Dear Archive Visitor, I've had a number of people ask me whether or not I'm doing okay since our daughter Audrey left for Connecticut almost 2 weeks ago now. For those of you who are brand new to my Sales Refinery Insights, our oldest daughter, Tess, left for college about a month ago, and then in an amazing turn of events, our middle daughter, Audrey, was accepted into a ballet conservatory back east, and gladly accepted the opportunity. So, how am I doing now that there's only one teen at home with us? The truth is, I'm doing quite well. And here's the deal Ñ it's not that I'm not close with all of our children. I have a great relationship with each of our four kids. But it hasn't been difficult to let each of them go because I truly started doing this YEARS ago. As soon as I started rearing children, I thought "long-term." I've frequently asked myself how to develop the relationship with our children for the best in the long term. I mention this because this week's lesson is on thinking long term to win. In your best, as in child rearing, I truly believe you must think long-term to come out on the winning side. I'll show in this week's lesson just how true that is in the world of direct sales.

Think Long Term to Win By Tammy Stanley Anyone who's ever been to an opportunity meeting knows that building a large direct sales business requires long-term vision. It's obvious that no matter how much the top-dog might talk about how easy it was to build her business, everyone in the room knows that a large organization isn't built overnight. That idea seems perfectly clear. But here's what never ceased to amaze me while I was building a direct sales organization: how frequently distributors would think short-term while building their sales business. I came to the conclusion that these distributors obviously didn't see the connection between their daily sales business and the ultimate goal of leading a large organization. Let me give you some examples. Let's say that a customer buys a couple of things from you and for whatever reason wants/needs to exchange or return an item she bought. Do you take it back even if it's too late to return it to your company? What I discovered is that most direct sales entrepreneurs won't do that. If it's past the company's time limits for returning items, it's past theirs. Too bad Ms. Customer. You lose. I can tell you that I never ran my business that way. If someone wanted to return something and it was past the company's allowed return date, I simply put the item in my inventory and gave the customer credit for that return to purchase something else. Now if you're wondering whether or not that cost me money, I can tell you that in the short-term it did, but not in the long term. My customers learned quickly that it was safe to shop with me and that I was committed to a long-term relationship with them. After awhile my customers began calling me and telling me about women who had bought my product line from another distributor, and were unhappy because the distributor hadn't let them return anything. My customers asked me if there was anything I could do about it. I would then place a call to these new prospects and let them know that I could go ahead and give them credit for the item/s they purchased. I would explain that since I hadn't made the sale, I wouldn't refund them cash, but I would let them apply the credit to anything they wanted in the catalog. Did I lose money from doing that? Not one time. Those new customers were so grateful that they usually purchased far more than what they returned. In addition to that, they became quickly convinced that I was the only distributor they ever wanted to work with in the future. By focusing of the long-term benefits instead of the momentary short-term drawbacks, I had a solid base of customers who bought from me year after year after year. Now, you might be wondering how I kept my customers from mis-using my lenient return policy. Actually it was rather easy. If you are a reasonable sales person, you absolutely have the right to ask your customers to be reasonable as well. It wasn't uncommon for me to let the guests at a home party know that they could return things, if they didn't work out for them. However, I would then mention how that process would involve considerable time since I had to send the item back to the company, wait for the company to send the new product, and then deliver it. Instead of going through all that, why not take a little extra time tonight and make sure the things ordered are the things wanted. When I added that little spiel to my demonstration, my customers really took it to heart. If I had a customer who was making a habit of returning things months later, I would say, "Diane, you know I'm going to take this back and give you credit for it, but what would really help me is for you to understand that I'm not some multi-million dollar corporation like Nordstrom. When you return things months after you bought them, I can't return it to the company for compensation." Understand that I never said that in a snotty tone. If anything I'd deliver it almost monotone. My intention wasn't to make a customer feel bad or guilty but rather aware. Again, when you are reasonable with your customers, they will be reasonable with you. Anyone who isn't doesn't need to be on your customer list. There's no reason for having customers you don't want. This is truly a business where you can pick your customers. Think long-term and develop the clientele you want to work with. WANT TO SEE MORE ARTICLES LIKE THIS ONE? WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR NEWSLETTER OR ON YOUR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Author, Sales Trainer, and Professional Speaker Tammy Stanley publishes the propelling 'Sales Refinery Insights' weekly ezine for direct sales professionals. If you're ready to jump-start your direct sales business, make more money, and create more value, get your FREE tips now at www.tammystanley.com/ezine/ezine_offer_ds.htm

A great organization for direct sales entrepreneurs to join is the direct women's selling association. If you click on the icon above, you'll be taken to a page where you can read all the benefits of becoming a member.

Tammy Stanley, founded and directs The Sales Refinery, a sales training company that assists direct sales consultants to generate more business and build long-lasting sales teams through powerful marketing, selling and leadership strategies.

Tammy has been coaching and training since 1994 and has a deep understanding of the challenges and needs of the independent sales consultant. While raising four children, Tammy built a multi-million dollar direct sales organization, reaching her company's Circle of Excellence 7 consecutive years in a row. She earned numerous sales and leadership awards, world travel, and promoted 11 offspring managers.

The Tammy Stanley Sales Refinery
Tempe, AZ 85283
Call Today: 480-775-4866
tammy@TammyStanley.com