (My friend Jan Hatchett, Your Favorite Jewelry Lady, was more than a little bit jealous!  )

Randy mesmerized us for nearly an hour with his stories of drive-through windows (WHATCHOO NEEEEED?!) to learning the power of serving from his Grandmother, Lois Keeling Draper.  His stories were funny, heart warming, and powerful as he detailed living a life with an attitude of gratitude and service can take your life from worry and despair to excitement and opportunity.  We laughed (a lot!) cried (a little) and all left *snapping* our way through the hallways to our cars.

His latest book – Happy To Do It – Get Your ‘Snap’ On – is a fun, easy to read page turner full of inspiration and encouragement to change your way of thinking from “Whatchoo NEEED!?!?“  to “Happy To Do It.”  In just 155 pages you will read stories of humor, compassion, and principle-centered serving which will lead you to a life of abundance and joy.

Happy To Do It is a book about becoming successful by becoming a better person – both inside and out.  It is the Law of Attraction meets Philippians and Randy Draper does a beautiful job of giving you a plan for success simply by changing the way you think about serving others.   Four simple words – Happy To Do It – truly have the power to change everything in your life.

Since returning home to Florida I have had a few instances where I have had to stop my immediate response, and *SNAP* in my head – remembering Randy’s words.  We all have people and instances in our lives where people are pulling us in all directions, putting pressure on to do more, yelling that something isn’t done yet… and we all have the CHOICE about how we respond. Do you growl and snarl back at them or *Snap* and say “Happy To Do It.?” How might your life be different if you adopted the “Happy To Do It?!” attitude?  Think about it.

My favorite quote from the whole book:

“Whoever you are, wherever you are, whatever your circumstances – ATTITUDE is everything!” -Randy Draper

You can order your copy of Happy To Do It – Get Your Snap On directly from Randy’s website – http://www.happytodoitbook.com/books1.html.  Be sure to also follow him on Twitter for daily inspiration.

Disclaimer: I was not compensated in any way for this post, and I purchased my own copy of Happy To Do It- Get Your Snap On while at Prestonwood Baptist Church.  All of the thoughts and opinions are my own and I was not swayed in any way by Randy Draper or any of his affiliates.

Earlier this week I attended a meeting with the American Business Women’s Association as a Guest. The guest speaker, and the only man in the room, was a Business Consultant for the Small Business Development Center. He was a phenomenal speaker and you could tell he had become very successful by showing others how to make their OWN success.

At the end of his speech, he started to laugh, and said he usually wasn’t speaking to all women, and always closes his talks with a football analogy. I would never consider myself to be a huge football fan, but his story struck a nerve with me so hard, it has been hard to shake.

“Last week the NY Giants played the Dallas Cowboys in the Playoffs. It was a close game, but the Giants were victorious. After the game at a press conference, the Cowboys Coach said after watching the game tapes over and over, he was convinced that ‘the best team LOST – we simply did not execute our plan.’

Even if you are the absolute best at what you do, if you do not EXECUTE your plan, you will not win. My challenge to all of you is to spend this week EXECUTING – you know what needs to be done, go out and work your plan! See you at the TOP!