Direct Selling 101: Back to the Basics Boot Camp
Back to the Basics Boot Camp
September 23-24 • Long Beach, CA
Renaissance Long Beach
DSA's 2009 Direct Selling 101 Boot Camp has concluded.
Should you wish to purchase the CD
of this seminar, please click here.
We look forward to providing this seminar again in 2010; look to our calendar for more information shortly.
No matter how many times you think you’ve learned all you can about what makes direct selling
companies tick, there’s always more to discover. Head to your own personal boot camp this September, where we’ll provide you with the strategies you need to whip your company and staff into shape and prepare you for everything this marketing channel can throw at you! Industry experts will provide you with the critical business-boosting information your company needs to get stronger and build itself to be the dominating force you were inspired to create. Cadets will learn the following critical skills:
- What a direct selling marketing plan is and how to choose the appropriate one for your company
- Compensation plan design basics and how to use your plan to drive desired behaviors
- Implementing promotions that will drive your company’s success—not take away from it
- Creating a salesforce from scratch without cannibalizing other organizations—and why you should avoid such behavior at all costs
- Industry-specific key operating indicators and why mastering their analysis is one of the most important things you need to learn
- Crafting social networking policies and putting them into action from day one
- 10 reasons companies succeed, 10 common failure points and how to make sure your company is on track to make the right decisions
- The legal framework that supports our industry and why even non-attorneys should care
- The critical role a financial plan will play in your company’s stability and success
Click here for Hotel and Registration Details
Click here for Travel Discounts & Details
Wednesday, September 23
8:30 a.m. – 8:45 a.m.
Direct Selling: An Overview & A Look at the Impact of This Economy
Beginners, newcomers and veterans alike, get a feel for what direct selling is all about, as DSA’s president gives you a framework for this two-day Boot Camp, including:
| • |
A brief history of our industry’s 99-year tradition |
| • |
The effects this year’s legislative and financial events have had on direct selling—and what you should be prepared to see in the next few years |
| • |
Why any of this—and DSA’s role in it—should matter to your company |
| – |
Neil Offen, President, Direct Selling Association |
8:45 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.
Finding the Right Marketing Plan
We’re starting you cadets off with the basics! It’s your salesforce that makes your direct selling company different from other companies in other sales channels, right? But how do you determine how your salesforce members should make their sales—and what are your options? During this training course, you’ll find out:
| • | The three different plans from which you can pick |
| • | How your product line affects your choice |
| • | Why choosing well matters for your future growth |
| • | Best practices to put your plan to work for your company |
| – | Alan Luce, President, Luce & Associates |
9:45 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.
Compensation Plan Design Essentials
What else makes direct selling different? Distributor commissions, right? Are you missing your compensation compass? Or maybe you’re re-evaluating your company’s current plan and you’re not sure where to start? We’ll help you through this obstacle course, preparing you with:
| • | Designs that insure everyone wins |
| • | Principles to guarantee your plan will work |
| • | Best practices for a winning structure that won’t bankrupt your company |
| – | Alan Luce, President, Luce & Associates |
11:00 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.
Key Operating Indicators
Every company, direct selling or otherwise, needs to pay attention to its key operating indicators—the data that measures your company’s success (or lack thereof). So, to what should you pay attention, and how do you tell if your data is in line with expectations? Your instructor will cover:
| • | The metrics to which you need to pay the most attention—and why |
| • | Signs that your data’s off-balance—and how to fix it |
| • | Ways to reasonably adjust your indicators as your company grows |
| – | Jay Leisner, President, Sylvina Consulting |
11:45 p.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Promotions that Drive Your Business
Promotions are meant to complement your compensation plan and encourage distributor activity—not replace your compensation plan. This training course will cover why this distinction is important and ways to promote successfully, including:
| • | How to create a sense of urgency within your salesforce |
| • | Ways to enable your leaders to lead their downlines in the charge—not just guide them |
| • | Best practices for using promotions to drive sales |
| – | Jan Gilmore, Principle, Jan Gilmore Unlimited |
| – | Sue Rusch, Consultant, Sue Rusch & Associates, LLC |
1:45 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Social Media Marketing
Twitter, Facebook, blogs, YouTube . . . every time you turn around a new social marketing tool has appeared. We’ll help you navigate the landmines this new world provides and get a grip on the basics you need to know, including:
| • | Crafting company policy to keep eager distributors in line |
| • | Choosing the tools that will best fit your company |
| • | Engaging with online communities at the corporate level and why this dialogue is necessary for your company’s success |
| – | Jennifer Fong, Social Media Associate, Luce & Associates |
2:30 p.m. – 3:15 p.m.
