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Winning entries demonstrate excellence in the innovative use of salesforce-enabling technology.
As demand for virtual party experiences has drastically increased, so has reliance on third party apps and social media platforms. The ever-changing social media algorithms were time consuming for consultants, and third-party restrictions posed significant risk to consultants’ businesses. In response, Pampered Chef built and launched Table, a digital platform that enables consultants to hold customized virtual parties that deliver a unique and engaging experience. This innovative platform reduces the time consultants spend creating virtual parties, allowing them to dedicate time and energy to build customer relationships without the limitations of third-party platforms. Consultants can easily customize party content, or use customizable templates with videos, recipes, an interactive product catalog, and educational games. Table also features a virtual kitchen experience, a highly visual, immersive way for consumers to learn about products and recipes. As a custom-built resource, Pampered Chef® owns the data that will help drive improved personalization and customization. Within the first four months post-launch in 2021, virtual parties held on the Table platform drove more revenue per party compared to parties held on social media, and 82% of hosts and guests reported a positive party experience.
2021 Winner: Saladmaster – Saladmaster VX As Saladmaster was navigating through the new world with the global pandemic in 2020, we needed to find a way to bring our traditional in-person cooking shows to life in a virtual manner. Our virtual cooking shows were brand new to our salesforce, and we were hearing challenges that it was hard for consumers to see our cookware products come to life in their own kitchens through virtual meetings. There was a gap in bringing a realistic experience for consumers to understand the size, features, and benefits of our cookware that they typically received during our in-person cooking shows. Saladmaster developed a twist on augmented reality that allows consumers to see our most-loved products in real life from the comfort of their homes. Saladmaster VX, aka Virtual Experience, was developed by leveraging 3D imagery and an existing vendor’s virtual technology, along with QR coding. The QR code takes you to our virtual reality page where you can place our Saladmaster cookware in your own environment—be it your kitchen, your table, or wherever you are to show and impress your guests. Saladmaster’s VX tool allows you to experience the cookware piece first-hand before making any type of investment.
2020 Winner: Damsel in Defense—Protected Pepper with Shield Technology Damsel in Defense products are designed to give users multiple layers of protection—from pepper sprays and personal alarms that work at a distance, to stun devices and striking tools that multiply our natural defenses up close. We realized that in the moments when individuals might be in the fight of their life, they have no way of calling for backup. So, we fought to create an additional layer of protection by harnessing multiple technologies, allowing us to send alert messages discreetly and instantaneously on behalf of users in the moments when they need us most. This resulted in the advent of Shield Technology, our exclusive safety system that allows users to send immediate alerts to a list of their trusted contacts during an emergency. No matter the data around statistics, our greatest fear is that we would be alone when we need help the most. If our customers should ever be in the fight for their lives, our Shield innovation deploys help to them while they deploy the use of their defense. This is simply the most holistic approach to safety there is.
2019 Winner: Isagenix International - IsaLife Mobile App The IsaLife mobile app helps our Isagenix customers stay on track with their nutritional and wellness goals. With the convenient nutrition and fitness tracker, personal coach, and product-ordering platform in one easy-to-navigate app it allows our customers to take their IsaLife on the go with their mobile device. Our customers can set goals and track ongoing success one meal, shake, and workout at a time with the full Isagenix product catalog, searchable food items, and integration with all fitness tracking devices! They will stay motivated and engaged with the help of their personal Isagenix coach. Our business builders can use the app to signup new customers and connect with them by sharing tips, support, recipes, and more. As an Isagenix Associate, our members can share Isagenix with potential customers inside the IsaLife app! In less than two minutes, potential customers can create their Isagenix account and both their initial order and recurring orders based on recommendations from their health coach. The IsaLife app is free and can be downloaded from the Apple App and Google Play store.
2018 Winner: Amway - Product Registration In 2017, Amway introduced an improved Product Registration experience to support the premium, high performance Water Treatment and Air Treatment products that we have been selling for over 30 years. This new experience was designed to engage customers, begin a relationship with them at the point of sale, and enable new business support tools for our Amway Business Owners (ABOs). Amway’s new Product Registration experience is digitally focused, easily accessible, experiential, and available to end users through multiple channels. The first iteration released to market includes a unique photo registration process, allowing users to simply open the product, snap a photo of the registration label, and send it to Amway via SMS or select social channels. One touch registration will soon be available within connected product applications. 1 Initial response to this new effort has been very positive, with a significant increase in Product Registration take rates – from 3% to approximately 30%. We can now more effectively manage an improved After Sales Service experience over the course of the Product’s life. This includes a focus on ongoing filter and cartridge sales, new marketing campaigns for ABOs and end users, warranty management, and better financial accountability across our Durables Business.
2017 Winner: Pampered Chef - Express Party Checkout Pampered Chef thrives on a message of convenience – for your mealtime, for your family and for your business. However, in 2016 we became acutely aware of a pivotal issue that was causing major inconvenience for our customers and consultants across the U.S. and Canada: an outdated paper form check-out process. With the goal of getting to market fast with a solution that would empower guests and champion the consultant, our in-house Technology Team built, tested and piloted a web-based mobile app solution in just 2 1/2 months. Our solution, dubbed Express Party Checkout, is a 4.76 star-rated responsive web application that dramatically expedites the checkout process for guests and consultants, and the positive impact it is having on future party bookings, average order values and average order sizes has led Pampered Chef to roll it out nationwide to consultant leaders. In the words of our consultants, “I used this last night at my show it was AMAZING and the guests loved it. I got more bookings than ever before because I had time to talk to the guests instead of spending time entering orders! #lifechangingexperience”
2016 Winner: Scentsy, Inc. - Continuous Delivery In 2015, Scentsy launched Continuous Delivery, a completely new system infrastructure with an advanced deployment pipeline. With Continuous Delivery, Scentsy can take immediate action when inspiration strikes, continuously improving the Scentsy opportunity for Consultants, leveraging their brilliant ideas, engaging the unique talents of our employees and keeping Scentsy on the cutting edge of technology and innovation.
