With a New Year beginning, it is a good time to change up your Party Presentation to offer your new Hostesses and Party Goers a new experience at your parties. Plus, it makes it more fun for you if you have fallen into the monotony of doing the same thing over… and over… and over….

One way to change up your Party Presentation is to add some new fun games for your guests to play! Done correctly, Party Games can be very beneficial to the success of your party! The truth is, the more FUN people have at your Home Show, the more likely they are to want to do it again! Playing just a game or two will get people laughing, having fun, and leave the memory of a fun, relaxed shopping experience with their friends that they will want to do again and again.

Here are my Top Ten Favorite Home Party Plan Games for you to try at your next party!

1. Just A Phone Call Away

At the beginning of your party ask everyone to take out their cell phones and hold them in their hand. You will have yours in your hand as well. Tell them this is the easiest game to win all night! *ha!*Ask everyone to dial in your number – call it out to them number by number – and then when you say GO – everyone hits call. Obviously your phone will ring since they are all calling you – simply answer the phone to find the “winner” on the line. Give her a little goodie for having the “fastest fingers in the room” HA! THEN – while everyone still has their phone out, ask them to SAVE YOUR NUMBER with your first name and company – i.e. Lynsey Party Plan Divas, Su Passion Parties, Eliza Jewels by Parklane, etc. Tell them that they have your number forever now, and if they ever need anything, you are JUST A CALL AWAY – ask them to please put their phones on vibrate or silent to not disrupt the party, and then begin with your Party Presentation.

2. Drop The Shoe

This will get guests talking to each other and your products. As each guest comes in, have each guest leave 1 shoe under their chair and put the other in the middle of the room. After everyone has arrived tell them to pick a shoe from the middle (not their own) and find the pair. Once they find it, have them find out what their favorite _______ product is and 1 reason why they should book a party. Once they have done conversing, go around the room and have each person introduce their “shoe friend”. It will sound like this “This is Suzy’s Shoe, her favorite item is ______, and she should book a party because________.

3. Recruiting Rhyme

If any selling you have done before, put down 10 to start your score. If you have a car and are able to drive, the thing to do is just add 5. If some extra money is what you would like, add 10 more which is just about right. A little spare time will add to your score, for this you may add 15 more. If you like people and think they are grand, add 6 more and see where you stand. Add 10 points if you think parties are fun, and when you add this you are almost done. If you score the highest, it is plain to see a_________________rep is what you should be. Add 10 more if you want to be a _______________rep, like me! (Thanks Vicki!)

4. Alphabet Game

Write each letter of the alphabet on a 3×5 index card. Hold each card up like a “flash card” and give it to the person who yells out a word having to do with your business (product, opportunity, etc) that starts with the letter you held up! The person with the most cards at the end of the game wins! (I also give a gift to the person with the least)

5. Crossed Out

As your guests arrive, give every few people a small gift. (For example, you can give every 4th person a gift (or give out the gifts however you choose). As soon as everyone is sitting, tell the group about the “no crossing” rule. If a person holding a gift is caught crossing her legs, then she must relinquish her gift to the person who catches her crossing her legs. This game should be played for the first half of the party. At the halftime everyone who has a gift gets to open it. (If a person who already has a gift catches someone with a gift crossing her legs, she can either trade gifts with that person, or choose a person who is “gift less” to give the extra gift to).

6. Thread Intro

Pass a spool o thread around to your guests and tell them to take as much as they want. Tell them you want to get to know them a little. Tell each guest to talk about themselves as they wrap the thread around their forefinger. When they teach the end they can stop. Start with your hostess. Go around the room till everyone is introduced.

7. Pass The Prize

Have a wrapped prize ready for this fun game. Hand 1 person the gift and have them follow the instructions as you read them. The person who is holding the prize at the end is the winner! (Similar to the Left Right Game)

“You thought all the gifts were meant for you. But I have other items too. So hold up this gift and look around, and give it to the 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. If this parcel you are bereft, give it to the one on your left. The largest earring I’m looking for now, if you’re wearing them, step up with a bow. Now to the person with buttons– big or small, any kind, the most you can find gets the gift at this time. Now don’t get cross and please don’t fight, but pass it to the lady third on the right. We should stop now, don’t you agree? The gift is yours to open and see.”