Three Principles & Four Questions
You know direct selling is different from other sales channels, but it’s about more than just a marketing plan or a commission check. We’ll delve into industry philosophy in this course, as our drill instructor discusses:
| • | Why distributor support is a critical component of your company’s success in a way that no other factor can claim |
| • | How to earn your distributors’ trust and why you must do so |
| • | The four constituencies you need to consider as part of every business decision and what the answers mean for your chosen course |
| – | Alan Luce, President, Luce & Associates |
3:15 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
A Legal Framework
Not an attorney? Make sure you hear this presentation anyway. Our sales channel has a very particular legal framework and it’s important you know about it, no matter what role you play for your company. Discussion points include:
| • | The regulatory bodies watching our industry and where they’ve trained their scopes |
| • | Direct selling’s five legal “Ps” and the facets of each that provoke attack |
| • | Compensation dos and don’ts—and the troubles they’ll bring you if you confuse the two |
| – | Spencer Reese, Partner, Grimes & Reese |
4:15 p.m. – 5:45 p.m.
New Company Case Studies
Now that you’ve had as much theory and philosophy as you can take in a day, make the most of this time while you listen in to a panel of successful new direct selling executives as they share:
| • | Business-altering opportunities they’ve gone through in the past two years |
| • | Lessons they’ve learned as they’ve put theory into action on the battlefield |
| • | Highlights of their operations and inspirational moments that have carried them on |
| – | Jeff Stroud, President, Private Quarters |
5:45 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Ask the Vets!
You’ve heard the theory, the philosophy and the “true stories”—now, the floor’s all yours! We’ll open this final course of the day to your questions—fielded by our drill instructors—and help you grasp even the most confusing industry tenets.
| – | Featuring a panel of the day’s instructors |
7:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Dutch-Treat Dinner
Join your colleagues for an evening of socializing at Parker's Lighthouse Restaurant! Featuring a pre-set menu of tasty California fare, and only steps from the Long Beach Renaissance Hotel, you'll want to be a part of this dinner and keep the day's conversations going well into the night! (Parker's Restaurant is either a 15-minute walk or a $8 cab ride from the hotel. Dinner is $60 per participant. Guests are encouraged to register in advance as seating is limited.)
Thursday, September 24
8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.
Business Plans & Budgets
Great compensation, strong marketing plan, but no financial plan? What are you thinking, cadet?! Our instructor will walk you through these critical considerations, drilling you on:
| • |
Key metrics that must be in your financial plan |
| • |
The impact your marketing plan will have on your budget |
| • |
The role your salesforce will play on your financial stability |
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Key drivers that will affect your plan—and success |
| – |
Robert Hipple, VP, Sales, Scentsy, Inc. |
9:30 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
The Top 10 Reasons Companies Succeed
You don’t need our command forces to tell you companies fail every day. You also know you don’t want to be one of them. So, how do you guarantee you survive the battlefield? Learn the top 10 reasons a direct selling company succeeds and more, including:
| • | How to insure these 10 things happen to your company |
| • | What you do when you find yourself under enemy fire |
| • | Ways to maintain distributor support throughout your company’s life |
| – | Paula Antonini, Antonini & Associates |
| – | Gordon Stagg, President, Stagg Associates, Inc. |
10:15 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.
Creating a Distributor-Centric Company
Successful direct selling companies are "legacy" companies—distributor-centric organizations that profoundly impact the lives of their owners, distributors and customers. Our training instructor will provide you with the principles for insuring your growing company is a legacy company, including:
| • | How to insure your company's operations are focused on its customers and distributors |
| • | Recruiting new distributors into your legacy company—and retaining them longer because of it |
| • | Distributor-centric strategies throughout your operations that are critical to all legacy organizations |
| – | David Taylor, Vice President, ServiceQuest |
| – | Terrel Transtrum, President, ServiceQuest |
11:30 a.m. – 12:15 a.m.