2015 Winner: Rodan + Fields - Self-Checkout Point-of-Sale Rodan + Fields developed a state-of-the-art self-service checkout system for the launch of ACUTE CARE™ which enabled thousands of simultaneous consultant transactions with limited checkout wait times. The system performed flawlessly with maximum wait times of only 10 minutes during the highest peak time, when more than 1,000 Consultants were shopping simultaneously.
2014 SimplyFun, LLC - Virtual Laugh & Learns Using 30MVP Virtual Laugh & Learn was designed to meet the needs of SimplyFun’s consultants and customers, who now have access to SimplyFun’s informative videos, interactive shopping and game recommendation experiences anywhere and anytime. This new technology expands the company’s ability to showcase its award-winning product line and build sales beyond the traditional party, while providing a personal party experience.
2013 Amway - Mobile Compensation Tools The Income Simulator was developed to support IBOs in sharing the business opportunity with prospects; the companion Business Modeler was created to help existing IBOs maximize their earning potential in their Amway businesses. The Income Simulator answers questions about potential earnings, showing income scenarios at three stages of business development and the Business Modeler allows an IBO to model and predict the effects of changes to their businesses as a result of changes in volume, structure and ongoing incentives.
2012 Mary Kay Inc. Mary Kay’s goal was to leverage the global proliferation of mobile adoption and increase visibility of its products and brand by creating a simple, on-the-go selling tool that would allow consumers to virtually “try before they buy” and shop with their Mary Kay independent beauty consultants. This Virtual Makeover game app will help reach Gen-X and -Y consumers and encourage potential team members to join Mary Kay.
2011 Mary Kay Inc. For the marketing of their new line of Mary Kay TimeWise foundation, Mary Kay utilized a line of business cards with two dimensional bar codes that linked directly to a video about the product. Usage of the barcode has been tracked around the country and its usage shows a positive response to the introduction of this technology.
2010 Amway Amway took the power of their global business information, resources and connectivity into an app that integrates training, videos, and user guides. The app accounts for seven percent of online business inquiries.
2009 Oxyfresh.com
Winning entries demonstrate initiatives that rely on a specific program or tool to enhance training, allowing a salesforce to succeed.
Herbalife Nutrition created a custom, mobile-first learning application called HN Grow to help keep independent distributors engaged, boost their confidence and drive their performance. HN Grow is available in 44 countries, 13 languages and hosts more than 1600 localized learning items, including eLearning modules, training videos, podcasts and presentations. With gamification in the form of points, badges and certificates to reward the distributor through their learning journey, HN Grow has provided "edutainment" to more than 200,000 independent distributors as of December 2021.
2021 Winner: Scentsy – Quick Pivots When Scentsy consultants launched the Monthly Movement, an engagement campaign designed to keep Scentsy strong and growing during the global pandemic and ensuing stay-at-home mandates of 2020, our entire staff rallied to meet the challenge and enable consultant success. Consultant leaders sparked powerful momentum, and we responded with quick agility thanks to the strength of our company culture and the capability of our workforce. We had four major objectives to support the goals consultants set with the Monthly Movement: 1) secure Scentsy as an essential business, 2) overcome stay-at-home challenges with virtual resources and a remote workforce, 3) increase the size and capacity of Scentsy operations to meet the increased demand, and 4) bolster consultant recruiting efforts with a join promotion in May. Thanks to our joint efforts, 2020 revenue increased 87% over our 2019 revenue, we had a record-breaking recruiting month with 39,328 consultant enrollments, and we doubled the size of the home office team—even with major challenges that impacted everything from manufacturing and shipping to our consultants’ ability to sell products from their homes.
Winning entries showcase a new product or service introduced to the marketplace that sets a high standard of excellence and innovation.
Most people spend about 90% of their time indoors, where pollutant levels are often 2 to 5 times higher than typical outdoor concentrations. At Scentsy, we have always been committed to designing high-quality, inventive, family-friendly and safe products to “Fill your life with fragrance.” As an extension of that commitment, we began exploring new ways to approach trending air purifier technology. We were already filling the air in homes around the world with fragrance, but what if we could purify it, too? We knew that blending these two functions would result in an innovative product unlike anything on the market. We introduced the Scentsy Air Purifier on Aug. 1, 2021, in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. Not only is the Scentsy Air Purifier an innovative way to clean the air — and fill it with beautiful fragrance — it’s also a game-changing opportunity for Scentsy Consultants to grow their businesses. From the initial Air Purifier purchase to ongoing purchases of the consumable products a customer needs to use it effectively, it ensures lasting income and follow-up opportunities. From August through December 2021, Air Purifier sales brought in $5 million in new global revenue!
2021 Winner: USANA – Mood & Relaxation Products These products take a holistic approach to the problems of modern life. Products are formulated to support your mental and emotional well-being. Products in the Mood & Relaxation line include Stress Relief, designed to nurture a healthy emotional response and resilience while supporting the GABA receptors in the brain that help regulate your mood. This supplement helps the body adapt to feelings of mild and occasional stress and nervousness. Calm Response is a balm made to create an aromatic, calming environment to provide a sense of well-being. It uniquely blends essential oils known to support a calm, collected, and resilient emotional state. Mineral Calm, a warm, effervescent beverage mix, combines the calming flavors of ginger and lemon for a delicious, soothing addition to a nighttime routine. It helps ease your body and mind for a peaceful night’s rest while providing magnesium to address muscle tension and calm nerves during rest and recovery. Pure Rest, a fast-acting, ultra-pure supplement, is both effective and non-habit forming as it uses melatonin to regulate your sleep and wake cycles naturally.