8. Replace Your Husband

An ice breaker game to play at the beginning of the party
Have each guest write down an item in their house they need to repair or replace. Then have them list 5 simple reasons they want to get rid of it. Now have them cross out the item and place their husbands name in that place. Go around the room and have each person read aloud “I want to replace (husband’s name) because he….(the 5 reasons). The funniest answers win.

9. The Lei Game

This is a great game to play in the warm months or a themed party. Also great if you are offering the Vacation Vouchers for your Hostesses! As you reward your hostess with a gift for inviting you into her home, also adorn her with 3 lei’s. Announce to the crowds that during your presentation if they want to book a party yell out loud “I wanna PARTY!” The hostess will give her one of the leis around her neck. Offer an incentive for the hostess to get 3 bookings and she will also encourage her friends to book a party with you.

10. Party Bingo

Give each guest a blank bingo card and you should have a bag or box filled with cards that have your demo products listed on each one. As you go through your presentation, have them randomly fill in the names of items you show on their card. After you have done with your presentation, draw 4 cards from your bag or box and call them out. For the 5th one say there are 2 free boxes, 1 for booking a party today with me and 1 for becoming a consultant today, please fill those squares in. continue to draw product cards till someone says BINGO.

Check out Party Plan Divas for more games, tips, and ideas for boosting your Home Party Plan Business!

What are some of your favorite Party Games?

Use The Diva Success System Hostess Folders to keep your Parties, Hostesses, and Guests ORGANIZED – Hostess Coach on the Go, AND increase your Customer Care, all with these easy to follow templates available to all Party Plan Divas Members! Join the largest (and ORIGINAL!) online training community for ALL Home Party Plan Consultants! www.PartyPlanDivasInc.com!

Every Thursday night is “Date Night” for Mike and I.  It is a night to relax, no cooking, no cleaning, just spending time together.   We use our iPhones to select random restaurants, and spend just a few hours “unplugged” from work.  I had been presented with a Gift Card  few weeks ago at a Speaking Engagement, so we chose to go there for dinner to unwind.

I chose a seafood dish and Mike chose a “mixed grill.”  When our plates arrived I cut into mine… and my fish was raw.  Not “undercooked” – RAW.  I motioned to the waitress and showed her just how raw my fish was.  She was very apologetic (and a little grossed out) and said she would get me a new one “right away.”  Well, cooking fish is no “quick” task, so Mike was completely finished with his meal by the time I received my new one.  (I insisted he go ahead and eat – no sense in letting his get cold while mine cooked.) 

While we waited the Manager came by, overly apologetic and offering us everything under the sun – from cocktails to salad bars to appetizers.  The waitress also stopped by a few times to check on us, and see if there was anything she could do for us while we waited.

Once my meal was ready both the Manager and Waitress served me, and asked for me to cut into it to make sure it was satisfactory before they walked away.  Of course it was perfect – honestly, probably the best that meal has ever tasted – and I thanked them as they continued to apologize and let us know that they would be comping the meal off the ticket.   Since Mike had already finished and now had to wait on me to eat, they brought him a dessert to enjoy as well. Until the moment we left they took care of us, apologizing almost to the point of annoying    They had removed my meal, salad and dessert off of the bill, leaving only Mike’s meal to be paid.

The amount they removed from our check was over $25… which is the exact amount I left for the TIP.  Those two ladies went over and above to take care of me, after a very simple mistake – WHICH neither of them had any part in making.  My reward was a tip greater even than the final bill that was owed.

How do you handle mistakes when they happen in your business?

Do you “avoid the phone” and let upset callers go to voicemail?  Do you respond via email, so you can avoid the conflict?  Do you blame others – corporate, shipping, manufacturers?

Or do you go over and above to right the situation, even if it means you *may* lose out in the end?