Assessing Your Technology Needs
QuickBooks or JDEdwards? Off-the-shelf or custom-made? And how do you perform the necessary analyses to know what you need and when? Put on your IT hats, cadets, and prepare yourself for this detailed overview that will provide you with mission-critical information about:
| • | The must-have technology your company needs to get started, and how to do it within your budget |
| • | Important questions to ask internally before you even talk to a vendor |
| • | Preparing for future needs before you’re under the gun to take care of them |
| – | Mark Rawlins, President, InfoTrax Systems, L.C. |
1:30 p.m. – 2:15 p.m.
The 10 Most Common Mistakes in Direct Selling
You now know how to make it through the battlefield. What about getting out from behind enemy lines? We’ll give you the drill on how to make sure your operation succeeds, including:
| • | Dodging flying bullets |
| • | Realistic expectations for finding your way to friendly territory |
| • | Trusting your instincts and finding the right course to take back to camp |
| – | Dan Jensen, Compensation Plan Specialist, Dan Jensen Consulting |
2:15 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Five Keys to a Fast Start
Ready to get out there and build your company? Do you feel inspired to hit the ground running? We’ll discuss five factors critical to launching your mission, plus:
| • | Elements that will hold you back from your goals if you let them |
| • | Why fast is good and what dangers come from slowing down too soon |
| • | Adjusting for sneak attacks around the corner |
| – | Alan Luce, President, Luce & Associates |
3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Credit Card Payments & PCI Compliance
Too small to think about a payment system for your company and the rules governing credit card warfare? Think again! Changes down the line can be expensive for you and disruptive to your consultants. This training course will cover:
| • | Whether your consultants should accept credit card orders |
| • | The basics of PCI compliance and why you need to be aware of them now |
| • | The financial impact of these decisions to both your company and your salesforce |
| – | Darrel Welling, EVP, Client Relations, ProPay Inc. |
3:45 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Creating a Salesforce from Scratch
Your distributors are a key component of what makes your company a direct selling organization. So how do you get new recruits? And how do they get new recruits? While it’s not easy to make quotas, it doesn’t have to be torture, either. Our drill instructors will cover:
| • | Where your first distributors come from (and it’s not from other organizations!) |
| • | How you develop leaders—and how they build teams under them |
| • | How you keep your sellers active, and what to do when you lose them |
| – | Paula Antonini, Antonini & Associates |
| – | Jan Gilmore, Principal, Jan Gilmore Unlimited |
4:30 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.
Motivating & Sustaining Your Salesforce
Creating a salesforce is just the beginning of growing your army. Next, you have to keep them working for you after the glow fades. This training course will walk you through the basics of keeping your army strong, including:
| • | Tying together compensation and promotions to drive your distributors to greater heights |
| • | Providing your salesforce with the tools they need to sell and recruit—and keep the cash flowing for you and them |
| • | Tactics to pick your distributors up out of the mud and inspire them to go the distance |
| – | Janine Avila, VP, Training, Oxyfresh.com |
| – | Sue Rusch, Consultant, Sue Rusch & Associates |
| – | Jeff Stroud, President, Private Quarters |
5:15 p.m. – 6:15 p.m.
Salesforce Development Roundtables
Get your biggest questions answered right here! Join your fellow cadets around topic-focused tables and get hands-on advice on how to develop your salesforce and grow your company. You’ll take this practical information with you long after you leave this Boot Camp.
| – | Janine Avila, VP, Training, Oxyfresh.com |
| – | Jack Crowley, CEO, Crowley Collaborative Group |
| – | Jan Gilmore, Principal, Jan Gilmore Unlimited |
| – | Dan Jensen, Compensation Plan Specialist, Dan Jensen Consulting |
| – | Alan Luce, President, Luce & Associates |
| – | Sue Rusch, Consultant, Sue Rusch & Associates |
Click here for Hotel and Registration Details
Travel Information
DSA has worked with travel vendors to provide you with travel discounts for your Direct Selling 101 Boot Camp experience. Please click here to review this information. Should you have any questions about the discounts, terms or conditions, please contact the vendor providing the discount. Should you have any questions regarding hotel and meeting accommodations, please contact DSA's Allene David.
The views expressed in these presentations and related materials are those of the speakers and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, the Direct Selling Association. Any information presented is not intended as a substitute for your own legal counsel.