2020 Winner: USANA Health Sciences—USANA Oral Care USANA Oral Care is a two-product system, a Whitening Toothpaste Featuring ADP-1 and an Oral Probiotic. USANA Oral Care products are like nothing available on the market today. They provide gentle, effective support for the health of your mouth, teeth, and gums. These products are made to support your long-term oral health. The fluoride-free Whitening Toothpaste and Oral Probiotic combine the power of naturally derived and scientifically advanced ingredients for a clean, fresh mouth and whiter, brighter smile. Adding a toothpaste with a postbiotic, like ADP-1, attracts the impurities in your mouth so they can be brushed away. This postbiotic helps support the cleansing process by targeting and clearing away unwanted compounds that can dull your teeth or cause bad breath. After your evening flossing and brushing, use USANA Oral Probiotic to protect your healthy-looking smile. When the tablet hits your tongue, powerful probiotic strains replenish good bacteria known as microflora.
2019 Winner: Mary Kay Inc. - TimeWise Miracle Set 3D The natural aging process accounts for just 20% of visible skin aging. The rest comes from external influences, which includes UV rays, pollution, blue light and lifestyle. After years of research, Mary Kay has introduced TimeWise® Miracle Set 3D, a new skin care line featuring our patent-pending Age Minimize 3D Complex to help protect against age-accelerating free radicals caused by environmental factors. The Skin Research and Technology team at Mary Kay R&D showed that our Age Minimize 3D Complex helps prevent the creation of pollution-induced free radicals and reduces the damaging effects of blue light. In addition, Dr. Liang Liu from Columbia University (New York) in collaboration with Mary Kay determined our exclusive complex reduces the impact pollution has on triggering enzymes responsible for collagen breakdown. The worldwide award-winning TimeWise® Miracle Set 3D is also clinically shown to help skin look younger in 4 weeks by improving multiple signs of visible skin aging. It’s a 3-dimensional approach to defend, delay and deliver younger-looking skin. Results based on a 12-week independent clinical study in which 62 women used the set twice a day.
2018 Winner: Mary Kay Inc. – TimeWise Vitamin C Activating Squares With the launch of TimeWise® Vitamin C Activating Squares™, Mary Kay introduced a beauty-industry first that revolutionized the way pure vitamin C is delivered to skin. Pure C can degrade and lose its power over time when exposed to light, air or water. This breakthrough in technology solved that problem by keeping the potency of pure C protected until you unlock its power with every use. As the square dissolves in the palm of your hand, it’s transformed into a fresh, potent, pure vitamin C elixir that can supercharge any Mary Kay® serum. However, it’s not only how the squares work that’s impressive, it’s the results! During a clinical study, visible benefits were seen after using this product just three times a week for two weeks – skin looked more even-toned and more radiant, and fine lines and wrinkles looked improved. And the benefits got even better with continued use. Leading industry publications have featured articles highlighting the innovative technology, and consumers are giving the product rave reviews online.
2017 Winner: Ruby Ribbon, Inc. - Ruby Ribbon Demiette™ There’s a shift afoot in the $6.3 Billion dollar United States bra market. Women – particularly those in their 20s and 30s – are seeking alternatives to the underwire bra that are more comfortable and natural. Ruby Ribbon, the Burlingame-based direct sales company selling an apparel line based in shapewear, saw the opportunity to point its experience with compression technologies towards this changing market and offer a product that would attract a larger share of younger customers. The company has introduced the DemietteTM, an easy-to-wear bra-replacement that lifts, supports, and defines without under wires and painful restrictions. The creation of the DemietteTM was no small feat. We aspired to offer women of any cup size a product that would fully support her; and unlike a sports bra, we wanted our product to provide definition. After much internal design, we tested one version in the market in 2016. The learnings from that beta were applied and in January 2017 we launched a full line in 7 colors. This innovative product is delighting our Stylists and their customers. And it is attracting the desired audience of Millennials and bringing a new audience base to Ruby Ribbon.
2016 Winner: Princess House, Inc. - Fresh Health Produce Keepers Princess House’s new Fresh + Healthy™ Produce Keepers use a combination of science and innovative design to create an ideal preservation and storage system for fresh produce. By educating customers on how to best store different types of produce by controlling moisture and airflow, and giving them a unique, functional product to do so, they have successfully launched a whole new category in their product mix. Most importantly, the Produce Keepers can save customers money by reducing the amount of waste from spoiled fruits and vegetables.
2015 Winner: LifeWave, Inc. - Theta One and Theta Activate LifeWave began devising a nutritional drink supplement to provide whole body health benefits. By carefully calculating target-specific formulas, Theta One and Theta Activate distinguish themselves through its nutrient delivery system, designed to produce results within in minutes of use.
2014 Rodan + Fields - REDEFINE MACRO Exfoliator Rodan + Fields launched the REDEFINE MACRO Exfoliator, a state-of-the art, dermatologist-developed, hand-held exfoliation tool that sweeps away a week’s worth of dulling dead skin cells in just five minutes, leaving behind smoother, healthier-looking, luminous skin—without leaving the comfort of home. The REDEFINE MACRO Exfoliator has generated record-breaking sales, featured in multiple beauty magazines and highlighted on national television.
2013 Creative Memories - Fabulous You Campaign Creative Memories believes in women and in connecting mothers, children, family and friends—to achieve personal growth while nurturing each other, so the company developed a line of products and a series of communication efforts designed to help women find the fabulous in themselves.
2012 Rodan + Fields Dermatologists. Rodan + Fields Dermatologists received this award in 2012 for a product they introduced in 2010: the patent-pending AMP MD™ Roller. Constructed of surgical-grade, stainless steel micro-needles, AMP MDTM safely conditions the uppermost layers of the skin, allowing for maximum anti-aging benefits.
Winning entries in this category describe a specific program or tool that empowered or motivated the salesforce to succeed.
2019 Winner: Scentsy, Inc. - Self-Serve Reinstatement When a Consultant leaves Scentsy, whether by choice or circumstance, we’re always sorry to see them go. But life happens! That’s why we happily welcome former Consultants back into the fold when they’re ready to try again. Despite our desire to bring back as many Consultants as possible, our reinstatement process was a bit clunky. It required former Consultants to speak with a member of our support team, then wait—sometimes for several days—for their account to be reviewed. We knew we needed to improve the entire process, so in June 2018, we launched Self-Serve Reinstatement. Now, former Consultants can log in to Workstation Lite and find all the information they need to rejoin Scentsy with one simple click of a button. We have decreased the amount of time needed to reinstate from multiple days to less than 10 minutes and almost 90 percent of all reinstatements are accomplished online without assistance from our support team! Consultants love the ability to reinstate at their convenience. And we are delighted to see a marked increase in the total number of reinstatements. From June to December 2018, reinstatements were up 53 percent over the same months in 2017.