One of my best Consultants of all time came to me first as an unhappy customer.  She had ordered from another Consultant in my town who would not answer her calls, would not return emails, blocked her from MySpace – you name it, the Consultant was avoiding the conflict.  I worked with the Customer, worked with my Corporate Office, paid out of my own pocket to right the wrong, and told her I would “take care of her any time she ever needed anything.”  Within 6 months she was a Leader on my team making me ten times more money than what I had paid out to right the other Consultant’s mistake.   I am also happy to say she is still one of my very best friends.

An upset customer is a remarkable opportunity for you to show your fantastic Customer Service skills.  By “making it right” and doing what is right by the customer – EVEN if you have to spend some money in order to do so – can come back to reward you ten fold.   Tonight I was reminded of just how true this really is.

If you have an unhappy customer – make it right.  Call and ask her HOW you can make it right.  Be apologetic – even if the mistake was not your own – and be willing to do what is needed to make your CUSTOMER happy.  Show her that you have the integrity and the commitment to your business to run it ethically and professionally.  It WILL come back in your favor.

**Congratulations Donna with www.CruisingWithMsD.com!  You’re 36th comment was chosen as the winner from Random.org! **

One of the biggest obstacles we all face as Party Plan Consultants is Time Management. So many Divas that I talk to report that they struggle with feeling like they are “always working” yet, many times, they don’t really ACCOMPLISH anything. Or the “fruits of their labor” never seem to appear.

One of the most time consuming parts of the Party Plan Industry is Customer Service. Follow Up is key to a successful business, but the problem is it takes so much TIME! Whether it is making calls, email campaigns or mailing postcards to announce a new catalog, Customer Care takes more time than any other aspect of building and maintaining your business.

I am excited to announce – I have found a solution.

When Ivette Muller of SendOutCards told me I was going to fall in love,  I had no idea I was going to be completely blown away with the ease, convenience, and possibilities that the entire SendOutCards System offers.

SendOutCards concept is simple -

1. Choose your card (from the THOUSANDS they have the in Card Catalog)
2. Write your message (completely customizable all the way to your own signature)
3. Click send (for way less than the cost of a card from the store – INCLUDING POSTAGE!)

Simple right? You can add all of your contacts right to the system and literally in just a few clicks you send a REAL card with the same quality of a store bought card, with a REAL stamp all without ever having to leave home or your office! “Never miss a birthday card again”

They also offer PicturePlus – where you can upload your very own pictures to be used for the card!  Send Baby Announcements, Graduation pictures, or create cards and postcards with your own logo!

That’s the basics.  But what they DON’T tell you is how amazing it can be for business.

SendOutCards offers the ability to send “campaigns” of cards or postcards… meaning you can send as many of the same card as you want at the same time.  With those same three steps above you can send a card or postcard to your ENTIRE CUSTOMER BASE.  Imagine just a few clicks to know that your entire client base is going to receive a card announcing a new catalog, or a new Hostess Special.  Imagine sending out all of your February birthdays and anniversaries with just a few keystrokes.

Let’s compare:

The “traditional” way:

• Time to create a postcard on VistaPrint – 30 minutes
• Time for postcard to arrive – 3 weeks and approx $15 for shipping
• Type/print/ or write names and addresses from your Customer Care System – anywhere from an hour to a day
• Time to get stamps from Post Office or print postage from your computer and apply to each card- 1-3 hours
• TOTAL: 5 hours.  Including the time for VistaPrint to print and mail to you, and then you to get them mailed again – probably close to a month

SendOutCards:

• Enter Customer Base into the SOC System – done once, and they are there forever, you can even upload them all at one time!
• Choose and design your card – 30 minutes
• Choose who you want to send to – 10 minutes to go through your list, or one click for “everyone”
• Click send.
• Total time: about 45 minutes for each new campaign

SendOutCards even gives you the ability to send a gift along with the card with items ranging from gift cards to flowers to magazine subscriptions.  This absolutely has become my new favorite product, putting Time Management, Organization, and Customer Care all together in one.

Ok, ok, let’s get to the giveaway!

Because I now use this personally, and because I know it will help so many of you, Ivette has graciously offered us this wonderful giveaway!

100 “points” to choose cards and postcards, plus $20 expense for postage – a $51 Value to use in the next 60 days!