2018 Winner: Damsel in Defense - Journey To Protégé Damsel data shows that only 20% of new partners that join but never promote remain active, while an incredible 94% of new partners that join and promote to Protégé or above stay active long term. We recognized a retention problem – we were losing 80% of new Recruits, and we did not have a plan to fix the revolving “Damsel door”. We identified that our core rank started with Protégé, and the faster new partners achieved this rank, the more likely they were to stay. Through this discovery, we recognized that we needed a duplicatable system – a process – to glue our key programs together and to create a cohesive journey for new partners to achieve Protégé. The concept of “immersion = retention” brought to life the Journey to Protégé program to help develop our salesforce. The success and adoption of this program among our field along with how warmly our touch points were received at both the DSA Executive Women's Retreat as well as the Fall Conference prompted us to want to submit the development and the results of this program to the DSA to be considered for and Ethos Award in the category of Excellence in Salesforce Development.
2017 Winner: Scentsy, Inc. – Social Selling Tools In 2016, we launched exciting new Social Selling Tools to increase online engagement and ensure customers and Hosts get the best value and experience whether they purchase online or at a live event. We needed to make it easy for our Consultants to market to customers on social platforms, and to have whatever kind of party a Host desires: a traditional home party, an online party or a more modern hybrid blending an in-person and online guest list. Our new Social Selling Tools include two software components: The Marketing tab houses a collection of marketing resources enhanced for mobile devices. With one click, a Consultant can now select an image and share it directly on Facebook and Pinterest — right from their back office. The image then links directly to the Consultant’s e-commerce site. Our new Party Page is a customizable, social and mobile-friendly online experience to support ANY party type: home, on-the-go, fundraiser or online. Our Social Selling Tools have not just resulted in more parties, more online engagement/web traffic and more orders placed. They also decreased the number of hours a Consultant must spend on order and party entry and management, resulting in more income earned per hour.
2016 Winner: Rodan + Fields - Lead the Way At Rodan + Fields®, the majority of Consultants build their businesses with loyal Customers refered to as Preferred Customers (PCs). To build a prestige brand within consumer skincare, the recognition of these Consultants building their businesses with PCs must sufficiently align with the level of appreciation for the positive impact they had on the success of R+F. In January 2014, R+F created the Lead the Way program to reward any Consultant who is changing skin and changing lives. This program validates both types of business-building activity, generating volume by fulfilling PC orders and/or Consultant enrollments.
2015 Winner: Scentsy, Inc. - Idea Share Idea Share, a comprehensive site dedicated to harnessing the power of its brilliant consultants, giving them each a voice in the company and bolstering them with a new source of connection to the home office and each other. Through the program, consultants submit new ideas for products, programs, business tools — anything they think will improve their business success. Once new ideas are submitted, fellow consultants vote for the ones they want Scentsy to implement.
2014 Initials, Inc. - Font Color Guide Initials, Inc., sought a vehicle that would assist its field with their individual sales initiatives while equipping the customer with insight and knowledge to make purchasing decisions they would adore while speaking to their individuality. The company realized a need for a tool to equip the customer with the insight and know-how to make smarter purchasing decisions.
2013 Initials, Inc. - Boot Camp - Operation: SPARK As a company, Initials, Inc., wanted to support its new creative partners in building strong businesses and keep the field connected, motivated, engaged and focused during the early part of 2012. Boot Camp—Operation: SPARK is a 12-week intense (and optional) accountability program aimed to educate, inspire, connect, engage and support the field in hopes of accelerating growth in sales and record enrollment of new creative partners.
2012 Scentsy Spring Sprint, an intense traveling event that spans 26 carefully selected cities. In 2012, Spring Sprint reached 22,700 consultants—10,100 more than during the inaugural Spring Sprint in 2011. Spring Sprint has led to a network of connections across the country, allowing Scentsy home office staff to interact one-on-one with consultants, giving consultants a chance to meet each other and attracting new recruits while strengthening existing businesses.
2011 Rodan + Fields Rodan + Fields launched the Atlanta Project after realizing Georgia was one of their “top sponsoring states,” but the independent consultants were not advancing up the compensation plan and their desired new leadership was not emerging. Their three-module program saw increasing attendance as well as a 300 percent sales growth in the months following the workshops.
2010 Rodan + Fields Rodan + Fields® unveiled the Pulse Business Management Suite, the company’s state-of-the-art Customer Relationship Management System. To leverage the enthusiasm of a new recruit, they created the Pulse Wizard, a series of eight simple steps designed to quickly integrate consultants into the Rodan + Fields business system and get their businesses off to a fast start.
2009 Mary Kay Inc.
Winning entries illustrate how a specific project or program made an impact beyond the bottom line.
The Young Living Artesian Program is a partnership with female-led artisan groups across the globe to provide fair wages and opportunities for women to become more financially dependent by selling their handcrafted items though Young Living’s marketplace. Our program helps female entrepreneurs prosper as part of our holistic vision of creating a rising generation that is free to thrive and create positive change. We know that if we invest in women, we also are strengthening communities and supporting women in breaking the vicious cycle of poverty for their children. Since starting our program in 2020, we have connected with over 15 groups including those who have experienced extreme poverty, disability, displacement, trauma, exploitation, or violence. These artisanal items are made of ethically and sustainably sourced materials from 11 different countries including India, Ecuador, Uganda, and Nepal. Our commitment to helping these resilient women build strong and sustainable enterprises will lead to more income-generating opportunities and help those rising out of poverty. With fair and consistent pay, our partner artisans are better able to support the needs of themselves and families, as well as develop new skills, making a life-long impact.
2021 Winner: USANA – USANA Kids Eat USANA Kids Eat is a local, Salt Lake City-based program with a mission to eliminate hunger in Utah schools by providing backpacks filled with non-perishable, easily prepared food to ensure kids have enough to eat outside of school hours. Since combining forces, both Kids Eat and the USANA Foundation have shared space in the USANA corporate office. Each week, USANA Kids Eat delivers over 5,600 meals to local, at-risk youth in Utah. USANA and its employees work year-round to provide financial support and the proper resources to the Foundation and to USANA Kids Eat. Whether that is donating a portion of their paychecks each month to the Foundation for support or going over to the facility and packing bags. During the COVID-19 outbreak, families needed food more than ever, so USANA Kids Eat stepped up to the challenge. USANA Kids Eat supported a total of sixty-eight schools, community programs, and neighborhood clubs to help 6,193 kids in 2020.
2020 Winner: Nu Skin Enterprises—Nu Skin’s Sustainability Commitments At Nu Skin, we are a force for good through caring for our planet, improving the lives of children, nourishing future generations, and investing in our global community. Sustainability is so much more than just a buzzword to Nu Skin. We are committed to keeping our global communities clean, safe, and protected for the future. It’s a daunting task, but we’re proud to make it our mission to embrace sustainable practices today to enhance a resource-rich tomorrow. Today, we’re taking active, engaged strides to ensure the future is bright for both the planet and for each other. That is why, in 2019, we were proud to announce our global sustainability commitments. Our efforts rest firmly on three critical pillars: PEOPLE, PLANET, and PRODUCT.
2019 Winner: Damsel in Defense - The Damsel House Project The Damsel House project is a long term initiative to fund worldwide homes that are successfully rescuing children out of sex trafficking and giving them hope and a future. The Damsel Houses serve to aide in the healing from the violent sexual traumas these children have endured, teach them a skill and a sustainable trade and release them back to healthy environments where they can succeed without being re-victimized by traffickers or their own families.
After traveling overseas in 2013, our Founder and CEO felt drawn to use the platform of Damsel in Defense to do good in the world around this area that she is very passionate about. When you look into the eyes of a small child who reminds you of your own and then watch her parents sell her to another man on the side of the road, you never forgot that, ever. If her own parents won’t fight for her then who will? We will, these children have to be rescued, empowered and loved. Damsel in Defense is fulfilling a vision for tomorrow through the over $300,000 that has been given to these two homes and the rescues of children in their countries.
2018 Winner: USANA Health Sciences, Inc. - True Health Foundation In March 2012, USANA Health Sciences launched the USANA True Health Foundation (THF), a non-profit organization that provides the most critical human necessities—nutrition, clothing, shelter, medical assistance, and health education—to those who are suffering or in need, around the globe. During its first year the foundation raised more than $5 million in monetary and Usanimals™ children's supplement donations, with $1.9 million in monies and vitamins donated to those in need throughout the year. USANA believes in loving life and living it and that being part of a healthy family is essential. Connecting our worldwide family of Associates and customers to worthwhile projects focused on nutrition, disease prevention, and better health is at the core of our global activities. The mission of the True Health Foundation is to provide food and nutrition to impoverished children and families, ensuring they can reach their fullest potential.
2017 Winner: Damsel in Defense - SAFE Hearts 70% of sexual assaults happen to children under 17. In the U.S. 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys are sexually abused. 95% of children know their molesters. Our Vision for Tomorrow is a future free of children who have been sexually abused and are living in shame so Damsel in Defense created SAFE Hearts. Development began with a team of survivors, writers, an illustrator and a licensed professional. Content development was followed by beta testing with a focus group receiving feedback from parents and children of various ages and family systems. Our series of children’s storybooks and parent resources give parents an opportunity to empower children to take ownership over their hearts and bodies. Each storybook encourages strong and courageous decision-making in tricky situations. We encourage parents to read these stories with their children and ask the questions provided at the end of each book, knowing this could be opening the door to hard conversations and life changing realizations. Damsel partners with Speak Your Silence who offers nationwide counseling services to those affected by childhood sexual assault and gives monthly to fund counseling and ensure families in need have help stitching missing heart pieces back into place.
2016 Winner: USANA Health Services, Inc. - True Health Foundation In March 2012, USANA Health Sciences launched the USANA True Health Foundation (THF), a non-profit organization that provides the most critical human necessities—nutrition, clothing, shelter, medical assistance, and health education—to those who are suffering or in need, around the globe. During its first year the foundation raised more than $3 million in monetary and Usanimals™ children's supplement donations, with $2.3 million in monies and vitamins donated to those in need throughout the year.
2015 Winner: Nu Skin Enterprises - Creating Smiles Nu Skin’s mission is to be a force for good in the world by empowering people to improve their lives through the company’s rewarding business opportunities, innovative products and enriching and uplifting culture. Through its unique CSR approach, that leverages and mobilizes its sales leaders, Nu Skin has created hundreds of thousands of smiles around the world.
2014 Mary Kay Inc. - Don't Look Away Mary Kay is committed to ending domestic violence as part of its Don’t Look Away initiative. The program works to end domestic violence through the support of survivors and a prevention component that seeks to educate young women about dating violence and help end the cycle before it starts. Through the company’s prevention efforts, healthy relationship conversations have impacted countless young people and will touch an estimated 80,000 individuals in 2014.
2013 Rodan + Fields - Harvard Business School Case Study Rodan + Fields partnered with Harvard Business School researchers to write a business case study that would be memorialized and taught to high-profile audiences. Hundreds of current and future business leaders were exposed to Rodan + Fields’ learning and decision processes, including the outcomes of some difficult decisions, that would not only create positive and professional experiences for the company, but further shine a light on the legitimacy and breadth of successful outcomes that are possible—and happening—in this marketing channel throughout the world.
2012 The Pampered Chef The Pampered Chef was recognized in 2012 for its Round Up from the Heart program, which raises awareness and funds for Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger relief organization. Their six-month integrated cause marketing campaign resulted in 25.9 million media impressions for the cause and nearly 1.3 million meals for the nation’s hungry.