Here is how to enter:

• Subscribe to our free  Party Plan Divas Daily Tips Newsletter in the sidebar and receive daily training, tips, and inspiration directly to your email  (or if you are already, leave a comment telling me so)
• Follow Ivette’s blog http://wahmbahm.com through Google Friend Connect
• Follow this blog on FaceBook by clicking the link, or on the button on the right-hand column of this blog (or if you are already, leave a comment telling me so)
• Follow me on Twitter @partyplandivas (or if you are already, leave a comment telling me so)
• Follow Ivette on Twitter at @IvetteMuller01
• Display ThePartyPlanCoach badge on your blog by grabbing the code on our front page
• Blog about this giveaway (and paste a direct link to your blog post in your comment)
• Tweet this Giveaway up to three times per day, but must be at least one hour apart “Simplify Your Business with Send Out Cards #giveaway http://thepartyplancoach.com”
• Two entries for joining us for a  Partners in Profit webinar 1/11 @9am EST or 1/16 @ 3pm EST this webinar will show you how you can use Send Out Cards for your business and personal use. To register for this event, contact Ivette:  ivettemuller@aol.com for instructions
• Visit http://www.socreferral.com/ivette and watch the movie.  Then, tell us what your favorite Success Story was from the movie or testimonials for two additional entries.
• Visit http://www.socreferral.com/ivette and get Two entries for signing up to take a Test Drive of the Send Out Cards system.

You get one extra entry for each extra item above. Please leave me a comment separately for each additional entry. Make sure to leave your email address.

The contest will end on Wednesday January 20th, 2010 at midnight CST. No entries will be accepted after that date. If we do not hear from the winner within 48 hours, we will select a new winner. We will use random.org to choose the winner. Good luck!

Here are the ten top tips for improving your Customer Service Skills:

1.  Stay in contact with your customers on a regular basis. Offer then a free eNewsletter, add them to your Social Media outlets, make Customer Care Calls for special events (holiday, new catalog, etc)

2. Create a Customer VIP Program. People want to feel important, and recognized.  Create a Customer VIP Program and give them special discounts, the “first look” at new products, etc.

3. Give Customers more than they expect. There is no such thing as “too much” customer service.  Send “Thank you” notes for no reason other than to say thanks.  Offer discounts at random times throughout the year.  Send free gifts with large purchases with no notice.

4. Resolve complaints and conflicts quickly. Show your customers that you really care by taking care of problems quickly.  Sometimes we have to go a little beyond ourselves, maybe even lose a little bit of money, but good Customer Service does not have a pricetag.  Personally take care of the problem as best as you possibly can.

5. Make it easy for your customers to find you. Offer as many contact methods as possible, so that when a customer reaches out, she feels like she will be able to get to you.  Email, cell phone, social media, etc are all great contact methods.  Also, make your contact methods easy to remember by using a universal business name as often as possible (i.e. www.yourparties.com, yourparties@email.com, etc)

6. Build strong relationships with your Customers. Create special Customer Appreciation events every quarter for your customers like parties, barbeque’s, tea parties, Open Houses, etc. Your customers will feel important when they are included in these kind of business and special events.

7. Make it easy for Customers to use your website. Have a “FAQ” page on you site to explain any questions your customers may have.  If your company only allows you to use their Corporate site, use your blog to house your FAQ’s.  You can even ask your customers to fill out an online survey to find out how to make your site more user friendly.

8. Always be polite. Use the words “you’ve welcome”, “thank you”, “please” etc often.  Be calm and polite even when they are upset. Be willing to apologize first in the event you make a mistake, and then make up for them in a big way.

9. Create a Product of the Month Club. This is a benefit to both you and your Customers.  Assign a product for each month of the year, and offer it at a flat rate to be billed and auto-shipped each month.  For instance, if you are with a candle company, choose 12 scents to be directly billed and shipped on the 1st day of each month.

10. Make sure your entire team uses the same Customer Service practices. Explain to your team the importance of Customer Service and Customer Care.  By all using the same “policies”, your Customers will always know what to expect in the instance of having to pass along a party or order.