Winning entries demonstrate excellence, creativity and innovation in effective outreach to key audiences.
Fizz Sticks are a consistent top seller and income energizer with five permanent flavors and a vegan formula that delivers a clean energy boost without the high sugar with a fun bubbly reaction when added to water. A highly requested flavor in this bestselling product, Tart Cherry Fizz was a new option introduced to help kick off the holiday season. With an on-trend color and flavor profile, the product was poised for a successful launch campaign that leveraged the excitement of bBack Friday shopping and a limited time release. Creatively, the imagery behind the campaign tied to the rest of our holiday offerings, which were inspired by the vibrancy of nature. The tagline of “Very. Merry. Cherry.” was used to seamlessly fold in all aspects of the fizz.
2021 Winner: Scentsy – Bring Back My Buddy We first launched the Scentsy Buddy in September 2010, and it was an instant hit. This fun and fragrant product was designed especially for kids of all ages to delight the senses with kid-safe fragrance, vibrant colors, and varied textures. What originally began as a seasonal catalog product ultimately morphed into a highly successful limited-time-offer program due to their natural collectability. But because each Scentsy Buddy is only available while supplies last, not every customer is able to get the ones they want most. In 2020, to celebrate a decade of these fragrant friends, we invited Scentsy consultants and customers to vote on which three Buddies they’d like to bring back as 10th Anniversary Editions, available once more for a limited time only. From voting to purchasing, Bring Back My Buddy had successful engagement and results. A total of 532,317 votes were cast by Scentsy Buddy fans during the three-day window in February 2020 and our $1 million goal for new revenue was dramatically achieved: 10th Anniversary Edition Scentsy Buddies brought in more than $3.5 million in new revenue globally.
2020 Winner: Scentsy, Inc.—Scentsy Club In 2015, we launched the Scentsy VIP Program to reward loyal customers with exclusive benefits for placing recurring orders. The program resulted in lackluster adoption, so we set out to develop something better. Scentsy Club makes it easier than ever for Consultants to serve their best customers. Average monthly revenue from 2019 Scentsy Club orders was 1,545 percent higher than Scentsy VIP orders in 2018.
2019 Winner: Noonday Collection - Imperfect Courage Book Campaign In August 2018, Noonday Collection launched the first book written by Founder Jessica Honegger, entitled Imperfect Courage: Live a Life of Purpose by Leaving Comfort and Going Scared. Part memoir, part call-to-action, the book shares the lessons Honegger has learned on her journey of growing Noonday Collection into the world’s largest fair trade accessories brand and inspires the reader to find her own imperfect courage and live a meaningful life.
The goals of the book campaign were to enable Noonday Collection brand to reach new audiences; increase brand engagement across multiple channels; increase the number of new Ambassadors joining the Noonday Collection salesforce; and provide the salesforce with new booking, recruiting, and selling opportunities. Through the development of a new Jessica Honegger brand, influencer and PR strategy, and equipping our Ambassador salesforce to promote, we were successful in meeting these goals. Imperfect Courage reached the top 50 books on Amazon, including #1 in the Women in Business category. It sold over 30,000 copies and garnered over one billion media impressions for Noonday Collection. Today, the book continues to serve as an inspiring tool for Noonday Ambassadors to leverage in recruiting Trunk Show Hostesses and team members, and earning shopper loyalty.
2018 Winner: Scentsy, Inc. - ¡La Habana! We curated ¡La Habana!, a limited-edition fragrance collection, to delight and engage Scentsy Consultants, customers and fans. We wanted to give Consultants something new and exciting to share with customers and increase sales during traditionally slower months. We also set out to engage an entirely new Scentsy customer with a sensory exploration of a fascinating locale — an exotic escape from life’s daily routine. We developed a holistic social media campaign to position Scentsy as an industry leader in home fragrance with a unique, trendsetting collection, and to provide Consultants with compelling new products paired with top-notch marketing efforts and training to increase their sales in May and June. We knew Consultants and their customers would be enchanted by ¡La Habana!, but we were blown away by the excitement and adoration surrounding the collection throughout the campaign. Our results far exceeded our goals, with more than 3 million reached and over 150,000 engagements, with 7,000 new Facebook followers generated.
2017 Winner: New Avon LLC -”This Is Boss Life" - Integrated Marketing Campaign In 2016, New Avon embarked on new beginning as a private company in North America, majority owned by Cerberus Capital Management, following its separation from Avon Products, Inc. Leveraging an iconic 130 year history, we have a renewed commitment to return Avon to its position of strength by investing in our Representatives. We created a fully integrated marketing campaign that modernized the direct selling opportunity and Avon brand to appeal to new audiences, and to bolster engagement with existing Representatives. We saw an opportunity to leverage the intersection between what today’s entrepreneurial women want—workplace flexibility, leadership opportunities, financial independence - and what’s already in Avon’s DNA - empowering women to take control of their finances, their careers, and their lives. Our Big Idea started with a powerful tagline, “THIS IS BOSS LIFE,” and celebrated the beauty that comes with being your own boss. Since the October launch, the campaign has created lifts in brand perception, consideration, daily leads, and Google search volume. “Boss Life” had a powerful impact on consumer perception, and importantly, created a surge of passion and pride among Representatives.
2016 Winner: 4Life Research, LLC - 4Life Transform & The Launch of PRO-TF In April of 2015, 4Life Research launched 4LifeTransform, a branded campaign to support a new protein supplement, PRO-TF®. The overall launch objective was to position 4LifeTransform as a premiere lifestyle and anti-aging brand through the inaugural product launch of PRO-TF—Your Total Protein Infusion. While the marketing elements of the brand campaign remained consistent from medium to medium, they included a multiplicity of “voices” to champion the launch. These included customer testimonials, sports endorsements, university studies, research publications, and expert health and wellness opinions.
2015 Winner: Mary Kay Inc. - Project Runway/Lifetime TV Sponsorship Mary Kay was the Official Beauty Sponsor of Project Runway Season 13 in 2014 with their main objective being to elevate Mary Kay as a beauty brand through association with this popular, fashion-oriented TV show, increase purchase consideration among target market and attract new customers to the Mary Kay brand, as well as provide the salesforce with multiple booking and selling opportunities. The promotion was very successful in increasing traffic to marykay.com, increasing favorability for the brand over time, engaging their fans on social media and exciting the salesforce and empowering them to gain new customers and help increase their sales.
2014 WineShop At Home - Wine is Social WineShop At Home’s revolutionary “Wine is Social” media platform is a custom set of digital tools that allows their independent sales field to create a community of wine lovers and market their businesses online. In addition to a responsive website, viewable on mobile, tablet and desktop, the digital toolset, along with on-going education, is focused on social selling—enhancing WineShop At Home’s in-home Wine Tasting events with an equally social online presence.
2013 Scentsy Family - Backstage Pass Scentsy’s “Light It Up” Convention 2012 in Las Vegas was game changing. The answer was a three-phase, social media tsunami called “Backstage Pass,” designed around three stages: tease it, tell it, and treasure it. The Backstage Pass program yielded a stronger and more active participation from consultants at the Convention and from those at home than live streaming ever did, at a fraction of the cost.
2012 Rodan + Fields Dermatologists The Age-O-Meter is a viral Facebook application that helps Rodan + Fields consultants leverage the power of social media to enhance prospecting efforts and promote its AMP MDTM system. Since its launch in 2011, the Age-O-Meter has received more than 100,000 hits and Rodan + Fields has experienced tremendous business growth.
The Rising Star Award recognizes up-and-coming direct selling companies that have dedicated themselves to achieving a high standard of excellence in business operations.
2018 Winner: pawTree pawTree's Revolutionary Approach to Pet Health Our concept? A company that helps to educate and empower pet parents to make informed decisions about their pet's health with confidence. A pawTree business is the opportunity that changes everything for our petPros! It opens up the pawsibilities to do more, see more, accomplish more and…DREAM MORE! Our greatest desire is that pawTree helps our petPros discover life changing love and happiness in their own lives, and help others do the same.
2017 Winner: viaONEHOPE Mix. Mingle. Make an Impact. viaONEHOPE is a merit-based marketing program that provides CauEntrepreneursers a way to earn an income while making an impact. We harvest and create award winning wines from Napa Valley and make a quantifiable impact with every bottle. To date, we have donated more than $2.3 million to charitable causes around the globe.
2016 Winner: Damsel in Defense Damsel in Defense was founded in 2011 by two friends with a passion for safety. They pride themselves on making women feel more comfortable about arming themselves with non-lethal products; not only to keep them safe, but to give them the confidence to know they have a way out if they ever feel threatened. Damsel offers a unique product line that fills the daily core need of one’s safety and well-being and offers consultants income through a market that is untapped.
2015 Winner: All'asta All’asta is more than a business; it’s a lifestyle. Their mission is to empower women with their individuality. Fun is the core of their parties, but the essence of All’asta is our growing field and the opportunity created for so many.
2014 Celadon Road, Inc. Celadon Road offers consultants and customers the highest quality natural, eco-friendly products for their everyday needs. Celadon Road's looks inspire individuals to discover and explore their shade of green and to purchase with a purpose.
2013 Jeunesse Global The company’s Jeunesse Youth Enhancement System (Y.E.S.) isn’t just about looking young. It’s about feeling young for the long term. Their culture springs from the integrity and core values of their founders and as a result, their global family of distributors experience rewarding relationships based on mutual respect, trust and love.
2012 Viridan Energy Through unique product innovation, commitment to sustainability and a complementary relationship with word-of-mouth marketing, Viridian Energy has made its mark in the direct selling industry, achieving more than $200 million in annual sales in only three short years. Viridian was the first to offer an electricity plan that was greener and more affordable than the utility companies’, allowing consumers to do something better for the environment without changing their behavior or paying more.
2011 Team Beachbody Team Beachbody recognized early on that the best means of promotion was not television infomercials or ads, but instead Beachbody customers themselves so the Team Beachbody Coaching Network was launched. The network gives customers the opportunity the start their independent business sharing the products they love.
2010 Rodan + Fields Launched in 2002 by Stanford University-trained dermatologists Katie Rodan, M.D., and Kathy Fields, M.D., Rodan + Fields Dermatologists first established its equity as a leading clinical skincare brand in top-tier department stores. Pursuing this vision, the company embarked on a bold business transformation, withdrawing from department stores and launching a direct selling business model that enables passionate entrepreneurs to effectively compete with skincare industry giants.
2009 Scentsy, Inc.
The DSA Partnership Award recognizes Supplier affiliates that provide a product or service that has a measurable impact on the growth or development of an active member company or increases the profitability of a member.
Rallyware Performance Enablement Platform (PEP) supercharges distributed workforces to perform the right business activities at the right time. PEP is a data-driven technology that makes it fun and rewarding for each individual to continuously take the steps towards success at every stage of building and growing their business. Rallyware has been adopted by dozens of direct selling companies in 57 countries supporting over 20 languages for millions of their distributed workforces.
2021 Winner: PayQuicker PayQuicker, an innovative fintech company, launched its revolutionary payout platform in 2007, allowing businesses of any size to offer secure and compliant instant global payouts in local currency via secured bank accounts with prepaid debit cards, virtual cards, and mobile wallets, all through a single point of integration. Our platform offers a low-cost, fully customizable, client-branded portal and experience with advanced technology that becomes the client’s competitive advantage. For clients who have their own portal, PayQuicker offers the same advanced global payment gateway that can be white-labeled and integrated directly with our client’s portal, powering it with all the PayQuicker best-in-class features and benefits. Our benefits power clients to make payouts to distributors, consultants, affiliates, vendors, gig workers, contractors, and others across the globe and become a competitive advantage. Faster payouts to distributors means they grow their businesses—and yours—faster. The PayQuicker mission is to provide our clients with the most advanced global payout solution that results in happy payees who, in turn, drive our clients’ business growth with every login, payout, purchase, or swipe. Our platform delivers on all mission-critical requirements to deliver choice, speed, and security. Our clients can offer their payees a choice of instant payment types (virtual, instant issue, prepaid debit cards) and instant spend (online, POS, ATM) through one easy integration. Nothing’s faster.
2020 Winner: Multibrain In 2012, Multibrain Chief Brain and CEO Scott Kramer met a table full of legends in direct selling during a DSA luncheon. From there, the entertainment and media pioneer dedicated his company to building the tools and training needed to take the direct selling channel to the next level in technology; and developed a mission of defining social selling in the digital arena. Over the next six years, the team at Multibrain gave total focus to training, supporting, and providing the tools for direct selling consultants to build their business via social media and establishing their own communities/networks. Multibrain has evolved in step with technology and developed a business focused on four pillars for enterprise corporate success, termed “controlled empowerment,” with an approach of “bottom up,” beginning at the field level. To date, the Multibrain platform has been successfully implemented by a handful of top direct selling companies and more than 180,000 individual consultants who have generated over six million new prospects (connections) in a funnel approach to generating new sales and recruits. Multibrain thrives in its ability to “find new people to talk to” for its users, and a platform that’s as easy to use as a single click.
2019 Winner: Buy The Sea With over 16 years of solid partnerships with direct selling firms, Buy the Sea has sourced, contracted and operated international programs for up to 6,000 passengers. The keys to our success are communication, trust and long-standing relationships—both with our clients and our cruise, hotel and destination suppliers. Our value proposition lies in our ability to create a unique experience for each client—independent of size and budget. We ensure memorable events—fostering corporate loyalty and profitability. Since 2008, we have acted as the cruise broker for Amway Global. We started with Europe and now work with 12 regions worldwide. In October 2018, Amway completed a full charter of the RCCL Symphony of the Seas. They purchased the product sight unseen based upon relationship and trust. Oriflame Sweden sailed a tandem (two ships at the same time) charter for their 50th anniversary—which won them a BEA World prize for the BEST Global Incentive Travel program. Avon, Monat, Optavia and Plexus entrusted us with their first ever incentives at sea. Each are considering cruises for upcoming events. We encourage clients to look beyond the shoreline and take their programs out to sea where remarkable results are achieved.
2018 Winner: ByDesign Technologies Since its founding in 2000, ByDesign Technologies has been recognized as an industry thought-leader pushing direct selling technology forward with first-to-market solutions that simplify the many complexities behind direct sales, party plan and MLM business models. The Freedom Platform is a turnkey solution that allows flexible configuration and includes open API's proven to meet the needs of any sized client. Their services include commissions and genealogy, replicating websites, e-commerce shopping, client branded mobile app and a suite of tools for representatives. Freedom is the highest rated and reviewed direct selling, party plan and MLM Software by Gartner. Their service is about more than making user interfaces intuitive and easy to use; it’s also about, providing the tools that direct selling companies need to expedite wise decisions. With more than $6 Billion in orders processed and over $2 Billion in commissions paid, ByDesign delivers proven results globally.
2017 Winner: Momentum Factor For more than seven years, Momentum Factor has impacted the growth of direct sales channel by developing powerful and unique solutions that support the safe and effective adoption of social media and online technologies. With expertise in online technologies as well as a deep understanding of the direct selling channel, the firm's solutions enable direct sellers to market products and opportunities online while at the same time remaining true to the DSA's mission of strong ethics and responsible business practices. Having uncovered more than a million potential incidents of compliance online, combined with a 100% retention rate of its 20+ DSA member clients, Momentum Factor has proven an essential partner in supporting the bright future of direct selling.
2016 Winner: Smart Office Solutions, Inc. Smart Office Solutions is the premiere communications provider in the Direct Selling space, committed to the success and growth of their clients for the last 14 years. Each client receives a customized communication strategy focused on the client’s primary objectives. At the core of Smart Office is the commitment to treat clients as true business partners.
2015 Winner: Step Into Success Step Into Success is a direct sales consulting and marketing company run by Belinda Ellsworth, who has over 36 years of experience in the industry. Belinda facilitates a variety of focus groups to discover what is relevant and current in today’s industry, and offers unique programs and techniques to help companies become more successful.
2014 Hyperwallet Paying consultants’ commission payments is arguably one of the most important jobs that exist for a direct selling company. To have so many direct sellers put their trust in Hyperwallet is a great honor. That our clients suggest our service to others is also an amazing testament to our quality of service and the great relationships we’ve built.
2013 IMN Inc. IMN Inc., is a digital marketing company that delivers branded email newsletters and content with proven results driving an average of 2-3 times more sales and recruits. IMN offers a complete email marketing service combining expertly written lifestyle content, distribution capabilities, social media capabilities, and behavioral analytics in every newsletter campaign.
2012 Iacono Productions The mission of Iacono Productions is to stage events, develop content, and design media that is creative, fresh, relevant, exciting, on-target, and ideally suited to the audience. Iacono Productions relies on a collabortive, team-oriented process that emphasizes the exchange of ideas. It is our firm belief that success is derived from listening to our clients and keeping them involved in the process.
2011 Harland Clarke Harland Clarke began its partnership with Mary Kay in 1994 with their branded personal check program and their partnership grew to include an area known as MKConnections and includes business cards, stationary, and sales and business tools. In 2007, Harland Clarke took the lead on the project of the creation, development and maintenance for the new MKConnections site and completed the project flawlessly and on time.
2010 Grimes & Reese 2009 ServiceQuest 2008 Direct Selling News 2007 Dan Jensen Consulting 2006 ZOOM.7 Genuine Meetings & Events 2005 B2 Direct 2004 QuinStreet, Inc. 2003 ProPay USA 2002 SWJ-Southwest, Inc. 2001 Richard Weylman, Inc. 2000 Wakefield Talabisco International 1999 Cloward and Associates 1998 VideoPlus 1997 Jenkon International 1996 Town & Country 1995 The Dick Appelbaum Company
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